When evaluating lagoon upgrades, choosing semi-passive treatment technology = active savings
Increasing the capacity and performance of an aging or underperforming wastewater treatment lagoon often involves difficult choices. These might include adding another lagoon cell, installing a post-lagoon system, or abandoning the lagoon and building a mechanical treatment plant. In most cases, these upgrades are costly, and some options incorporate complex processes that require a great deal of energy and maintenance.
But it is possible to improve a lagoon system for about half the cost of alternatives and without expanding its footprint or adding a lot of high-tech process equipment.
BioCord® Reactors are like condominiums for bacteria that are installed directly into a treatment lagoon and dramatically increase the population of naturally occurring bacteria. With a BioCord system, there is no need for additional tanks, pumps, or blowers. Instead, baffle curtains can direct the passive wastewater flow in the lagoon through the reactor cell to avoid short-circuiting, while low-energy aeration sustains biofilm growth, creates a fully mixed zone, scours away excess biofilm, and prevents ice from forming around the frames.
The result is a self-regulating, self-cleaning, semi-passive system that maintains high removal rates for ammonia and organics, even when the wastewater temperature is near freezing. This semi-passive process aligns with typical lagoon operation, which means existing staff can continue managing the lagoon as usual, without additional operators or new certifications for complex treatment processes.
At the same time, communities gain increased treatment capacity, improved cold-weather performance, and low energy and operating costs.
Unlike complex mechanical systems, BioCord Reactors arrive at the site fully assembled and can be installed in just a few days or weeks, depending on the size of the system. In many cases, installation can be completed while the lagoon remains in operation, so there is no disruption to wastewater services. By comparison, the buildings and infrastructure required for a mechanical plant might take months or years to build, which dramatically increases capital costs, traffic and noise in the community.
Learn more about low-energy, semi-passive BioCord Reactor systems.
Contact us to discuss a BioCord Reactor system for your community.
