Modelling of a carrousel plant by an intermittently aerated activated sludge process

An intermittently aerated completely mixing lab-scale bioreactor was applied in the modelling of simultaneous nitrification and denitrification processes carried out in the Carrousel system. Two kinetic models based on the IAWPRC task group kinetic and stoichiometric concept were developed and verified. The model parameters number is reduced and the influence of waste water composition on oxygen transport rate is implicitly incorporated by the evaluation of oxic and anoxic "switching functions" based on oxygen profile data monitored in the bioreactor. The advantages of this approach in comparison to the tank-in-series model are discussed.