Design and Operational Considerations To Avoid Excessive Anaerobic Digester Foaming

DESIGN AND OPERATIONAL CONSIDERATIONS TO AVOID EXCESSIVE
ANAEROBIC DIGESTER FOAMING

Neil Massart*, Black & Veatch
Robert Bates, Louisville and Jefferson County Metropolitan Sewer District
Blair Corning, South Adams County Water and Sanitation District
Gary Neun, Black & Veatch

*Black & Veatch
8400 Ward Parkway
Kansas City, MO 64114

ABSTRACT

Excessive foaming in anaerobic digesters has been a problem for many years. All anaerobic
digesters will foam to some extent, but excessive foam can be problematic. Excessive foaming
is defined as foam that interferes with flow through the gas piping system and/or is not contained
within the digester. Causes of foaming include presence of excessive filamentous bacteria,
extreme amounts of oils and grease, and the feed sludge composition (primary sludge (PS)
versus waste activated sludge), but the chief cause of excessive foaming is inconsistent feed to
the digesters.

Many utilities have evaluated technological changes to the digester facilities. While such
changes may reduce/control foaming, they often involve expensive additions to the facility in
terms of both capital and operation and maintenance (O&M) costs. Consequently, before
investing in technology changes, utilities should consider operational changes that could mitigate
foaming.

In addition, facilities that are installing new digesters should consider design elements that can
reduce the potential for foaming as well as the effects of foaming on ancillary equipment.
Design considerations to avoid excessive digester foaming will be presented followed by three
case studies of unstable operations at existing digester facilities, and operational considerations
to avoid excessive foaming will be presented in relationship to the three case studies.

KEYWORDS

Anaerobic digester, foam, monitoring, primary solids, waste activated solids

INTRODUCTION

Foaming is a serious problem with many anaerobic digesters, and it seems to be becoming more
prevalent across the country. No one knows the exact cause, as there is no single common
thread; however, researchers believe that the increase in advanced biological treatment processes
and the corresponding changes in the quantity and characteristics of the WAS are key factors.
Foaming is reported to occur more frequently if the ratio of WAS to total sludge exceeds 40
percent. There are usually multiple factors that contribute to digester foaming:
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Copyright 2006 Water Environment Foundation. All Rights Reserved

Slug feed to the digesters
Intermittent feeding of digesters
Separate feeding or inadequate blending of WAS and PS
Insufficient or intermittent mixing of digesters
Excessive grease and scum in digester feed, especially if fed in batches
WAS content exceeds 40-50 percent of the total amount of sludge fed
Filaments, specifically Nocadia, in activated sludge fed to the digesters
Presence of Organism B, an anaerobe filament believed to be generated in the digester,
and thriving under conditions of high volatile solids loadings

While some foaming always occurs, problematic foaming can result in loss of active digester
volume, structural damage if it causes the digester cover to rise, spillage, and adverse impacts on
gas handling equipment. Foaming is considered as long as it is contained under the digester
cover and does not interfere with the working of the gas piping system. Foam is defined as
excessive if it plugs piping and/or escapes the containment of the anaerobic digester. Excessive
foaming is illustrated on Figure 1.

Figure 1 - Excessive Digester Foaming

Facilities that are planning to build new digesters should consider design elements that can
reduce the potential for foaming as well as the effects of foaming on ancillary equipment. Many
utilities have evaluated changes to their digester technology, such as adding ultrasound to pre-
treat the WAS ahead of digestion or conversion to two-stage digestion. While such changes may
reduce or control the foaming, they often involve expensive additions in terms of both capital
costs and O&M costs. Consequently, before investing in technology changes to existing
facilities, utilities should consider operational changes that could mitigate the foaming.

Anaerobic digestion systems are complex and do not run on autopilot; they require daily
sampling, analysis, data review, and process control adjustments. Excessive foaming is
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controllable if the operator is provided the time and resources to monitor the system. The goal of
the facility operator should be to minimize the factors that exacerbate foaming rather than to
eliminate foaming altogether. A dedicated and knowledgeable staff is essential to the operation
of the anaerobic digesters and related processes. It is imperative the staff be adequately trained
to control digester performance. Regular staff meetings to discuss data trends and digester
sampling protocol are essential for routine operation of the digesters.

DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS

Design considerations are essential to efficient operation of anaerobic digesters and control of
excessive foaming, such as adequate mixing of primary sludge and WAS ahead of the digester,
and in the digester; adequate digester volume; sludge feed and withdrawal schemes; and
equipment such as foam separators, grit removal facilities, electrically operated drip traps, and
sloped gas piping systems. Because the extent of foam generation is uncertain, its elimination
and/or provision of gas utilization equipment that can handle foam must be a design
consideration.

The designer of an anaerobic digester system must think not only about the anaerobic digester
system, but also about the other systems within the plant that will affect digester operation. For
instance, if the plant receives hauled waste, the waste should be stored and metered into the
digesters rather than being pumped at a high rate into the digester. Anaerobic digestion is not
merely an add-on process for sludge treatment, but an integral part of the treatment system.

The digester complex must be compatible with other components of the plant and the type of
sludge being processed in the anaerobic digesters. The sludge must be properly blended before it
enters the digester to assure consistent solids concentration in the digester feed, and thus, a more
consistent feed of volatile solids.

Upstream process such as grit removal is vital to effective digester performance. If the grit is not
removed, it could pass into the primary clarifiers and be pumped to the digesters, where it could
settle and effectively reduce the usable digester volume.

To ensure that all solids that enter the digester will leave the digester, adequate mixing is
necessary. Adequate mixing produces a uniform solids concentration throughout the digester,
which is important for the reduction of volatile solids.

The feed to the digester should be well mixed, especially if it consists of a combination of WAS
and PS. The ratio of WAS to PS can affect the amount of foam formation, but the more critical
parameter for controlling foaming is the volatile solids loading rate which can be partially
controlled by proper blending of feed sludge. Withdrawal from the digester should be done by
hydraulic overflow rather than by opening and closing a valve. The difference in hydraulics
caused by opening a valve to withdraw sludge will result in the level and the volume of the
digester contents to vary. By using a hydraulic overflow, the level of sludge in the digester and
its volume will always be a constant.

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Other means of controlling foaming include ensuring that the gas piping is sloped properly and
installing electrically operated drip traps at key points in the piping to remove condensed water
from the piping system. Water in the gas piping can cause blockages that increase the pressure
in the system. When the blockage is removed, foaming can occur in the digester. This is
analogous to shaking a can of soda and then opening the top: The sudden decrease in pressure
within the can will cause the contents to foam. Thus, it is imperative that the system is designed
to allow the condensate to be quickly and effectively removed.

Two other add-on features can be considered when designing a digester: ultrasonic pretreatment
of WAS and foam separator. While both treat the symptoms rather than the cause, they can be
effective in alleviating short-term process upsets.

Pretreatment of WAS with ultrasonic energy causes cavitation within the microbe cell membrane
and creates a soluble chemical oxygen demand (COD) that can be readily digested.
Conditioning of thickened waste activated sludge (TWAS) using ultrasound before anaerobic
digestion has been recently implemented in a few treatment facilities in both Europe and North
America to achieve more complete digestion and to enhance volatile solids reduction. Increased
volatile solids reduction translates to increased biogas generation (of relevance where biogas is
reused), and decreased quantities of stabilized biosolids for disposal. In some cases, improved
dewaterability of the sludge has also been reported. Many of the installations that use ultrasonic
conditioning have also made anecdotal references to observing a decrease and in some cases
complete elimination in foaming incidents.

The drawback of ultrasonic conditioning is nutrients are released which can increase by 10
percent the amount of nitrogen recycled to the head of the plant. An ultrasound conditioning
system is illustrated on Figures 2 and 3.

Figure 2 Sonix Ultrasound System Figure 3 EMICO Sonolyzer

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The other add-on option, the foam separator, removes foam by drawing gas/foam from the top of
the digester and beating it down using a series of water spray nozzles. The excess water flows
through a P-trap to a drain leading to the headworks of the wastewater treatment plant. This
option is attractive where there is inadequate blending of the feed sludge or where the feed rate
to the digester is highly variable. A schematic and a picture of a foam separator are presented in
Figures 4 and 5.

Figure 4 Varec Foam Separator Figure 5 Foam Separator Schematic

OBSERVATIONS

Three case studies representing various process scenarios will be presented, demonstrating that
the usual culprit for excessive anaerobic digester foaming is inconsistent feeding.

Case Study No. 1

The Morris Forman WWTP in Louisville, Kentucky, has a treatment capacity of 105 mgd. This
plant was upgraded in 2003 by converting the four sludge holding tanks to four 1.8 million
gallon anaerobic digesters, followed by five high rate centrifuges and four triple pass drum dryer
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systems. The digesters have an associated heating system consisting of a recirculation pump, a
spiral heat exchanger, and a heated water pump. Each digester is equipped with a gas mixing
system consisting of a liquid ring gas compressor, gas distribution manifold, and 14 gas bubble
cannons.

Excessive foaming at the Morris Forman facility was a result of inconsistent organic loading
(Figure 6). The four digesters were loaded with primary sludge plus an occasional load of
hauled-in septic solids received as hauled waste. Foaming occurred whenever the mass of
volatile solids to the digesters was significantly increased either by pumping too large a volume
or by not maintaining the feed solids concentration at less than 5 percent, which caused the
organic loading rates to exceed the targeted operating rate. Once the mass of volatile solids to
the digesters was controlled, the excessive foaming events ceased.

Figure 6 Excessive Foaming Event

At the Morris Forman facility, the anaerobic digesters perform two functions:

1. Produce digester gas for use as fuel by the dryer system
2. Generate a uniform product for dewatering and drying

Monitoring the digester is vital to proper operation, and has greatly enhanced the performance of
the digester. Figure 7 shows the digester performance in 2004.

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Figure 7 Digester Performance in 2004

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Foaming occurred when the feed to the digester was inconsistent and the percentage of change in
the feed rate was greater than 20 percent. Once the feed rate was controlled, volatile acids
formation remained consistent and no excessive foaming events were reported. Figure 8
represents a two-month period of inconsistent feed to the digester, and Figure 9 represents a two-
month period of controlled feed rate.

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Figure 8 Inconsistent Feed to the Digester, July 2004 to August 2004

Digester Performance
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Figure 9 Consistent Feed to the Digester, October 2004 to November 2004

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Case Study No. 2

A WWTP in South Carolina was upgraded in 2000 to include three anaerobic digesters and
ancillary equipment. The digesters measure 85 feet in diameter, with a sidewater depth of 30
feet and a volume of 1.4 million gallons each, for a total volume of 4.2 million gallons. Total
design loading is 58,900 pounds per day under annual average conditions, with a detention time
of 29 days for 5 percent total solids (TS), and 75 percent volatile solids (VS). The digesters are
equipped with floating gasholder covers (arch type), which have a gas storage volume of 26,000
cubic feet, and are mixed by nine large-bubble gas cannons each. The digester gas is circulated
by liquid-ring type compressors.

Excessive digester foaming was a recurring problem and became the focus of an evaluation
(Figures 10 and 11). The foaming caused sludge to overflow the walls of the digesters and to
enter the biogas collection piping, blinding the flame traps and interfering with the operation of
the gas mixing systems.

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Although excessive amounts of grease and insufficient blending were contributing to the
foaming problems, they were determined not to be the primary cause of foaming. The primary
cause was thickened sludge, both primary and WAS (which was routinely injected into the
digester at concentrations greater than 5 percent) settling to the bottom of the digester, and the
unstable operating conditions resulting from the inconsistent organic loading.

The following recommendations for reducing the foaming included evaluation of the upstream
processes, digesters, and digester support equipment.

1. Maintain solids concentrations in digester feed at 4.5 to 5 percent. Higher concentrations
reduce the effectiveness of the digester mixing systems.

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2. Maintain digester loading rates from 100 to 150 pounds per 1,000 cubic feet of digester
volume for mixed PS and TWAS.

3. Analyze the PS and TWAS characteristics and total solids, and volatile solids concentrations,
at least daily to track variations in organic loading rates to the digesters and track the flow
rates of PS, TWAS, and scum to the digesters.

4. Limit the daily variation in volatile solids load (organic load) to the digesters to 5-10
percent by trending volatile solids loading.

5. Trend the volatile solids reduction against the actual digester gas production, which typically
averages 13-15 cubic feet per pound of volatile solids destroyed. Foaming can reduce the
effluent volatile solids concentrations below these values, as a result of entrapment of solids
in the foam layer, causing abnormally high gas production rates.

6. Maintain lower sludge blankets in the primary clarifiers to improve removal efficiencies.
Improved removal of biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) in the primaries reduces secondary
sludge production for digestion.

Since these recommendations were implemented, excessive foaming events have ceased. The
impacts of large variations in volatile solids feed on the anaerobic digester are depicted on Figure
12.

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Figure 12 Effects on the Digester Variations in Volatile Solids Loading

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Inonsistent VSS Feed/
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The plot on Figure 12, which represents the digester performance for a two-week period,
illustrates the importance of controlling digester feed. Overfeeding the digesters caused
excessive foaming. Once the volatile solids loading was controlled, the excessive foaming
ceased. Trending the data became invaluable to the plant operating staff in controlling the feed,
thus stopping the excessive foaming.

Case Study No. 3

The Williams Monaco WWTP in Henderson, Colorado, is another plant where operational
controls were implemented to eliminate excessive foaming and to restore an upset digester to
proper operation. The plant consists of one primary and one secondary digester. PS and WAS
are pumped to a gravity thickener to be co-thickened. The thickened sludge is pumped to the
primary digester, and thickener overflow is pumped to the head of the plant. The primary
digester overflows by gravity to the secondary digester.

The gravity thickener is 45 feet in diameter, with a sidewall depth of 10 feet and a volume of
approximately 136,000 gallons (Figure 13). The primary digester is 45 feet in diameter and 28
feet deep with a capacity of 344,000 gallons, and is equipped with three gas mixing cannons
(Figure 14). The secondary digester has a capacity of 321,000 gallons.

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Figure 13 Gravity Thickener

Figure 14 Primary Digester

Overloading and excessive foaming of the primary digester would occur due to the large
variations of thickened solids discharged from the gravity thickener (Figure 15).

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Figure 15 Dried Excess Foam

The concentration of solids in the gravity thickener ranged from 4 to 8 percent, with the depth of
solids varying accordingly, leading to organic overloading and excessive foaming. The gravity
thickener not only thickened the solids, but also acted as a fermenter, producing volatile fatty
acids (VFA), which would not normally be necessarily detrimental to the process, except that the
volatile solids loading to the digester had been extremely erratic. To correct the problem,
operators established and maintained a consistent solids concentration in the gravity thickener
and prepared process control trend charts to correct any problems before the digester became
upset. Figure 16 illustrates data trending and how to recognize inconsistent volatile solids feed
to the digester.

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Figure 16 Volatile Solids Loading in the Digester

Primary Digester Performance
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Corrective
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From week 1 to week 19, inconsistent feed to the digesters caused excessive foaming and large
variations in the volatile acids concentration, which led to decreased gas production and inability
to restore the proper pH in the digester. As a corrective action, the feed to the digester was
decreased to 20 percent of the design loading capacity to allow the methane formers to recover
and to reduce the volatile acids concentration in the digester. When the excessive foaming
ceased, the feed to the digesters was gradually increased to match the rate of feeding volatile
solids into the gravity thickener, as shown for week 26. The plant has continued to maintain the
volatile solids loading rate, operation of the digester has stabilized, and the excessive foaming
has stopped.

OPERATIONAL CONSIDERATIONS

The causes of excessive digester foaming include an excessive amount of filamentous bacteria,
excessive grease, and unstable operating conditions. In the three case studies presented, all
excessive foaming events were caused by unstable operating conditions.

Excessive amounts of filamentous bacteria in the WAS feed from secondary treatment process
were not considered the primary cause of foaming in any facilities studied. While such bacteria
may have been present and may have contributed to foaming, the intermittent nature of the
foaming suggests other primary causes. Experience has shown that the effects of filamentous
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bacteria on foaming can be controlled as long as the basic principles of operating an activated
sludge system are observed.

Waste grease from grease traps and hauled waste are processed in the digesters in all three case
studies. Greasy components of the scum in the digesters feed are hydrophobic and tend to float
in the gravity settling basins. Septage wastes may contain large quantities of grit or inert
materials that could ultimately settle in the digesters, and reduce their capacity. In all case
studies, excess grease and oils at various concentrations were fed to the digesters with the PS
and/or WAS. There was no apparent correlation between the amounts of foaming and the
amount of oil and grease in the digester feed.

If the sludge in the digester is not properly mixed, a scum layer may accumulate on its surface
and adhere to the gas bubbles, forming a foam layer. The biogas generated will not be
completely stripped off the digesting solids. Consequently, the gas bubbles can adhere to the
solids, reducing their density and propelling them to the surface. Mixing can also have an
adverse effect by increasing the entrapment of gas bubbles in the liquid, thereby generating
foam. In all the case studies, the digesters were thoroughly mixed by observing the consistency
of the digested solids from the digester to the dewatering processes over the time period.

Organic overload on a digester generates more VFA than the methane-producing bacteria are
able to consume. The production of VFA is accompanied by production of carbon dioxide gas.
A biological overload caused by excess feeding will result in an increase in the carbon dioxide-
to-methane ratio in the digester gas. Depending on the composition of the feed, shock loading or
overloading can lead to higher rates of digester gas production, causing foaming problems.

Unstable operation resulting from inconsistent organic loading to the anaerobic digesters is the
most common cause of excessive foaming. The factors contributing to unstable conditions
encountered in the three case studies include the following:

No blending tank or a blending tank of insufficient volume for mixing the various types
of feed sludge, such as primary sludge, thickened WAS, and grease trap and septic tank
sludges.
Inadequate mixing of the digester contents. The gas cannon mixing systems, which are
designed for use with 5 percent or lower total solids concentration in the digesters, are not
always in operation because of foam binding of flame traps or leaky gas piping. The
mixing rates are erratic, as balancing flows to the various guns is difficult to maintain.
Failure to maintain digester contents at a stable temperature of 95 F.
Failure to keep digester contents at a level to avoid foam overflow into the gas system
and over the digester walls (at least 2 feet above the gas mixing system). If the level is
too low, the effectiveness of the mixing systems or hydraulic detention time is reduced.
Grit accumulation, which reduces both the effective volume of the digesters and the
efficiency of the gas mixing system.

Operational adjustments and recommendations for reducing or eliminating excessive digester
foaming, including plant processes that affect digester operation in the three case studies, include
the following:
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1. Maintain solids concentrations in digester feed at 4.5 to 5 percent. Control thickened WAS
concentrations or bypass the gravity belt thickeners. WAS at concentrations higher than
5 percent reduces the effectiveness of the digester mixing systems.

2. Maintain volatile solids loading rates in the range of 100 to 150 pounds per 1,000 cubic feet
of digester volume for mixtures of PS and TWAS (loading rates for PS only can be higher).

3. Analyze PS and TWAS for total and volatile solids concentrations at least once per day to
track variations in organic loading rates, and track PS and TWAS flow rates.

4. Limit daily variations in volatile solids load (organic load) to the digesters to 5 to 10 percent
by analyzing the various types of sludges, and mixing as necessary. Trending of volatile
solids loading to the digesters is desirable to minimize variations.

5. Track volatile solids reduction from plant data against digester gas production. Typically,
the gas production averages 13 to 15 cubic feet per pound of volatile solids destroyed.
Foaming can reduce the effluent volatile solids concentrations below the concentrations in
the digester as a result of entrapment of solids in the foam layer, which will cause higher-
than-average gas production.

6. Mix the various types of sludge in a blending tank before pumping them to the digesters to
maintain a consistent feed.

7. Maintain the depth of sludge blankets in the primary and secondary clarifiers at less than 18
inches at peak flow to improve removal efficiencies.

8. Develop trend charts, including upper and lower limits for each parameter. Develop process
control spreadsheets for weekly analysis and monthly summary reports. Some examples of
process control spreadsheets developed at other facilities are presented on Figure 17.

Combined sludge volatile solids loading and conversion to gallons.

Conversion of gallons of WAS feed to a gravity belt thickener to the percentages of
percent solids and liquid (gallons) discharge rate to the digesters.

Moving average spreadsheets, 7, 15, and 30 days.

Trend charts with upper and lower control points for all anaerobic digestion process
control data points.

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Figure 17- Example of Volatile Solids Loading Rate Spreadsheet

Volatile Solids Feed Calculations
Volatile solids dose to be used INSTRUCTIONS ON
HOW TO USE THIS SPREADSHEET
Average 1. Blue cells are for data entry.
VS loading 0.13 lb/ft
3
/day 2. Yellow cells are for calculated results.
Percentage of Feed as TWAS 30 % 3. Enter volatile solids loading.
4. Enter VS concentration for primary and TWAS.
Plant Flow 5. Enter amount of VS feed in lbs to be TWAS
6. Enter the digester volume.
Primary VSS conc mg/L 47900 TWAS VSS conc 48000 mg/L 7. Spreadsheet calculates dosing rates based
Digester Volume MG 6.6 on 24 hour pumping.
8. If required enter different pumping rate less than
24 hours.
Dose to use in digester 9. Spreadsheet calculates pumping rates based
Volatile Solids 114271.4 lbs/day on hours of operation to achieve VS loading rate.
VSS Flows from Primary Only VSS Flows into Digester From TWAS Only
Primary Flow into Digester 0.20 MGD TWAS Flow into Digester 0.09 MGD
Pumping rates Pumping rates
gpm 139.05 gpm 59.47
gpd 200,232 gpd 85,635
Pumping rates for less than a 24 hour day operation Pumping rates for less than a 24 hour day operation
Hours per day in operation 24 Hours Hours per day in operation 24 Hours
gpm 139.05 gpm 59.47
gpd 200,232 gpd 85,635
HRT = 23.00018 days

9. Perform system monitoring.

The key to preventing instability of digestion is continuous monitoring to assess the health of the
digester. The data collected should be used to set up trend charts in the form of a spreadsheet to
monitor the solids loading, pH, and volatile acids and alkalinity in the digester; volatile acids to
alkalinity ratio; and volatile solids destruction. The trends will show the condition of the digester
and the effects of operational changes. Data collection is noted in Table 1.

Table 1. Data Collection
Data Item Frequency
Flow rate
Feed
Digested solids
Daily
Daily

Total solids

Feed solids
Digested solids

Daily
3/week

Volatile solids

Feed solids
Digested solids

Daily
3/week

Alkalinity

Digested solids

3/week

Volatile Acids

Digested solids

3/week

pH

Digested solids

Daily

Temperature

Digested solids

Daily

Ammonia

Digested solids

1/week

Gas production

Digester gas

Daily

Gas Quality

Digester gas

1/week
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The data collection listed in Table 1 is the minimum required for good digester operation.
Additional monitoring would be necessary during digester upset or when sludge feed is
unpredictable, such as hauled waste flows or intermittent thickening that interface with
continuous feed to the digesters.

Primary Clarifiers
Septic conditions in the primary clarifier are conducive to excess VFA formation which will
upset the digester operation. It is important to control sludge flow rate of the primary clarifier to
maintain the depth of the sludge blanket during peak flow, as measured at the middle of the
clarifier bridge at 12 inches or less. This will mitigate VFA formation that could upset the
digester and cause excessive foaming.

Digester Gas Collection System
The operation and maintenance of the digester gas collection system directly affects digester
operation.

During normal operation, significant amounts of condensate or water carryover accumulate
in the digester gas piping system. Manual drip traps are small and must be emptied
frequently. The drip traps can be fitted with electric actuators that operate on timed cycles
to automatically drain the liquid.
The digester waste gas flare and gas relief valves must be set at the proper pressure. For
instance, if the system is to operate at a pressure of 9 inches of water column, the waste gas
burner should be set to fire at 9.2 inches of water column (Figure 18). The pressure relief
valves should be set for a pressure approximately 5 percent lower than the design pressure.
For instance, if the design pressure is 11 inches of water column, the relief valves should be
set for 10.5 inches of water column.

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Figure 18 Waste Gas Flare

A properly operated sediment trap provides sufficient protection system against carryover
of water from the digester to the gas piping system (Figure 19). Operators should monitor
the sediment trap sight glass (liquid level in tank) and observe the color of the liquid. A
clear liquid indicates normal conditions; brown or black indicates foam carryover and the
need to check the feed sludge VS loading.

Figure 19 Sediment Trap

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The manometers located throughout the digester gas header system must be properly
maintained, cleaned, and filled with the proper fluid. The operating staff should compare
the manometer readings with the electronic pressure indicators to confirm proper operating
gas pressures.

Digester Mixing Systems
Digester mixing is critical for a homogeneous mixture in the digester. The digesters evaluated in
all three case studies were equipped with gas cannon mixing systems. These systems are
effective for use with feed solids concentrations of 5 percent or less. At higher feed solids
concentrations, their effectiveness is reduced. It is also important to minimize downtime of the
mixing system, as there may be insufficient mixing energy to re-suspend large accumulations of
settled solids.

Mixing system recommendations are as follows:

Operate the digester gas mixing compressors with the bypass valve completely closed and
with all cannons producing approximately one bubble every 5 to 10 seconds. The
compressors should always operate continuously, except during maintenance. The digester
gas bypass valve should remain closed. Examples of a gas compressor and a manifold are
presented on Figures 20 and 21.

Figure 20 Digester Gas Compressor

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Figure 21 Gas Manifold

The gas mixing system can be turned off for up to 8 hours without disrupting the
biological process or the VS loading cycle. For periods longer than 8 hours, the VS
loading should be stopped until the gas mixing system is re-started and operating for at
least 12 hours. Before feeding is resumed, digester contents should be sampled to
confirm the operating conditions, and the VS loading feed rates adjusted as needed.
Spreadsheets similar to that presented on Figure 17 should be provided for calculating the
VS loading to allow operators to determine the correct loading rates.

CONCLUSIONS

The root cause of most cases of excessive digester foaming is unstable operation. There are
measures that can be utilized in the design of a digester process to mitigate foaming, but
ultimately continuous monitoring and trend charting will ensure that the process operates at peak
efficiency performance. While some foaming is to be expected, excessive foaming is a serious
problem. Digester operation is not an automatic process. It requires time and resources to
monitor the operation and evaluate the data generated.

An adequate and well-trained staff is essential. It is not enough to simply collect data. It is
important to understand the data and compare them with past records to improve digester
performance and ensure good gas production and volatile solids reduction. Thomas Edison,
Americas most prolific inventor, best describes this philosophy: Machines are no better than
the skill, care, ingenuity, and spirit of the men who operate them. All three plants evaluated in
the case studies are fortunate to have well-qualified operators who, once the problems of the
unstable operation were recognized, were able to meet or exceed Mr. Edisons expectations, by
operating and maintaining their digester systems through monitoring and establishing operational
protocols.

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REFERENCES

Massart, Neil, Robert Bates, Blair Corning, Gary Neun (2006). The Root Cause of Excessive
Anaerobic Digester Foaming. Proceedings of the Residual and Biosolids Management
Conference, Water Environment Federation, Cincinnati, Ohio, March 2006.

Sandino, Julian, Hari Santha, Steve Rogowski, Wendy Anderson, Shihwu Sung, Ferit Isik
(2005). Applicability of Ultrasound Pre-Conditioning of WAS to Reduce Foaming
Potential in Mesophilic Digesters, Proceedings of the Residuals and Biosolids
Management Conference, Water Environment Federation, Nashville, Tennessee, March
2005.

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Design and Operational Considerations To Avoid Excessive Anaerobic Digester Foaming

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Design and Operational Considerations To Avoid Excessive Anaerobic Digester Foaming

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DESIGN AND OPERATIONAL CONSIDERATIONS TO AVOID EXCESSIVE

ANAEROBIC DIGESTER FOAMING

Figure 7 Digester Performance in 2004

Figure 8 Inconsistent Feed to the Digester, July 2004 to August 2004

Figure 9 Consistent Feed to the Digester, October 2004 to November 2004

Figure 10 Excessive Foaming Event

Figure 12 Effects on the Digester Variations in Volatile Solids Loading

Figure 13 Gravity Thickener

Figure 15 Dried Excess Foam

Figure 16 Volatile Solids Loading in the Digester

Figure 17- Example of Volatile Solids Loading Rate Spreadsheet

Figure 18 Waste Gas Flare

Figure 21 Gas Manifold

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