Beth Bismonte and Aidan Holland, Acorn Water UK
Acorn Water, in collaboration with Severn Trent, conducted a full-scale Nanofloc trial at Kidderminster Wastewater Treatment Works (WwTW) to assess the potential for targeted process intensification to defer or eliminate the need for capital-intensive tertiary solids removal (TSR). Nanofloc was applied to 60% of the flow treated in the activated sludge process (ASP 2) with the objective of improving effluent Total Suspended Solids (TSS), Orthophosphate (Ortho-P), and Total Phosphorus (TP) performance, while maintaining compliance with iron residual and pH limits. The three-month trial included an initial conditioning phase followed by optimisation to a low maintenance dose. Results demonstrated stable effluent TSS, improved sludge settleability (lower SSVI), and significant reductions in effluent phosphorus concentrations, with average decreases of 72% for Ortho-P and 42% for TP. Performance was maintained during high-flow and storm conditions, with no adverse impacts on iron residuals or pH stability. Post-trial withdrawal of Nanofloc resulted in deterioration in TSS (22%) & phosphorus removal, with Ortho-P and TP increasing by 472% and 310%, respectively. This clearly reinforces the sustained value of Nanofloc dosing. The findings confirm that existing biological assets can be effectively intensified to enhance compliance and operational resilience without additional tertiary infrastructure, providing a cost-effective alternative to TSR expansion.