Analysis of the Electricity Consumption in Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plants in Northeast China in Terms of Wastewater Characteristics

A municipal wastewater treatment plant plays an important role in treating urban sewage and reducing the quantity of pollutants discharged into rivers. However, the energy consumption of the municipal wastewater treatment industry is large. High energy consumption indirectly produces ecological damage, accelerates the energy crisis, and increases carbon emissions. For energy conservation and emission reduction in wastewater treatment plants, it is first necessary to identify the main factors influencing energy consumption. Electricity consumption accounts for more than 80% of the energy consumption of wastewater treatment plants. Wastewater quantity and wastewater quality have become the key influencing factors of energy conservation and consumption reduction in wastewater treatment plants. In this study, a municipal wastewater treatment plant in Northeast China was selected as the research object, and the measured data, such as air temperature, wastewater quantity, wastewater quality, and electricity consumption of the plant from 2017 to 2020 were statistically analyzed to explore the influences of temperature and wastewater quantity and wastewater quality indicators of influent and effluent on energy consumption. Firstly, the range of influent quantity in the wastewater treatment plant was large. The influent quantity in summer was high because some rainwater entered the sewage treatment plant. In winter, average daily electricity consumption (ADEC) was higher than that in summer. The relationship between ADEC and the wastewater quantity showed a positive correlation, and ADEC slowly increased with the increase in wastewater quantity. Electricity consumption per unit of wastewater (UEC) was negatively correlated with the wastewater quantity, but the correction coefficient in winter was larger than that in summer. Secondly, the ranges of chemical oxygen demand (COD(Cr)) and ammonia nitrogen in influent were large, and the ranges of COD(Cr) and ammonia nitrogen in effluent were small. Influent COD(Cr) concentration was negatively correlated with influent ammonia nitrogen concentration. ADEC increased slightly with the increase in influent COD(Cr) concentration. In winter, the increasing trend of ADEC with the influent COD(Cr) concentration was higher than that in the summer. The increasing trend of UEC with the increase in influent COD concentration in summer was more significant than that in winter. Thirdly, influent COD(Cr) in 11.6% of the samples exceeded the corresponding designed value, and influent ammonia nitrogen concentration in 41.4% of the samples exceeded the corresponding designed value. Effluent COD(Cr) in 10.6% of the samples exceeded the First Level Class B standard in “Discharge Standard of Pollutants for Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plants (GB18918-2002)”, and unqualified COD(Cr) in 94% of the effluent samples was ascribed to the unqualified ammonia nitrogen concentration in the influent samples. The electricity consumption level under abnormal conditions was higher than that under normal conditions. Fourthly, ADEC was positively correlated with the average daily COD(Cr) reduction. The correction coefficient of ADEC with average daily COD(Cr) reduction was greater in winter than that in summer. Fifthly, the average electricity consumption per unit of wastewater was close to the national average energy consumption, displaying the characteristics of high energy consumption in winter and low energy consumption in summer. The correlation analysis results of unit electricity consumption and temperature showed that when it was below 0 °C, the lower the temperature, the higher the electricity consumption. In Northeast China, the influences of seasons and temperatures on the electricity consumption of sewage plants were obvious. Accordingly, it is necessary to implement the diversion of rainwater and sewage, reduce the discharge of unqualified wastewater from enterprises, and take thermal insulation measures in winter. In addition, activated sludge microorganisms suitable for a low temperature area and the optimal scheduling of sewage pipe networks can also improve the operation and management of sewage treatment plants.