Doctor of Philosophy
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
KWAME NKRUMAH UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY KUMASI, GHANA Optimizing Vermitechnology for the Treatment of Blackwater: A Case of the Biofil Toilet Technology By OWUSU, Peter Antwi (BSc. Civil Eng., MSc. Water supply and Environmental Sanitation) A Thesis Submitted to the Department of Civil Engineering, College of Engineering in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy October, 2017 DECLARATION I hereby declare that this submission is my own work towards the PhD and that, to the best of my knowledge, it contains no material previously published by another person nor material which has been accepted for the award of any other degree of any university, except where due acknowledgement has been made in the text. OWUSU Peter Antwi ………………….. ……………. (PG 8372212) Signature Date Certified by: Dr. Richard Buamah …………………. .................... (Supervisor) Signature Date Dr. Helen M. K. Essandoh (Mrs) …………………. .................... (Supervisor) Signature Date Prof. Esi Awuah (Mrs) …………………. .................... (Supervisor) Signature Date Prof. Samuel Odai …………………. .................... (Head of Department) Signature Date i ABSTRACT Human excreta management in urban settings is becoming a serious public health burden. This thesis used a vermi-based treatment system; “Biofil Toilet Technology (BTT)” for the treatment of faecal matter. The BTT has an average household size of 0.65 cum; a granite porous filter composite for solid-liquid separation; coconut fibre as a bulking material and worms “Eudrilus eugeniae” as waste digesters. The effluent after bio-filtration is discharged into the subsurface soil via a drain field. Laboratory scale models of the BTT were setup to assess the effect of different filtering composites [palm kernel shell (PKS), granite aggregates (GR), polyethylene terephthalate (PET)] on contaminant removal; effect of continuous solid loading at different rates (light - 10 users, moderate - 15 users, heavy - 25 users); and toxicity effect of household chemical reagents (chloroxylenol in dettol, hydrogen chloride in harpic, sodium hypochlorite in bleach) on the BTT. Soil columns (red laterite soil, sandy soil, loamy soil) were used to assess the treatment efficacy of subsurface infiltration using the BTT effluent. The BTT was effective in the removal of BOD5, COD, helminth and microbial loads in blackwater. There was no significant removal of dissolved solids and nutrients in the effluent through the porous filter composites. However, there was a significant reduction of microbial loads in the effluent through the PET. Red laterite soil was the most effective in the reduction of dissolved solids, nutrients and microbial loads from the BTT effluent up to 80 % within the first 0.3 m and an overall effective removal up to 90 % at depth 1.5 m. The toxicity test revealed a 100 % survival rate of the spiked earthworms under normal application of the chemical reagents. In the solid loading test, organic matter was degraded by 32.2 % to 52.5 %. Volatile solid reduction in the low loading (8.3 %) within a week conformed to prevailing studies. Light loading exhibited rapid loss of N (with an overall 40.7 % N loss). This thesis recommends the BTT as a robust technology for blackwater treatment. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION ......................................................................................................................... i ABSTRACT ............................................................................................................................... ii LIST OF TABLES .................................................................................................................. viii LIST OF FIGURES ................................................................................................................... ix LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ................................................................................................... xi DEFINITION OF TERMS ...................................................................................................... xiii ACKNOWLEDGMENT ......................................................................................................... xix CHAPTER ONE ......................................................................................................................... 1 1.0 INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Background .............................................................................................................................. 2 1.1.1 History of the development of the Biofil toilet technology ................................................................ 4 1.2 Problem Statement ................................................................................................................... 6 1.3 Research Questions .................................................................................................................. 6 1.3.1 Hypotheses ......................................................................................................................................... 7 1.4 Research aim and objectives .................................................................................................... 8 1.4.1 Goal of Research ................................................................................................................................ 8 1.4.2 Specific Objectives ............................................................................................................................. 8 1.5 Justification .............................................................................................................................. 8 1.6 Scope of Study ....................................................................................................................... 10 1.7 Structure of the Thesis ............................................................................................................ 11 CHAPTER TWO ...................................................................................................................... 12 2.0 LITERATURE REVIEW .......................................................................................... 12 2.1 Definition of Sanitation .......................................................................................................... 12 2.2 Global sanitation .................................................................................................................... 12 2.2.1 New trends in sanitation ................................................................................................................... 13 2.3 History of sanitation in Ghana ............................................................................................... 13 2.3.1 Current situation of human excreta management ............................................................................. 15 2.3.2 On-site Sanitation facilities in Ghana ............................................................................................... 16 2.3.3 Sanitation trends in Ghana ................................................................................................................ 17 2.4 Generation rate of faeces ........................................................................................................ 18 2.4.1 Nutrients in faeces ............................................................................................................................ 19 2.4.2 Description of the Biofil Toilet Technology ..................................................................................... 19 2.4.2.1 Applicability ................................................................................................................................................ 21 2.4.2.2 Technical details of the BTT ........................................................................................................................ 22 2.5 Composting of faecal sludge .................................................................................................. 24 iii 2.5.1 Chemical reactions during composting of faecal sludge .................................................................. 24 2.5.2 Principal operating variables of composting..................................................................................... 25 2.5.2.1 Temperature ................................................................................................................................................. 25 2.5.2.2 Hydrogen Ion Level (pH) ............................................................................................................................. 26 2.5.2.3 Moisture Content.......................................................................................................................................... 27 2.6 Vermitechnology .................................................................................................................... 27 2.6.1 Species for vermicomposting of organic waste ................................................................................ 29 2.6.2 Various studies carried out on vermicomposting .............................................................................. 29 2.6.3 Role of earthworms in vermicomposting .......................................................................................... 32 2.6.3.1 Adaptation of earthworms to physical environment ....................................................................................