HEAVEN ON EARTH

This is one of the most beautiful songs, especially stirpped of the instrumental music.  You can hear that the vocals are double and triple tracked to strengthen the voices.  This song reminds me of my first girlfriend.  We worked at the cable spool factory in Brookville one summer.  She was a nice girl and I wish I'd held onto her.  She teaches math at a community college now.

Do you hear the "run run weooo" as backing vocals?

SAMPLING

I have written some articles on sampling, most notably Sampling, Analysis and Quantum Mechanics.   I will boil down what I have written before into something easier to read.

First:  very few of you take enough samples or run enough analyses, at least in Ohio.  In Michigan, the State Dept of Environmental Quality makes the plants take enough data to do proper analyses.  Remember, IF YOU DON'T MEASURE IT YOU CAN'T CONTROL IT!  Here are a couple of oddball examples:  An SBR plant doing biological Phosphorus removal had aerobic digesters.  When they supernated the digesters, they blew their Phosphorus limit for the day.  Why?  Because the spernatant had 70 ppm of Phosphorus, and the flow was about 40% of the average daily flow.  Luckily,  they were in Michigan and had to report that on their daily monitoring report.  A second example:  A superintendent supernates the anaerobic sludge storage tanks.  The supernatnant ammonia is about 600 ppm but she does not know that.  I was there that day and asked her to take some samples.  The primary effluent ammonia was 60 ppm, and the activated sludge effluent was 30 ppm.  We were able to divert effluent to some empty sotrage lagoons and recycle it through the plant, avoiding an exceedance.  For my help, I got taken off the project.  Never expect gratitude when you are a consultant.

I have also worked at Class IV plants that did not have enough data to properly calculate volatile solids reductions.

Next, you should all be taking composite samples for your MLSS, RAS and WAS sampling.  Why? Because samples are variable in time and in space.  If you take 10 MLSS samples, one adfter another, you will get a variatioin of about 5% from the average. As to variation over time, as the flows change during the day, some of the MLSS gets transferred from the aeration tank to the clarifier and then later, back.  If you have the operator run out first thing in the morning and take a MLSS sample, then calculate your wasting, and start your WAS pump after noon, you will not waste the right mass; I guarantee it.  It is better to get a 24 hour composite sample and run it the next day to determine  what your MCRT was that day, and base your wasting on history and trends, than to fall into the trap of todays data.

Plotting and trending - No I don't mean plotting your boss's downfall and trending your pay.  I mean your data.  You all have Microsoft Excel spreadsheets, so you can store, plot, graph and trend all you data.  So get to it.

I'll give you another lecture soon

OPERATOR FOLLIES

I know I'm going to be flayed alive for this series,  but I'm tired of hearing about how great operators are and how they save the world when I continually see things like......what I will write about.  And it's my blog.

The first two follies are actually laborer follies.  Several years back I was working at a plant where sludge cake was transported around on conveyor belts.  As this is not a perfect world, sometimes the sludge fell on the floor and needed cleaned up.  Instead of sweeping the sludge into a big dustpan or a shovel and putting it on the conveyor belt or into a trash can on a dolly, or into a big plastic trash sack, the laborers would use shovels and chop or the sludge into very fine particles, so it could be hosed down the drain.  I never figured this one out.  Putting it back on the conveyor seemed to be less effort.

At this same plant it was common to see the laborers in various states of rest in the electical control rooms.  Why?  The motor control centers had variable frequency drives, which in those days needed cooling to avoid drive failure.  Therefore, the MCCs were air conditioned and were very comfortable in the hot and humid summers of XXXXX (almost let it slip).  I never ratted, and it did make it easy to find a laborer when I needed one.  They were agreeable to helping me because I never told management about their hiding place.

What's the best fuck-off spot at your plant?  Write to this blog and post it.

Donuts

DONUTS

Municipal meetings cannot run without donuts. This includes wastewater meetings, and it’s the consultant’s duty to get them (some of you out there will piously and smarmily say that I’m a meanie, but its true). That’s ok I LOVE DONUTS! I can remember one meeting in Defiance years ago, where Jim Donnell and Jason Tansey were supposed to bring the donuts, but they were late and only brought 2 dozen anyway. As soon as I got there, Leon Smith, Pat Tebbe and the lovely Elizabeth Wick said, “Where’s the donuts? Where’s the donuts? We’re hungry!” They looked like little robins waiting to be fed. 2 minutes later Gino Silvestri, the superintendent, got on the intercom and demanded that I go get donuts. I was less than 20 feet from him and he gets on the intercom. He demanded that I go to Kroger’s and get donuts for everyone. I told him I’d be dammed if I was going to put my hands on 8 dozen donuts for everyone. I asked Rory Prigge and Frank D’Ambrosia, who worked there then, where the donut shop was. I got blank looks. I got in my car and found the donut shop. I cleaned them out, left the woman a nice tip and headed back. As I was entering the office, Brad Borer from Tiffin was coming out of the building and said “Donuts! Thanks, Jim” and took a box of half a dozen off the top. Brad always was a great eater. I brought the rest of the donuts in and put them on the table, took one or two for me and got some coffee, gave a hard look at Frank and Rory for not telling me where to donut shop was, and listen to Gino complain because I didn’t go to Krogers. Why did I get all the donuts I could? It’s a sin to not have enough donuts and then some left over for the men when you leave. So there. Hah!

Some of the best donuts in the world are made at Bakery Unlimited, just a few blocks from my house. If you want death by chocolate sugar and fried grease, get the chocolate covered, Bavarian crème filled fritters. All your daily calories in one goopy mess. Do you have a favorite place?

WHY ATAD IS BETTER THAN AEROBIC DIGESTION

WHY ATADS ARE BETTER THAN AEROBIC DIGESTION

I have been accused of being excessively enthusiastic about ATAD. I have designed 2 facilities, Three Rivers, Michigan and Bowling Green, Ohio. The clients like them very much. I will distill down and demonstrate the reasons whey you should have an ATAD and try not to be too boring.

First, what is an ATAD (If I’m not being too pedantic)

Autothermal, meaning it generates its own heat

Thermophilic, meaning the reactor temperature is above 110 F, actually its about 150 F

Aerobic, meaning that during some of its operating cycle. It has a positive oxidation-reduction potential (ORP) and the end produce always does.

Digestion

ATAD is a two stage process. The first stage is a thermophilic stage, of about10-14 days. Autoheating conditions are produced by using a volumetrically efficient jet aeration system with a covered and insulated tank. Solids are fed daily and discharged daily.

The second stage, call a storage, nitrificatioin/denitrification reactor (SNDR) is a mesophilic stage. The digested biosolids have been pasteurized and have been stabilized, but it has a high polymer dose for dewatering. The high polymer dose is caused by biopolymers, which can be ndirectly measured as soluble COD (SCOD), and by monovalent ions (+1). The solids are cooled and aerated for 6-10 days to reduce the ammonia and SCOD, and produce an additional 10% TS reduction. Aeration is controlled to produce a nitrification/denitrification cycle and is controlled by pH or ORP. Solids are discharged daily and discharged daily or intermittently.

Digested ATAD biosolids can be stored as a liquid or dewatered. I suppose they could be dewatered on a sand drying bed as well. Liquid biosolids can be decanted in storage, but it takes several months to develop a supernating biota.

I could go on to a long article here, but I will summarize the ATAD advantages in this table.

PARAMETER	ATAD	AEROBIC DIGESTER
SRT	20 (with SNDR)	45
AERATION POWER	90 HP/DRY TON SOLIDS/DAY	130 HP/DRY TON SOLIDS/DAY
VS REDUCTION	55-75%	25-35%
TS REDUCTION	45-65%	20-30%
DEWATERED CAKE SOLIDS	BELT PRESS 22-24% CENTRIFUGE 30-40%	BELT PRESS 15-20% CENTRIFUGE 22-25%
EXCEPTIONAL QUALITY BIOSOLID?	YES	NO

Every installation, I believe, has seen a big reduction in biosolids beneficial reuse costs. Some success stories of which I know are

Bowling Green Ohio – Went from using 5 operators 65 days a year to haul bioslids to running a centrifuge and giving it away to a topsoil blender. Savings? About $200,000/yr.

Delphos OH - Went from paying $0.09/gallon to Mike’s Sanitation for taking their non class B sludge to giving it all away.

Marshall MN – Reduced liquid volume hauled by 65%

I will add some more later.

An ATAD makes sense at any installation with a capacity of 1 dry ton per day

VECHNAYA PAMYAT ANDREW

It has occurred to me that you need some background before reading this.

Andrew is my son.  He just died.  He was poisoned by his mother when he was 5, and hung on in good humor but much physical pain and suffering until he was 23.

Vechnaya Pamyat means memory eternal in Church Slavonic, the liturgical language of slavic Orthodox churches (Russian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Serbian, etc).  You can find it on youtube.  No one does melancholy like the slavs.

Koliva is a dish made of boiled wheat, ground nuts, sugar and cinnamon and is offered at memorials and funerals.   It is slightly sweet and signifies rebirth.



LIKE WHEAT FOR KOLIVA

Jim Scisson

His son is dead. Having no wife he must make the koliva himself. He goes to the middle eastern market, full of scowling Moslems who don’t like it that infidels invade their market. He buys 2 cups of #4 wheat, scooping it out of the bulk bin. While he is there he buys a lamb schwarma and a small tamarind soda. The food is amazingly good. He wonders why the Orthodox Christians can’t run a market like that. The Greeks used to run one near his home, but they sold out to the Muslims. He takes the food home and puts it on the table. Later that day he lays down and cries for his lost son. His son left home 5 years ago and come home only occasionally. He was missed every day, no matter what the son or others thought.

The next day is the visitation. He goes early so he can talk to his son in private without the Jehovah’s Witness shrew who lured his son away being there to afflict him It was odd to see his son so tall and still, without his body being rent by spasms. He cries silently as he talks to his son about how sorry his is that things went the way they did, and that he was unable to fix him by the force of his will alone. He sorrows that his son never got to do all the other things boys get to do; play ball, have dates, drive a car and get too much to drink and get in trouble.

Other people show up and he greets them, being careful to be extra nice and courteous to every one, as the Jehovah’s Witness shrew is looking for any excuse to throw him out of his own sons wake. The aunts from Texas show up and talk to his daughter who is there. They are pleased to have a new relative, as 2 of them have never seen Sarah and the other not since 1998. He greets more of his friends and also his daughter’s friends, being careful to be friendly with everyone. He is surprised that a former friend showed up, a man could have hired him, but didn’t. He made a photo memorial of his son with pictures from his whole life. Many were surprised to see how he looked before his mother poisoned him., when he could run and talk, and throw baseballs and play with teenage mutant ninja turtle swords. He takes the aunts out to a late lunch at a Mexican restaurant nearby. The aunts pronounced it passable. Later on he goes home and starts writing thank you notes to the people who sent cards and who he saw at the viewing and knew personally. He goes back to the funeral home and sees some more friends, including one who came 150 miles to see his son. He then goes to the store to get some food for the mercy meal after the religious service on Sunday, rice and chickens and beef and green peppers for his famous crock pot.

On Saturday is the funeral. Even though its by those non-Christian Jehovah’s Witness hooper-goopers, the service was acceptable. He got to be first in the car line as he was the dad. They took his son to the cemetery, said a few words, and left him there. No burial yet. He stays behind to sing Vechnaya Pamyat . Some things just have to be done.

After the funeral, another trip to the store, and then later, making the koliva: Boil the wheat for an hour, drain it, and pour it on the tablecloth and cover it with the rest of the tablecloth. Everything else will be done tomorrow.

The aunts decide to take the daughter out and get to know here. Its lonely that night.

Sunday is church and people are very nice. The Panikheda service is in the evening.

The aunts come over and help get the food ready, cook the rice, etc. He finished the Koliva: grind the walnuts, scrape up the wheat, which he does not think is dry enough but oh well, mix the nuts and wheat together, add some breadcrumbs and sugar, and mold it into place. After that, he covers it with powdered sugar and makes a cross with cinnamon using a stencil his godmother gave him.

At last all the food is ready. It goes out to the cars and to the church hall. The Koliva goes to the church. Margaret made some Koliva too, fearing that he would mess it up. Hers was better, but she has lots of practice, decades of it.

There are about 60 people in church. He sits in the front row, alone, as his daughter will not sit with him. Tony the chanter came back from upnorth to chant for the service. He was pretty grizzly, as he hadn’t shaved for a few days. Tony always makes it sound like the 12^th century and the filthy Turks have yet to overrun Constantinople. The service is very nice, and it ends with the choir singing Vechnaya Pamyat. The father cries silently at the loss of his only son. Why son? Why did you have to die? I told God a thousand times or more that I would die for you so you could live a healthy life. But god didn’t listen.

The food after was very good, rotisserie chicken, the crockpot dish, rice and more, plus Stanley’s famous rice pudding and the Koliva. Slavs are big on dessert and are good eaters too. He and Tony eat at the men’s table while his daughter and the aunts sit at their own table. The rest of the women sit at their tables. He had always hoped that after he got the children back and became Orthodox, he could disappear into that, but it was not to be.

After it was over, the food goes back into the car and back home into the refrigerator.

He sits alone at home and cries. Why Son? Why? Why? You were my only son and I wanted so much for you, and you ended up twisted and wracked with spasms and no foot ball and no driving except for the golf cart that one time, no girlfriends, none of the things boys get to do, just endless hours of anime. I loved you so much, and now you are gone.

Vechnaya Pamyat, beloved son.