Design Development and Startup of an Aerobic Granular Sludge SBR (Nereda™) Under Cold and Weak Wastewater Conditions

United Utilities (UU) is the UK’s largest listed water and wastewater company, serving over 7 million customers in the Northwest of England; including Liverpool and Manchester. In June of 2015, UU awarded the upgrade of the Morecambe Wastewater Treatment Works (WwTW) to C2V+, which is a joint venture between Jacobs Engineering (CH2M at the time) and Volkerstevin. The Morecambe WwTW influent is typically cold (minimum 8 C) and weak (design COD of 251 mg/L). The influent design average flow was 19,700 m3/d (5.2 MGD) with a peak flow of 62,600 m3/d (16.5 MGD). A Nereda™ aerobic granular sludge sequencing batch reactor system was constructed and started up during the Fall of 2019. The system exhibited good granule development and met all effluent criteria for the facility. The performance indicates that AGS systems are applicable to weak and cold wastewaters.