GLYCOL TREATABILITY AT A POTW

The City of Austin completed the construction of a new airport for commercial air service in May 1999. In keeping with the City's commitment to protecting the environment that makes Austin unique, the design for the new airport included stormwater quality ponds to collect and treat runoff from the apron areas surrounding the commercial gates and the cargo terminal. During cold-weather operations, City's glycol-contaminated runoff can be pumped from these water quality ponds to the wastewater collection system for treatment at the City's publicly owned treatment works (POTW).During the winter of 2000–2001, the POTW experienced a plant upset about the same time the airport was discharging glycol-contaminated runoff to the sewer. The Austin Water Utility and Department of Aviation cooperatively developed a Treatability Study to determine under what conditions glycol could be treated without adversely impacting the performance of the POTW. This paper presents the methodology used for the study, results of bench-scale treatability tests, and the recommendations for operational controls to protect the POTW.