INVESTIGATING THE POTENTIAL OF FITRATION SYSTEAMS FOR WASTEWATER RECYCLING FOR IRRIGATION: CASE STUDY OF THE MUST WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT

The impact of water scarcity on food production is enormous. Communities are unable to water crops to feed an ever-increasing population. Wastewater reuse is one of the most promising water supply management approaches for managing water scarcity. Malawi University of Science and Technology (MUST), is one of the universities with a wastewater treatment plant. Unfortunately, because the wastewater does not fulfill irrigation water quality criteria, it cannot be used for irrigation. As a result, an alternative method for wastewater recycling for irrigation purposes at the MUST WWTP was evaluated.

The Study objectives were to evaluate the physico-chemical and microbiological wastewater quality at the plant, to evaluate the efficacy of various filtration systems for wastewater recycling, and to evaluate the effects of plant operational parameters on the filter's efficacy in wastewater treatment. To address these objectives, the study used a quantitative approach that included field and laboratory studies. The two-filtration systems sand and granular activated carbon (GAC), were utilized to quantify the removal effectiveness of different parameters and see which system is suitable to treat wastewater for irrigation. After 6 hours, different flowrates (0.072 and 0.096 (m3/day)) were employed to monitor the HLR and OLR. At varying flow rates, each HLR and OLR were calculated. The data was analyzed using the T-test, and the results were compared to FAO irrigation water standards and Malawi government industrial discharge tolerance limits.

With regard to the Malawi government's industrial tolerance discharge limit. Several parameters were found to be outside of the limits, including TC, FC, DO, SS, ammonia, COD, BOD, TDS, and turbidity. The wastewater quality is greatly contaminated, according to the effluent samples gathered. The results for goal two demonstrated that there was no significant change between the effluent quality of both filtration systems. Despite the removal efficiency, the effluent quality of both systems did not meet irrigation standards. Although Sand was considered a better filtration system to improve the effluent quality by looking at the efficiency. The results of objective three revealed that there were no significant differences, which indicated that the operational parameters had no effect on effluent quality. The results, on the other hand, revealed that lowering the flowrate, particle size, organic loading, and hydraulic loading rates improves efficiency.

The study will aid future studies by allowing them to learn about alternative technologies that are ideal for recycling wastewater depending on their efficiency. as well as the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 2, which aims to end hunger, ensure food security, improve nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture by 2030