Performance evaluation of a facultative aerated lagoon for the purpose of reviewing the design parameters

Evaluating the performance of a facultative aerated lagoon in a semi-humid region in Iran shows that the design parameters, used for dimensioning these types of wastewater treatment facility, which were derived from foreign references, do not match the real values. The need to review those parameters to achieve a more realistic and cost eective design is, therefore, obvious. In addition to suggesting more reasonable design parameters to be of benet for dimensioning these plants in Iran, computing the overall BOD removal rate based on real qualities of wastewater, which can be used in a theoretical approach to dimensioning, ensures a more accurate design compared with a design based on an assumed detention time, as is currently usual in Iran. Accurately designing facultative aerated lagoons, widely used in Iran, would lead to cost saving due to decreasing the dimensions of the downstream lagoons. Thus, the obligation to apply the real quality parameters obtained in this study to new designs is proven.