The effects of food waste disposers on the wastewater system: a practical study

Abstract

Abstract Domestic food waste disposers (FWDs) have recently come to prominence as a possible alternative for disposal of organic waste, to reduce the quantities of this type of waste sent to landfill. There has been little research undertaken on the potential effects of food waste on the wastewater system, and it is believed no previous practical studies have been undertaken in the United Kingdom. In this study, food waste was ground in an FWD and analysed for chemical oxygen demand (COD), biological oxygen demand (BOD), ammonia, total nitrogen, total phosphorus, total suspended solids and rapidly settleable solids to determine their effects on the wastewater system. The largest impacts were on COD, BOD and suspended solids, compared with the amounts of these determinands that currently arrive at sewage treatment works (STW). Experiments using settled samples showed that a relatively high proportion of nitrogen, phosphorus, COD and BOD would pass through to secondary treatment at the STW.