Wastewater turbine operation

Wastewater used before treatment

Waste water treatment of high-altitude urban areas is often performed in the valley. It is therefore possible to make good use of the head between the water collector and the WWTP. For that, a sieve must be placed at the entrance of the loading chamber located at the bottom of the urban area. From the chamber, a penstock then leads the water to the WWTP, where the water is treated before going though the turbine.

Example of implementation: Le Châble (click here to know more).

Wastewater used after treatment

When the WWTP is located at altitude, it is often difficult to find close-by a waterway or a water body which allows the wastewater to be sufficiently diluted. It is therefore necessary to rout it to a more important waterway. The head between the outlet of the WWTP and the waterway can thus be exploited by means of a turbine.

Note that if the volumes of water are important, it is also possible to operate a turbine with the head of a few meters that is often found between the outlet of the WWTP and the downstream waterway.

Example of implementation: La Douve II Leysin (click here to know more).