Adam is a project manager with 20 years of experience on wastewater projects at HDR. He is HDR's biosolids practice group leader and excels in technical design through operations, startup, and troubleshooting experience. Adam is a boots-on-the-ground engineer and prides himself in facility designs that have operations and maintenance effort in mind.

ABSTRACT SUMMARY: Biosolids stabilization through anaerobic digestion requires unique operator knowledge and experience. Through experiences in operations, startups, and upsets this presentation will show key performance indicators, best practices, and lessons-learned in differing anaerobic digestion unit processes for O&M staff to use as guidance.
ABSTRACT: Anaerobic Digester (AD) systems are being asked to do more including taking in Fats, Oils, and Grease products, increased solids loading rates, higher total solids by volume, and improving volatile solids reduction (VSR). While getting the most out of the AD process is a priority to save on both capital and operating costs, O&M staff must be aware of key indicators to successfully running the system.
Through operations and startup experiences, a compilation of information will be shared to save others from digester underperformance, upsets, and potentially unsafe situations. The presentation will walk through startup protocols, safety measures, key operational indicators and parameters, best-practices, and lessons-learned.
While it would take days to present on all of the anaerobic digestion system’s components the major unit operations will be covered addressing what to watch out for to keep a safe and well operating digester system. Components will include:
1. Digestion compliance needs to achieve Class B in the 503 regulations.
2. Key operating parameters, loading rates, monitoring parameters and requirements for reliable mesophilic digestion and stable conditions for growth of acetogens and methanogens.
3. Key operation parameters that operations has little control over and its impacts on performance.
4. Digester Health Checks will be provided and the importance of good record keeping for tracking changes.
5. Process upsets conditions and how to avoid them.
6. Digester Optimizations and Lessons-Learned.
In conclusion, operations and engineering attendees will leave with a better understanding of the important variables and key performance indicators (KPIs) within the anaerobic digester unit process. A knowledge of how changes to these KPIs can positively or negatively affect digester operations will be the fundamental take-away.