What is the standard layout of a wastewater treatment plant headworks?
There are two types of flow that enter a headworks: gravity fed and pumped flow. Gravity fed layouts must consider odor control and overflow issues. Pumped flow may require grinders ahead of the pumps to reduce large bulky solids like trash, sticks and leaves that can clog the pump’s inlet. Redundancy and bypass are important considerations in terms of the layout, because you never now what or how much is coming down the influent pipeline. For example, a plant might have three channels: two for flow and one for bypass. Selecting a layout will also be determined by the amount of headroom available. This will dictate the type of equipment that can be installed. Many medium and small plants are designing outdoor headworks without coverings, which can greatly reduce costs. A few manufacturers have developed screens that can operate outdoors, even in freezing weather, and clean discharged screenings to help eliminate odors.
