Learning Outcomes

Students analyze and evaluate basic methods of urban water management. They recognize the interactions between natural and technical systems. They acquire knowledge necessary to identify process engineering solutions and to implement them into functional systems (infrastructure elements). Students are able to describe urban water management issues in the context of watersheds and to take appropriate and environmentally-sound decisions in terms of energy efficiency and costs.

Content

This module provides a deep understanding of basic principles needed for the design, analysis and evaluation of urban water systems. The concept of system analysis is introduced to develop models that consider the most important biological, chemical and physical processes and are used to solve water management problems. Based on a detailed consideration of individual elements (subsystems), an overall picture of the water management system Urban Settlement and its interaction with surface and groundwater bodies can be gained. For this purpose, theoretical tools are developed and modeling approaches are reviewed. Students consider the factors energy and costs in the analysis and assessment of water management systems.

Learning Outcomes

Students get familiar with the basic principles of water ecology in surface waters. They are able to explain interactions between abiotic control factors (flow, chemistry, structure) and their relevance for the ecological status of standing waters and streams and to evaluate them critically. They become acquainted with field and laboratory techniques to establish water quality. With the help of these methods, they evaluate data-quality of information collected in the field regarding chemical, biological and structural water quality and determine the level of uncertainty intrinsic to the data-collection methods.
Using case studies, students are able to convey and evaluate positive results as well as restrictions from water restoration processes.

Content

As part of the module, water ecology principles, their practical significance and implementation of restoring measures are presented. The following topics are covered:
- Pollutants loads discharged into water bodies: discharge points, pollutants, sediment problems
- Sampling methods
- Oxygen content
- Methods for the assessment of water quality and water general status
- Practical exercises to measure water quality and condition in the field

Students get acquainted with practical examples of water protection and water remediation measures and they interpret and discuss them as part of an individual assignment. For this purpose, they implement their own framework, based on visible requirements and achievable targets.

Learning Outcomes

Students acquire knowledge about typical techniques in wastewater treatment at local and international level. They are able to perform a technical evaluation and describe dimensioning approaches taking into consideration legal boundary conditions.
Students analyze, evaluate and optimize operation of plant technologies. They focus on energy-efficient plant designs considering the most relevant factors affecting the total costs.
Students can analyze the situation in emerging and developing countries making a comparison with that in industrialized countries. Based on that, they are able to develop water-related management strategies.

Municipal Wastewater Treatment

Students gain deep knowledge about design and operation of typical process technologies in municipal wastewater treatment in Germany. Following processes are covered:
- Different activated sludge processes
- Anaerobic technologies and energy-recovery systems
- Filtration technologies
- Wastewater disinfection and pathogen removal
- Chemical and biological phosphorus removal
- Micro-pollutants removal
- Resource management and energy efficiency

International Sanitary Engineering

Students get acquainted with the design and operation used for wastewater treatment at international level. They analyze, evaluate and take decisions when new and more holistic oriented methods can be implemented. Following topics are covered:
- Activated sludge processes
- Trickling filters and rotating biological contactors
- Treatment ponds
- Retention soil filter / Wetlands
- UASB/EGSB/Anaerobic filter
- Decentralized versus centralized systems
- Material flow separation
- Energy-recovery from wastewater
- Waste management

Learning Outcomes

Students get familiar with technical plants for wastewater and storm water treatment. They can explain operating principles of individual system components as well as assess their suitability for specific applications and apply basic dimensioning approaches.

Content

Guided visits, description and evaluation of different water treatment plants:
- Storm water sedimentation tanks
- Storm water overflow
- Retention soil filters
- Sewage treatment plants
Dimensioning approaches for the design of storm water treatment facilities.

Learning Outcomes

Students acquire knowledge about techniques for wastewater treatment in industrial production processes and based on it, they can explain functioning principles of the techniques.
Students are able to assess wastewater constituents from industrial effluents and its emissions on the basis of legal regulations. They can analyze arising problems in the industrial wastewater treatment and select appropriate methods for emission reduction and water recycling.

Content

In this module, different types of industrial wastewater (e.g. leather, paper, metal industries) are considered and studied. Customized chemical, physico-chemical and, if necessary, biological treatment processes are presented and discussed.

Learning Outcomes

Students are able to explain the basic relationships between water-driven material cycles in river basins and their budget in aquatic ecosystems. They are able to analyze the impact of anthropogenic activities on water condition and quality. Students gain knowledge regarding transport pathways of substances and biochemical and physical interactions in water bodies in order to formulate mathematical model approaches.
Using simulation models, they are able to quantify substance emissions; to predict the impact from external influences on the water quality relevant processes and; to perform different scenario analysis. Students are capable of evaluating model results in terms of their plausibility and uncertainty.

Content

This module provides students with a broad-based understanding of the fundamentals of materials flows (N, P, pollutants) and their relevant transport pathways in river basins. Different modeling approaches for a quantitative description of the processes will be presented.
Students receive a single-user version of the simulation tool MoRE (Modeling of Regionalized Emissions). They have to develop and implement their own model in small groups and interpret simulation results.