Development of an integer linear programming transport optimization model of a septage management system

• Main Author: Valenton, Lorenzo Zalazar
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2021
• Subjects: Sewage disposal in the ground; Septic tanks; Land treatment of wastewater; Environmental Engineering
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etdm_chemeng/2
• Institution: De La Salle University

In developing countries, most households and commercial establishments rely on septic tanks as means of collecting wastewater. It is imperative to maintain these septic tanks to allow them to function (i.e., treatment efficiency) as designed, through a septage management program. Septage management refers to the regular removal of septage from septic tanks, proper treatment of the collected septage, and disposal of by-products, mainly treated effluent and biosolids, as prescribed by law. The Vacuum Truck Unit (VTU) is a major component to this system – means of transporting septage/wastewater to the treatment facility. VTU procurement – from tendering to delivery – can be done in a very short period (i.e., in less than a year), unlike the Septage Treatment Plant (SpTP), which would generally have to be designed and constructed at/or close to ultimate capacity. Truck procurement can therefore be done in several tranches during the planning period, depending on the need at the time. For a given septage volume, there are multiple combinations of different truck capacities that can be utilized. In determining the optimal truck mix and procurement schedule, corresponding life-cycle-costs should be considered to come up with the most cost-efficient option. Through this Practicum Project, an Integer Linear Programming (ILP) Transport (i.e., VTU) optimization model of a Septage Management System was developed resulting to maximizing utilization of the desludging trucks while minimizing capital expenditure and operating cost throughout a specified planning period.