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arXiv · 2506.10490

Predictive control of wastewater treatment plants as energy-autonomous water resource recovery facilities

Otacilio B. L. Neto·Michela Mulas·Iiro Harjunkoski·Francesco Corona
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Abstract

This work proposes an automatic control solution for the operation of conventional wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) as energy-autonomous water resource recovery facilities. We first conceptualize a classification of the quality of treated water for three resource recovery applications (environmental, industrial, and agricultural water reuse). We then present an output-feedback model predictive controller (Output MPC) that operates a plant to produce water of specific quality class, while also producing sufficient biogas to ensure nonpositive energy costs. The controller is demonstrated in the long-term operation of a full-scale WWTP subjected to typical influent loads and periodically changing quality targets. Our results provide a proof-of-concept on the energy-autonomous operation of existing wastewater treatment infrastructure with control strategies that are general enough to accommodate a wide range of resource recovery objectives.

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Otacilio B. L. Neto, Michela Mulas, Iiro Harjunkoski, Francesco Corona. 2025-06-12. Predictive control of wastewater treatment plants as energy-autonomous water resource recovery facilities. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conengprac.2026.106888

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