Emirates Journal for Engineering Research, 8 (2), 25-31 (2003) (Regular Paper) 25 ASSESSMENT OF THE USE OF SOIL AQUIFER TREATMENT (SAT) TECHNOLOGY IN IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF TERTIARY TREATED WASTEWATER IN KUWAIT A. Akber, E. Al-Awadi and T. Rashid Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research (KISR), Water Resources Division, Hydrology Department P.O. Box 24885, Safat 13109, Kuwait (Received July 2003 and accepted November 2003) !"# $ % & ’() ’ * + , - !"# . - / $0 $ $ 1 2 !2 / 3 - ! )") -4 . ( ( 0# 5$6 (# )") 6 . - / -4 $ ") -$ 7 8& . - -$ (# /9 & - -$ 7 - # : / $ -$ . $ (# ( ; <$* = $> /$ 4 $ +? . * $ @1$ + ( 3 $ A1# / . 4 1 B$ 7" C7 ( & ( / -$ -, &0$ (? C D . : $ E &$ (? ! E $ (Folk) -0$ ’ $ &$F $ . @1$ - ; D4 = ’ (4 -$4 -)$? -4 ’-? ’- . -# 6 C+ C D4 $ . ( -) -$ C ; = ? -&$ 2$ $D - . & ( / -$ - /$& (7 ! pH (? /* ’ (TSS) -00 ’ (PO4) -$ ’ (NO3) ’ $? (NH3) 3 34 4? ’ (BOD5) 34 4? ’ (COD) 94 ’4 /* ’ ’(0 E.Coli . (? A# $ 6 * @1$ + (TSS) NH3, PO4, COD, BOD5 (094 ’4 /* ’ E.Coli -G H ’ H ’ H ’ H ’ H ’ H ’ H H / . C ? 4 ! -9 -I0#$ E #6 -) -7 ( J ( . Soil aquifer treatment (SAT) is a proven technology for improvement of wastewater quality. The method involves the flow of wastewater through the soil matrix of the unsaturated zones and in the aquifer, thereby, improving its quality. The technical viability of implementing Soil Aquifer Treatment (SAT) to renovate tertiary treated wastewater to the standards for irrigation under the prevailing conditions of Kuwait has been investigated. Six soil columns were designed and fabricated to study the quality improvement of tertiary wastewater using different soil types. Soil samples were collected from three areas in Kuwait, namely, Sulaibiya, Jahra and Rigga. The petrography and mineralogy of soil samples were studied using several techniques including examining thin sections of the samples under polarizing microscope. The x-ray diffraction technique (XRD) was used to identify the mineralogical composition of lithotypes. The petrographic and mineralogical results did not indicate any significant difference in the soils properties of the study area. The collected soil samples were sieved and cumulative weight percentages were plotted against grain size to classify them. Based on grain size analysis and following Folk’s classification, the soils were classified as Muddy Sand and Gravelly Muddy Sand. The x-ray diffraction pattern of the studied soils indicated the presence of quartz, calcite, dolomite, albite, microline and anorthite minerals. Tertiary effluent from the Sulaibiya Gathering Center was used for saturating the soil columns. Fixed volume (1 liter) water samples were collected from column outlets at regular intervals during the tests with treated effluent. Collected samples were analyzed for pH, total suspended solids (TSS), phosphate (PO4), nitrate (NO3), ammonia (NH3), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5), chemical oxygen demand (COD), total bacteria, coliform, E. coli and S. faecalis. The obtained results indicate 90%, 99%, 90%, 99.6%, 99%, 99%, 100%, 100% and 100% removal of suspended solids, BOD5, COD, PO4, NH3, NO3, total bacteria, coliform and E. Coli, respectively. The loading rates for all columns decreased with time and ultimately stabilized between 0.5 and 0.7 m/d.