Waste-treatment processes are enhanced through generation and introduction
of specific biological populations customized to perform or favor
specific tasks either during the main process, or for solids minimization
purposes in a post-treatment process. These bacteria may be grown from
specialized mixes of activated sludge and waste influent by exposing
these materials to controlled environments (e.g., in an off-line
treatment area). They may then be added back to the main process to
perform certain tasks such as converting particulate cBOD into soluble
cBOD for utilization, to reduce high solids yield organisms by
supplementing the population with low yield organisms, to improve
nitrification/denitrification efficiency, or to disfavor filamentous
biology such as Norcardia sp.
