Integrated modeling for systematically examining the performance of the Kennedale constructed wetland for a clean Canadian water environment

Constructed wetland is a critical water infrastructure in major Canadian cities like the city of Edmonton, which treats wastewater including storm water by reducing the suspended solids and the related contaminants before entering into receiving waterbody. The design and evaluating the performance of a constructed wetland requires accurate prediction of flow fields and particle pollutants settling behaviours. The objectives of this study are to develop a three-dimensional (3D) numerical model that can predict the flow characteristics in a constructed wetland including the flow fields of multi-phases and the dispersion and settling patterns of particles considering the effects of vegetation, evaporation and runoff. The proposed 3D modeling system will be applied to examine and improve the suspended solid removal efficiency of Kennedale constructed wetland in the City of Edmonton. This research program will benefit the city of Edmonton and also Canada by i) systematically evaluating the performance of the major wetland facility in Edmonton, ii) providing a cutting-edge design and management method for critical municipal water infrastructure, iii) extensively training more highly qualified engineers and researchers for the industry and government sectors in Canada, and iv) protecting the receiving water quality using sustainable constructed wetland system.

Faculty Supervisor:

Dr. Zhi Chen

Student:

Sangsoo Han, Baozhen Wang, Fang Lu & Linda El Farra

Partner:

Fluid Forms Inc.

Discipline:

Engineering - civil

Sector:

Construction and infrastructure

University:

Concordia University