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Hydraulics & Flow

Detention Time

Calculates the theoretical detention (residence) time of liquid in a tank or basin at a given flow. Operators use it for chlorine contact basins (CT verification), aeration basins, anaerobic digesters, and equalization basins.

Detention Time

Calculate how long liquid theoretically stays in a tank or basin at a given flow rate.

Enter all values above to calculate.

When you'd use this

Calculates the theoretical detention (residence) time of liquid in a tank or basin at a given flow. Operators use it for chlorine contact basins (CT verification), aeration basins, anaerobic digesters, and equalization basins.

Category

Hydraulics & Flow
Formula
Detention Time (hrs) = Tank Volume (gal) ÷ Flow (gal/hr)
Variables & Units
Tank Volume(gal)

Usable volume of the basin (length × width × depth × 7.48 gal/ft³, or design volume).

Flow(MGD)

Flow rate through the basin in million gallons per day.

Worked Example
A 500,000-gallon chlorine contact basin at 2.0 MGD flow: Flow = (2,000,000 gal/day) ÷ 24 = 83,333 gal/hr. Detention Time = 500,000 ÷ 83,333 = 6.0 hours = 360 minutes. This is the theoretical detention time. For CT compliance use the basin's T10 (approximately 0.3 to 0.7 of theoretical for typical baffling factors).
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Reference

Sacramento Manual, Vol. I (Hydraulics and Process Control) — Detention Time in Basins.

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