Granular Activated Carbon (GAC) biofilter for low strength wastewater treatment

Hoang, TTL; Shon, HK; Chaudhary, DS; Vigneswaran, S; Ngo, HH

Granular Activated Carbon (GAC) biofilter for low strength wastewater treatment

Hoang, TTL Shon, HK

Chaudhary, DS Vigneswaran, S

Ngo, HH

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Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: Fluid - Particle Separations Journal, 2004, 16 (2), pp. 185 - 191
Issue Date:: 2004-12-01

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Hoang, TTL	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Shon, HK https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3777-7169	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Chaudhary, DS	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Vigneswaran, S https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8117-4322	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Ngo, HH https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0296-2866	en_US
dc.date.issued	2004-12-01	en_US
dc.identifier.citation	Fluid - Particle Separations Journal, 2004, 16 (2), pp. 185 - 191	en_US
dc.identifier.issn	1541-9290	en_US
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/6184
dc.description.abstract	Biofilter can be a cost-effective alternative treatment unit, especially for low strength wastewater. In this study, detailed experimental investigation of a GAC biofilter was carried out in a laboratory-scale unit using low strength synthetic wastewater and biologically treated sewage effluent (BTSE). Performance of the biofilter was evaluated in terms of total organic carbon (TOC) removal. The TOC removal efficiency of the biofilter was found to be stabilized at around 40-45 % after 30 days (even for a short depth of GAC column of 7-15 cm). The maximum biomass retained on the activated carbon was measured to be 44 mg/ g of GAC after 49 days of continuous operation. Filter backwashing provided at 30% bed expansion for 5 minutes on a daily basis to overcome physical clogging of the filter by attached mass, did not have any adverse effect on the active biomass attached to the media and thus the organic removal efficiency of the filter remained unchanged. Molecular size distribution analysis showed that a significant removal of organics of small molecular weight (MW) at the initial stage of operation of biofilter followed by mainly large MW organic matter after one day of operation. This shows that adsorption was the main mechanism at the initial period and biological degradation as the predominating mechanism after one day of operation throughout the rest of the operation. The biofilter was found to remove a majority of hydrophilic organic compounds.	en_US
dc.relation.ispartof	Fluid - Particle Separations Journal	en_US
dc.subject.classification	Chemical Engineering	en_US
dc.title	Granular Activated Carbon (GAC) biofilter for low strength wastewater treatment	en_US
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	2	en_US
utslib.citation.volume	16	en_US
utslib.for	090407 Process Control and Simulation	en_US
utslib.for	090404 Membrane and Separation Technologies	en_US
utslib.for	090409 Wastewater Treatment Processes	en_US
utslib.for	0904 Chemical Engineering	en_US
pubs.embargo.period	Not known	en_US
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology/School of Civil and Environmental Engineering
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Strength - CTWW - Centre for Technology in Water and Wastewater Treatment
utslib.copyright.status	open_access
pubs.issue	2	en_US
pubs.publication-status	Published	en_US
pubs.volume	16	en_US

Abstract:

Biofilter can be a cost-effective alternative treatment unit, especially for low strength wastewater. In this study, detailed experimental investigation of a GAC biofilter was carried out in a laboratory-scale unit using low strength synthetic wastewater and biologically treated sewage effluent (BTSE). Performance of the biofilter was evaluated in terms of total organic carbon (TOC) removal. The TOC removal efficiency of the biofilter was found to be stabilized at around 40-45 % after 30 days (even for a short depth of GAC column of 7-15 cm). The maximum biomass retained on the activated carbon was measured to be 44 mg/ g of GAC after 49 days of continuous operation. Filter backwashing provided at 30% bed expansion for 5 minutes on a daily basis to overcome physical clogging of the filter by attached mass, did not have any adverse effect on the active biomass attached to the media and thus the organic removal efficiency of the filter remained unchanged. Molecular size distribution analysis showed that a significant removal of organics of small molecular weight (MW) at the initial stage of operation of biofilter followed by mainly large MW organic matter after one day of operation. This shows that adsorption was the main mechanism at the initial period and biological degradation as the predominating mechanism after one day of operation throughout the rest of the operation. The biofilter was found to remove a majority of hydrophilic organic compounds.

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http://hdl.handle.net/10453/6184