|
Upflow Aerobic Fixed Bed Bioreactor (UAFBBR) is a column filled with various types
of solid media for the treatment of carbonaceous organic matter in wastewater. The
aerobic microorganisms adhere to the media and are not sloughed off the reactor
(Singh, 2007).
As such, very long mean cell residence time can be achieved even at very short
Hydraulic Retention Time (HRT), which is essential for an efficient treatment (Izanloo et al., 2007). Applications of UAFBBR have shown that the process is capable of efficient treatment
of many wastewaters at high organic and hydraulic loading rates (Nabizadeh and
Mesdaghinia, 2006). The aim of the present study is to investigate the effect of HRT on the
performance of UAFBBR, when used for treating dairy wastewater using lab-scale.
The UAFBBR was fed daily with dairy wastewater collected from dairy plant
and brought to the laboratory. The sample was then poured in the overhead influent tank
and the inflow was regulated by a peristaltic pump.
A simple model of UAFBBR was installed in the laboratory.
The influent tank was connected to the bottom of the reactor. The
UAFBBR model was made of a perplex glass tube with provisions of inlet
and outlet arrangements. Entire length of the reactor was packed with
the exception of 5 cm from the bottom and 5 cm from the top. The
bottom space served as a distribution of dairy wastewater and aeration
and sludge collection chamber, while the top portion of the
column provided free board. Pall rings of 1.5 cm thick and 3.0 cm
diameter were used as supporting material for biofilm in the reactor. The wastewater was introduced at the bottom of the reactor
and the outlet flow was collected at the top of the reactor. The UAFBBR was housed at
a controlled room temperature. Table 2 shows the salient features of the packing material
and dimensions of the reactor and Figure 1 represent the experimental setup of pall rings
media UAFBBR. |
