Interaction between sorption and biodegradation in a biofilter packed with activated carbon

The main objective of this study is to evaluate qualitatively and quantitatively the effect of starvation periods in the biodegradation capacity of microorganisms when the support media is a material with high sorption capacity. Pollutant sorption and biodegradation, which occur simultaneously in th...

Descripción completa

Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Dorado Castaño, Antonio David|||0000-0003-0238-5867, Lafuente Sancho, Francisco Javier, Gabriel Buguña, David, Gamisans Noguera, Javier|||0000-0003-1856-8692
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Fecha de publicación:2012
País:España
Institución:Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC)
Repositorio:UPCommons. Portal del coneixement obert de la UPC
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:upcommons.upc.edu:2117/17934
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/2117/17934
https://dx.doi.org/10.2166/wst.2012.384
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Biofiltration
Packaging
Filters and filtration
Carbon, Activated
Embalatge
Filtres i filtració
Carbó activat
Àrees temàtiques de la UPC::Enginyeria química::Biotecnologia
Descripción
Sumario:The main objective of this study is to evaluate qualitatively and quantitatively the effect of starvation periods in the biodegradation capacity of microorganisms when the support media is a material with high sorption capacity. Pollutant sorption and biodegradation, which occur simultaneously in the biofilter, describe the overall behavior of the air treatment system during normal operation and during starvation periods. Results obtained in the present study demonstrate that sorption capacity of the material not only plays an important role during the start-up of operation, but it is also important in the steady operation. Simultaneously, as biomass grows on the support, biodegradation becomes more decisive in the performance. It was found that zones of packing material with low moisture content are controlled by the sorption mechanism, at expenses of biodegradation, and they are essential as pollutant reservoir during starvation periods. In the present study a significant decrease in the biodegradation capacity of microorganisms immobilized on activated carbon were not observed as consequence of continuously load interruptions.