Review of the Performance of Filtration Media in Bioreactors for Wastewater Treatment

By: Adel Faskol , Gabriel Racovițeanu , Elena Vulpasu

Libyan Authority for Scientific Research – Branch Benghazi - Libya

Issue: |Special Issue on the Benghazi Reconstruction Conference 2023 |

article language: English

Abstract:

The majority of centralized wastewater treatment plants in low-income countries require rehabilitation or renovation over the next decade. In most cases, centralized treatment plants generate long-term financial burdens for governments and local administrations. Therefore, decentralization appears to be a reasonable solution, referring to systems that serve small areas of urban zones based on hydrology, terrain, and local ecological concerns. Sustainable decentralized treatment emphasizes on-site treatment and material recycling, contributing to achieving sustainable development goals, particularly SDG6 – Clean Water and Sanitation. The Biological Aerated Filter (BAF) technology is attractive and well-suited as a decentralized wastewater treatment system, capable of removing carbonaceous matter and nutrients through biomass growth on support media surfaces, as well as physical removal of suspended solids in a single stage. It can also be applied for secondary and tertiary stages of treatment. This study reviews the performance of three filtration media: activated carbon, sand, and ceramic particles, all used as attached growth zones in BAFs, to create low-cost bio-filtration beds and improve effluent quality. Results indicate that all three filtration media-based beds performed excellently in carbonaceous matter removal and nitrification at a hydraulic retention time of 12 hours with 100% influent recirculation. The research was conducted at Colentina Laboratories, Faculty of Hydrotechnics, Technical University of Civil Engineering Bucharest, Romania. Keywords: Biological Aerated Filter, Carbonaceous Matter Removal, Nitrification.