{"title":"Startup kinetics of aerobic Moving Bed Biofilm Reactors for phenolic wastewater treatment by mesophilic bacteria","authors":"Zishan Aslam, Pervez Alam, Nasir Ahmed Rather","doi":"10.1016/j.jwpe.2025.107401","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Phenol and its derivatives are toxic chemicals widely used in industries like plastics, coal tar resins, coking, and medicine. Classified as one of 129 essential pollutants by NPRI and USEPA, phenol requires proper wastewater treatment to prevent environmental and health hazards. This research investigates the startup kinetics of a Moving Bed Biofilm Reactor (MBBR) designed for the treatment of synthetic wastewater including phenol and glucose as principal substrates. The reactor operated at an 18-hour hydraulic retention time (HRT), an organic loading rate (OLR) of 0.0013 kg COD/L per day, and a pH of 7–9, with a constant influent COD of 1000 ± 20 mg/L. Biomass was first acclimated to glucose and then gradually to phenol over five phases spanning seven months and 22 days. Using the Monod model, key biokinetic parameters at full phenol concentration were determined: Ks = 47.62 mg/L, k = 0.0485 mgCOD/mgVss·days, Y = 0.336 mgVss/mgCOD, kd = −0.024 days<sup>−1</sup>, and μmax = 0.016 days<sup>−1</sup>. The highest COD removal efficiency and biomass concentration were 92 % and 7.92 mg/L, respectively. The reactor reached pseudo-steady state in 41 days. Phase 5 showed a good model fit (R<sup>2</sup> = 0.88–0.90), confirming the reactor's efficiency for industrial-scale phenolic wastewater treatment. The significant R<sup>2</sup> values of 0.88 and 0.90 for the Monod model in final stage indicate that the kinetic parameters derived are well aligned with the experimental data, effectively depicting microbial growth and substrate utilisation. It also demonstrates the reactor's effectiveness for the industrial-scale treatment of phenolic waste.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":17528,"journal":{"name":"Journal of water process engineering","volume":"72 ","pages":"Article 107401"},"PeriodicalIF":6.3000,"publicationDate":"2025-03-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Journal of water process engineering","FirstCategoryId":"5","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214714425004738","RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"ENGINEERING, CHEMICAL","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Phenol and its derivatives are toxic chemicals widely used in industries like plastics, coal tar resins, coking, and medicine. Classified as one of 129 essential pollutants by NPRI and USEPA, phenol requires proper wastewater treatment to prevent environmental and health hazards. This research investigates the startup kinetics of a Moving Bed Biofilm Reactor (MBBR) designed for the treatment of synthetic wastewater including phenol and glucose as principal substrates. The reactor operated at an 18-hour hydraulic retention time (HRT), an organic loading rate (OLR) of 0.0013 kg COD/L per day, and a pH of 7–9, with a constant influent COD of 1000 ± 20 mg/L. Biomass was first acclimated to glucose and then gradually to phenol over five phases spanning seven months and 22 days. Using the Monod model, key biokinetic parameters at full phenol concentration were determined: Ks = 47.62 mg/L, k = 0.0485 mgCOD/mgVss·days, Y = 0.336 mgVss/mgCOD, kd = −0.024 days−1, and μmax = 0.016 days−1. The highest COD removal efficiency and biomass concentration were 92 % and 7.92 mg/L, respectively. The reactor reached pseudo-steady state in 41 days. Phase 5 showed a good model fit (R2 = 0.88–0.90), confirming the reactor's efficiency for industrial-scale phenolic wastewater treatment. The significant R2 values of 0.88 and 0.90 for the Monod model in final stage indicate that the kinetic parameters derived are well aligned with the experimental data, effectively depicting microbial growth and substrate utilisation. It also demonstrates the reactor's effectiveness for the industrial-scale treatment of phenolic waste.
期刊介绍:
The Journal of Water Process Engineering aims to publish refereed, high-quality research papers with significant novelty and impact in all areas of the engineering of water and wastewater processing . Papers on advanced and novel treatment processes and technologies are particularly welcome. The Journal considers papers in areas such as nanotechnology and biotechnology applications in water, novel oxidation and separation processes, membrane processes (except those for desalination) , catalytic processes for the removal of water contaminants, sustainable processes, water reuse and recycling, water use and wastewater minimization, integrated/hybrid technology, process modeling of water treatment and novel treatment processes. Submissions on the subject of adsorbents, including standard measurements of adsorption kinetics and equilibrium will only be considered if there is a genuine case for novelty and contribution, for example highly novel, sustainable adsorbents and their use: papers on activated carbon-type materials derived from natural matter, or surfactant-modified clays and related minerals, would not fulfil this criterion. The Journal particularly welcomes contributions involving environmentally, economically and socially sustainable technology for water treatment, including those which are energy-efficient, with minimal or no chemical consumption, and capable of water recycling and reuse that minimizes the direct disposal of wastewater to the aquatic environment. Papers that describe novel ideas for solving issues related to water quality and availability are also welcome, as are those that show the transfer of techniques from other disciplines. The Journal will consider papers dealing with processes for various water matrices including drinking water (except desalination), domestic, urban and industrial wastewaters, in addition to their residues. It is expected that the journal will be of particular relevance to chemical and process engineers working in the field. The Journal welcomes Full Text papers, Short Communications, State-of-the-Art Reviews and Letters to Editors and Case Studies