• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.302-308
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• 2005

Nitrate is one of common contaminants frequently found in the bank filtrate. Biological autotrophic denitrification into permeable reactive barrier(PRB) system to reduce nitrate concentration in bank filtrate was implanted. The objectives of research are to investigate effect of inoculation, to evaluate alternative alkalinity sources, and to determine effect of hydraulic characteristics, such as retention time, flow rate on the performance of semi-pilot PRB system. Semi-pilot scale biological PRB system was installed using elemental sulfur and limestone/oyster shell as reactive materials near Nakdong River in Kyoungnam province, Korea. Nitrate concentration in bank filtrate was reduced by indigenous microorganisms in oyster shell as welt as by inoculating microorganisms isolated from the sludge of an anaerobic digester in a wastewater treatment plant. Oyster shell as well as limestone can be used as an alkalinity source. However, oyster shell resulted in suspended solids of effluent. As the flow rate in the system increased from 66 to 132 mL/min and accordingly the residence time decreased from 15 to 7.5 hours, nitrate concentration in effluent increased and nitrate removal efficiencies decreased from 75 to 58% at the fixed thickness of 80 cm of PRB.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.231-239
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• 2006

In this study, we evaluated the efficiency of using sulfur-$CaCO_3$ complex pellet in the sulfur oxidizing autotrophic denitrification process for synthetic wastewater with high $CaCO_3$ concentration. The sulfur-$CaCO_3$ complex pellet was packed in reactor(R4). Influent ${NO_3}^--N$ loading rate was from 200 to $1,000g/m^3{\cdot}day$. During the operation, average denitrification efficiency of R4 was above 95%. Particularly, the denitrififation rate at $1,000g/m^3{\cdot}day$ loading was 98.96% for R4. High ${NO_3}^--N$ removal efficiency was determined in R4 compared with other reactors. Through $Ca^{2+}$ and alkalinity analyses, we calculated the supplied alkalinity from the packed $CaCO_3$ in the reactor. Sulfur-$CaCO_3$ complex pellet more effectively supplied alkalinity through the dissociation of $CaCO_3$ as compared with other media. Based on these results, sulfur-$CaCO_3$ complex pellet increased the pH buffering capacity while also providing the carbon source to the denitrifying bacteria. Denitrification efficiency of R4 was also higher than other reactors. ESEM pictures of sulfur-$CaCO_3$ complex pellet show higher porosity than that of the granular sulfur. Hence, more denitrifying bacteria attached on the sulfur-$CaCO_3$ complex pellet than on granular sulfur. It can be concluded that the sulfur-$CaCO_3$ complex pellet is a more suitable media for a sulfur oxidizing autotrophic denitrification process as it provides high denitrification efficiency.