• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.31 no.4 s.85
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• pp.309-315
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• 2005

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and odor materials are major sources of air pollution in Ulsan city, where much chemical plants are located. Therefore, it is necessary to develop a new reactor which can remove VOCs and odor materials effectively and be equipped at the end of pipe easily. A modified reactor (bioscrubber trickling filter, BSTF), which have both characteristics of biofilter and bioscrubber, was developed and tested on its reactivity with several VOCs using two types of media, fiber and activated carbon 4- ceramic(A/C). It was observed that the removal efficiencies of several types of VOCs such as acetaldehyde, ethylalcohol, butanol, diethylamine and triethylamine were up to $95\%$ when they had about 100 ppm of initial concentration and 80 seconds of residence time. Good attachment of microorganisms to both media, where it is thought the reaction efficiency can be determined according to the amount of microorganisms attachment, observed with scanning electron microscopy(SEM). Initial pressure drops of the packed bed with both media were 229 $mmH_2O/m$ at A/C column and 670 $mmH_2O/m$, respectively. However, maximum pressure drop of fiber column during the operation was over 1,647 $mmH_2O/m$. Therefore, it was thought that the fiber material would not suitable to use in the local plant as a packed bed media.

• Journal of Korean Society of Water and Wastewater
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.189-198
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• 2009

Tastes and odor in water caused by geosmin and 2-MIB are the major customer complaints for water utilities. Therefore, control of geosmin and 2-MIB is a worldwide concern. In this study, the effects of biofilter media type (three different activated carbons and anthracite), empty bed contact time (EBCT) and temperature on the removal of geosmin and 2-MIB in BAC filters were investigated. Experiments were conducted at three different water temperatures (5, 15 and $25^{\circ}C$) and four different EBCTs (5, 10, 15, and 20 min). The experimental results indicated that the coal based BAC retained more bacterial biomass on the surface of the activated carbon than the other BACs, and increasing EBCT or increasing water temperature also increased the geosmin and 2-MIB removal in BAC filters. To achieve above 50% of removal efficiency for geosmin and 2-MIB in a BAC filter, above 10 min EBCT at $5^{\circ}C$ and 5 min EBCT at above $15^{\circ}C$ were required. The kinetic analysis for the biodegradation of geosmin and 2-MIB indicated a first-order reaction rate at various water temperatures. Data obtained from the BAC filters at various temperatures were also used to evaluate pseudo first-order rate constants for geosmin and 2-MIB. The half-lives evaluated at 5, 15, and $25^{\circ}C$ for geosmin and 2-MIB ranged from 2.39 to 10.31 min and 3.35 to 13.97 min, respectively, which can be used to assist water utilities in designing and operating BAC system.

• Journal of Animal Environmental Science
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.29-34
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• 2006

The effects of turning frequency were examined on the efficiency of composting lime treated excess sludge amended with sawdust from the activated sludge process after a liquid/solids separation process. The raw and excess sludge from the activated sludge process associated with the hog wastewater treatment system is a significant problem and composting is an effective method far reducing the pollution potential of hog wastewater sludge. The coagulant used sludge composting and ammonia emissions from composting are not well established. The effect of compost properties such as high total carbon, C/N ratio and pH value on performance of composting sludge and biofiltration of ammonia from composting process were investigated. The ammonia emission was not significantly increased during composting. The ammonia concentrations of the exhaust air of composter were ranged from 0.5 and 7 ppm about 12 days after composting. The performance of the hog wastewater sludge composting was the most sensitive to chemical treated sludge properties such as high total carbon and high C/N ratio of the initial compost mixes. Temperature in compost and ammonia emission were not greatly affected by the turning frequency.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.46 no.5
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• pp.994-1001
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• 2008

Freundlich isothermal adsorption parameters, applicable to such biofilter-model as process-lumping model(Lim's model), for sterilized granular activated carbon(GAC), sterilized compost and sterilized equal volume mixture of GAC and compost were obtained and were compared each other, assuming that adsorbents are enclosed by water layer, in order to construct robust process-lumping biofilter model effective for wide-range of hydrophilic volatile organic compounds(VOC). In this investigation 0.04, 0.08, 0.12, 0.16, 0.2, 0.4, 0.8 and 1.0ml of ethanol were added to three kinds of adsorbent-media and were placed at $30^{\circ}{\cdots}$ under the wet condition of the media, which was the same as biofilter operating condition, until the adsorption reached the condition of equilibrium before each adsorbed amount of ethanol was obtained. Then adsorption capacity parameters(K) and adsorption exponents of Freundlich adsorption isotherm equation, which simulates the adsorbed amount of ethanol equilibrated with the ethanol concentration of the condensed water in the pore of the media, were constructed for sterilized granular activated carbon(GAC), sterilized compost and sterilized equal volume mixture of GAC and compost as (0.7566 and $5.070{\times}10^{-7}mg-ethanol/mgmedia/(mg-ethanol/m^3)^{0.7566}$), (0.8827 and $1.000{\times}10^{-8}mg-ethanol/mgmedia/(mg-ethanol/m^3)^{0.8827}$) and (0.5688 and $5.243{\times}10^{-6}mg-ethanol/mgmedia/(mg-ethanol/m^3)^{0.5688}$), respectively. These Freundlich isothermal adsorption parameters were applicable to the adsorption characteristics of biofilter media enclosed with bio-layer. The order of magnitude of the ratio of ethanol-air/water partition coefficient and toluene-air/water partition coefficient was almost consistent to that of ethanol-adsorbed amounts in this experiment with compost and in the investigation of Delhomenie et al. on toluene-adsorption to wet compost.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.39 no.6
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• pp.318-324
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• 2017

We evaluated geosmin and MIB biodegradation and adsorption mechanism of biological activated carbon (BAC) and anthracite biofilter. In steady state of BAC process, the geosmin and MIB were completely removed at the 30 min empty bed contact time (EBCT) even though low water temperature ($9^{\circ}C$) in which the activity of attached bacteria decreased. When the water temperature was $26^{\circ}C$, the microbial biomass and activity were higher at the upper layer of the biofilm than at $9^{\circ}C$, and the microbial biomass and activity decreased as the depth was deeper. This is because when the water temperature is high, the biodegradable organic matter (BOM) removal rate in the upper layer is high and the BOM amount that can't be supplied to the lower layer. The Removal rate of geosmin and MIB by BAC process did not show a significant difference compare to activity-inhibited BAC by treated with azide and the biofilter also removed the geosmin and MIB by biological action. It means geosmin and MIB could be removed by competitive relationship between adsorption and biodegradation.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.50 no.1
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• pp.149-154
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• 2012

The adsorption and desorption behavior of biofilter-medium was investigated on the performance of an adsorption column. Continuous flow-isothermal adsorption experiments were performed to treat waste air containing such a VOC as ethanol under the same condition of > 90% relative humidity as the condition of the feed to a biofilter process. In case of feeding waste air containing ethanol of 1,000 ppmv (or 2,050 mg ethanol/$m^3$) to the adsorption system at the rate of 2 L/min, the onsets of its breakthrough and reaching the state of dynamic equilibrium at the exit had been delayed 10 and 3 times, respectively, later than those at the 1st stage sampling port. Moreover, in case of 2,000 ppmv (or 4,100 mg ethanol/$m^3$), they had been delayed 9 and 3 times, respectively. Thus, regardless of feeding concentration, the ratios of delaying period were observed to be quite consistent each other at the exit of the adsorption column. With regard to the period of desorption, the ratios of delaying period were consistent each other to be 1.5 for both cases. In addition, the effect of microbial activity and sterilization-process was studied on adsorption equilibrium. The ethanol concentration in the vapor phase of vials packed with sterilized granular activated carbon (GAC) was quite consistent to that with unsterilized GAC. However, the ethanol concentrations in the vapor phase of vials packed with unsterilized compost and the unsterilized mixture of GAC and compost were higher than those with sterilized compost and the sterilized mixture of GAC and compost, respectively.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.23 no.6
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• pp.1101-1109
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• 2014

In this study we followed biofilm formation and development in a granular activated carbon (GAC) filter on pilot-scale during the 12 months of operation. GAC particles and water samples were sampled from four different depths (-5, -25, -50 and -90 cm from surface of GAC bed) and attached biomass were measured with adenosine tri-phosphate (ATP) analysis and heterotrophic plate count (HPC) method. The attached biomass accumulated rapidly on the GAC particles of top layer throughout all levels in the filter during the 160 days (BV 23,000) of operation and maintained a steady-state afterward. During steady-state, biomass (ATP and HPC) concentrations of top layer in the BAC filer were $2.1{\mu}g{\cdot}ATP/g{\cdot}GAC$ and $3.3{\times}10^8cells/g{\cdot}GAC$, and 85%, 83% and 99% of the influent total biodegradable dissolved organic carbon ($BDOC_{total}$), $BDOC_{slow}$ and $BDOC_{rapid}$ were removed, respectively. During steady-state process, biomass (ATP and HPC) concentrations of middle layer (-50 cm) and bottom layer (-90 cm) in the BAC filter were increased consistently. Biofilm development (growth rate) proceed highest rate in the top layer of filter (${\mu}_{ATP}=0.73day^{-1}$; ${\mu}_{HPC}=1,74day^{-1}$) and 78%~87% slower in the bottom layer (${\mu}_{ATP}=0.14day^{-1}$; ${\mu}_{HPC}=0.34day^{-1}$). This study shows that the combination of different analytical methods allows detailed quantification of the microbiological activity in drinking water biofilter.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.48 no.3
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• pp.391-396
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• 2010

In this research the characteristics of ammonia removal from malodorous waste-air were investigated under various operating condition of biofiilter packed with equal volume of rubber media and compost for the efficient removal of ammonia, representative source of malodor frequently generated at compost manufacturing factory and publicly owned facilities. Then the optimum conditions were constructed to treat waste-air containing ammonia with biofilter. Biofilter was run for 30 days(experimental frequency of 2 times/day makes 60 experimental times.) with the ammonia loading from $2.18g-N/m^3/h$ to $70g-N/m^3/h$ at $30^{\circ}C$. The ammonia removal efficiency reached almost 100% for I through IV stage of run to degrade up to the ammonia loading of $17g-N/m^3/h$. However the removal efficiency dropped to 80% when ammonia loading increased to $35g-N/m^3/h$, which makes the elimination capacity of ammonia $28g-N/m^3/h$ for V stage of run. However, the removal efficiency remained 80% and the maximum elimination capacity reached $55g-N/m^3/h$ when ammonia loading was doubled $70g-N/m^3/h$ for VI stage of run. Thus the maximum elimination capacity exceeded $1,200g-N/m^3/day$(i.e., $50g-N/m^3/h$) of the experiment of biofilter packed with rock wool inoculated with night soil sludge by Kim et al.. However, the critical loading did not exceed $810g-N/m^3/day$ (i.e., $33.75g-N/m^3/h$) of the biofilter experiment by Kim et al.. The reason to exceed the maximum elimination capacity of Kim et al. may be attributed to that the rubber media used as biofilter packing material provide the better environment for the fixation of nitrifying and denitrification bacteria to its surface coated with coconut based-activated carbon powder and well-developed inner-pores, respectively.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.39 no.3
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• pp.124-131
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• 2017

In this study, We investigated the effects of water temperature and empty bed contact time (EBCT) on the biodegradability of 8 blood lipid lower agents (BLLAs) in biological activated carbon (BAC) process. Experiments were conducted at three water temperatures ($8^{\circ}C$, $16^{\circ}C$ and $24^{\circ}C$) and three EBCTs (5 min, 10 min and 15 min). Increasing water temperature and EBCT increased the biodegradation efficiency of BLLAs in BAC process. Simvastatin and fenofibrate were the highest biodegradation efficiency, but atorvastatin and clofibric acid were the lowest. The kinetic analysis suggested a pseudo-first-order reaction model for biodegradation of 8 BLLAs at various water temperatures and EBCTs. The pseudo-first-order biodegradation rate constants ($k_{bio}$) of clofibric acid and atorvastatin were $0.0075min^{-1}$ and $0.0122min^{-1}$ at $8^{\circ}C$, and were $0.0540min^{-1}$ and $0.0866min^{-1}$ at $24^{\circ}C$, respectively. By increasing the water temperature from $8^{\circ}C$ to $24^{\circ}C$, the biodegradation rate constants ($k_{bio}$) were increased 7.1~7.2 times.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.36 no.12
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• pp.858-864
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• 2014

In this study, The effects of empty bed contact time (EBCT) and water temperature on the biodegradation of 8 synthetic fragrances (SFs) in biological activated carbon (BAC) process were investigated. Experiments were conducted at two water temperatures (7 and $18^{\circ}C$) and three EBCTs (5, 10 and 15 min). Increasing EBCT and water temperature increased the biodegradation efficiency of SFs in BAC column. Pentalide and ambrettolide were the highest biodegradation efficiency, but DPMI and ADBI were the lowest. The kinetic analysis suggested a pseudo-first-order reaction model for biodegradation of 8 SFs at various water temperatures and EBCTs. The pseudo-first-order biodegradation rate constants ($k_{bio}$) of 8 SFs ranging from $0.1184{\sim}0.6545min^{-1}$ at $7^{\circ}C$ to $0.3087{\sim}0.9173min^{-1}$ at $18^{\circ}C$. By increasing the water temperature from $7^{\circ}C$ to $18^{\circ}C$, the biodegradation rate constants ($k_{bio}$) were increased 1.4~2.6 times.