Quantification of kinetic parameters for heterotrophic bacteria via respirometry in a hybrid reactor

摘要

Over the last decade new technologies are emerging even more for wastewater treatment.nAmong the new technologies, a recent possible solution regards Moving Bed Biofilm Reactorsn(MBBRs) that represent an effective alternative to conventional processes. More specifically suchnsystems consist in the introduction of plastic elements inside the aerobic reactor as carriernmaterial for the growth of attached biomass. Recently, one of the mostly used alternatives is toncouple the Moving Bed Biofilm Reactor (MBBR) process with the conventional activated sludgenprocess, and the resulting process is usually called HMBBR (Hybrid MBBR). In the MBBR processnthe biofilm grows attached on small plastic elements that are kept in constant motion throughoutnthe entire volume of the reactor. Indeed, in such a system, a competition between the twonbiomasses, suspended and attached, can arise for the availability of the substrates, leading, as anconsequence, to a modification in the biokinetic parameters of the two biomasses, compared tonthat of a pure suspended or attached biomass process. This paper presents the first results of anstudy aimed at estimating the kinetic heterotrophic constants in a HMBBR pilot plant usingnrespirometric techniques. The pilot plant was built at the Acqua dei Corsari (Palermo) wastewaterntreatment plant and consisted of two parallel lines realized in a pre-anoxic scheme, in one ofnwhich the carrier material was added to the aerobic reactor with a filling ratio of 30%.