Citation:

Platten, W., P. Campo, M. Suidan, AND A. Venosa. Evaluation of a Gravity Flow Membrane Bioreactor for Treating Municipal Wastewater. Jason He (ed.), WATER ENVIRONMENT RESEARCH. Water Environment Federation, Alexandria, VA, 90(2):172-179, (2018). https://doi.org/10.2175/106143017X15131012152744

Impact/Purpose:

The goal of the research reported in this paper is to replicate their results with the hybrid system using actual municipal wastewater in order to assess the impact of inert suspended solids and non-biodegradable organic matter on membrane performance.

Description:

The biomass concentrator reactor (BCR), a gravity flow membrane bioreactor (MBR) design, was evaluated for use in treating a municipal wastewater stream. The BCR operates with less than 2.5 cm of pressure head and uses a 3 to 4 mm thick tortuous path membrane with pore size ranging from 18 to 28 µm to achieve solids separation. A two-stage, aerobic/anoxic reactor was evaluated for the removal of chemical oxygen demand (COD), ammonia, total nitrogen, and solids separation. The reactor was fed 72 L/day, with a hydraulic retention time of 9.3 hours, and had a solids retention time of 20 days. The influent COD was reduced by 93%, whereas, influent ammonia was reduced below 0.1 mg/L and total nitrogen was reduced by 53.7%. A lack of readily biodegradable COD limited denitrification and thus total nitrogen removal. The reactor solids were retained completely in the reactor by the membrane for the duration of testing.

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