Combined Removal of Carbon and Nitrogen in an Integrated UASB-Jet Loop Reactor Bioreactor System
Publication: Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 132, Issue 6
Abstract
An innovative anaerobic–aerobic integrated bioreactor system consisting of an upflow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) and a jet loop reactor was developed to investigate the feasibility of combined removal of carbon and nitrogen for a low-strength wastewater at different hydraulic retention times (HRTs) and recycle ratios. Total chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal of the integrated system increased from 87 to 92%, at a combined system HRT of , when the recycle ratio was increased from 100 to 400%, respectively. Denitrification efficiency of the integrated system increased from 49 to 86%, at all HRTs, when the recycle ratio was increased from 100 to 400%. The integrated system, on average, achieved more than 78% of total nitrogen at all HRTs. Nitrogen content of the biogas produced from the UASB reactor increased with increase in recycle ratios while the methane content exhibited a reverse trend, irrespective of the HRTs. Sludge volume index of the UASB reactor increased from total suspended solids at the end of the study. Specific methanogenic activity of the granular sludge decreased from 1.3 to 0.8 g volatile suspended solids per day at the end of the study. Nitrogen and COD mass balance of the integrated system indicated that a substantial amount of influent nitrogen and COD was lost in the effluent as dissolved form.
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Acknowledgments
The writers would like to thank the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), the New Brunswick Innovative Foundation (NBIF), and the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA) for providing funding for this study.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 132 • Issue 6 • June 2006
Pages: 624 - 637
Copyright
© 2006 ASCE.
History
Received: Feb 3, 2005
Accepted: May 26, 2005
Published online: Jun 1, 2006
Published in print: Jun 2006
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