Temperature Effects of Trickle-Bed Biofilter for Treating BTEX Vapors
Publication: Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 125, Issue 8
Abstract
Effects of temperature change in the range of 15–50°C on the performance of a trickle-bed biofilter for treating benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and o-xylene (BTEX) vapors in air streams were investigated. In the steady-state condition, the BTEX removal efficiency increased as the operating temperature increased in the range of 15–30°C. However, an opposite trend was observed between 30 and 50°C. The trickle-bed biofilter appears to be an effective treatment process in the temperature range of 25–35°C. The microscopic observations showed that the morphologies of the leading microorganisms within the first-stage biofilm were rod-shaped bacteria in association with filaments, bacilli, and cocci at 15, 30, and 50°C, respectively. A theoretical evaluation on the temperature coefficient (θ) indicated that the temperature effects on the performance of a trickle-bed biofilter are more significant under lower BTEX loading rates. Furthermore, the mean θ value for a trickle-bed biofilter was equal to 1.021, which is in the typical range of some commonly used aerobic processes (1.0–1.10).
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 125 • Issue 8 • August 1999
Pages: 775 - 779
History
Received: Sep 9, 1998
Published online: Aug 1, 1999
Published in print: Aug 1999
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