Biotrickling Filtration of Volatile Organic Compounds in Vented Gases from Surface-Coating Operations
Publication: Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 146, Issue 6
Abstract
The study used a bench-scale biotrickling filter packed with mixed plastic chips with specific surface area of to test its performance for the removal of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) vented from paint-spraying operations. A paint containing ethyl acetate, butyl acetate, toluene, and xylenes as main solvents was used. The influent total hydrocarbon (THC) concentrations were in the range of 27–234 parts per million (ppm) (expressed as methane equivalent), and empty bed retention time (EBRTs) for the gas flowing through the empty bed space were 4.8–11.4 s in the experimental period of 125 days. Results show that a maximum THC removal capacity of 86 g as with an EBRT of 4.8–8.2 s was obtained and the value implies that it is possible to effectively eliminate VOCs with the short EBRT compared with other related studies. Ethyl acetate and butyl acetate were more easily absorbed and removed by microbial films than toluene and xylenes because of the much lower volatility and higher water affinity of the former two compounds.
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Data Availability Statement
All data, models, and code generated or used during the study appear in the published article.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 146 • Issue 6 • June 2020
Copyright
©2020 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Dec 27, 2018
Accepted: Jul 23, 2019
Published online: Mar 19, 2020
Published in print: Jun 1, 2020
Discussion open until: Aug 19, 2020
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