A pilot-plant study of a moving-bed biofilm reactor system using PVA gel as a biocarrier for removals of organic carbon and nitrogen

A pilot-plant study was conducted to evaluate the performance of a moving-bed biofilm reactor process using PVA-gel beads as a biocarrier. Real primary-settled wastewater was fed to the pre-denitrification system and removals of nitrogenous and organic contaminants were evaluated over a 1-year period. The results demonstrated that at a total nitrogen (TN) loading of 18 mg/L.h, a TN removal efficiency in keeping with and even exceeding the theoretical maximum efficiency based on the level of internal recycle, was possible and a nitrification rate of 15 mg/L.h was sustained with a HRT of only 2.5 h at 15 degrees C. Furthermore, soluble COD and BOD5 in the effluent of the pilot plant were reduced to levels well below most regulatory discharge limits. In addition, the possibility of using this biocarrier in a system, including the elimination of waste organic sludge, was discussed.