Removal of Enteroviruses from Sewage by Bench-Scale Rotary-Tube Trickling Filters

The efficacy of a rotary-tube type of trickling filter for removing coxsackievirus A9, poliovirus 1, and echovirus 12 suspended in raw settled sewage was investigated. At filtration rates equivalent to about 10 MGD (million gallons per day)/acre (ca. 3,785 m3/day per acre), the filters removed 95% of the poliovirus, 83% of echovirus 12, and 94% of coxsackievirus A9. Coliform, fecal streptococci, biochemical oxygen demand, and chemical oxygen demand removals were remarkably similar, averaging 94, 92, 93, and 95%, respectively. At filtration rates equivalent to about 23 MGD/acre, 59% of the poliovirus, 63% of the echovirus 23, and 81% of the coxsackievirus A9 were removed. Coliform, fecal streptococci, biochemical oxygen demand, and chemical oxygen demand removals at this filtration rate were 68, 75, 72, and 56%, respectively. Viruses were assumed to be adsorbed to the biological slime growing in the filters, but attempts to disassociate the viruses from the slime were unsuccessful, indicating that the slime-virus complex is very stable or that the viruses were somehow inactivated. The data indicate that coliform and fecal streptococci reductions in this type sewage treatment process can be used as an index of virus reduction. Disinfection, however, must be used to ensure a virus-free final effluent.