Abstract
The study evaluated the biodegradation characteristics of a mixture of organics with different biodegradation characteristics in an integrated chemical plant effluent. The wastewater had a total chemical oxygen demand (COD) content of 12,800 mg/L, mostly soluble and 93% biodegradable. The evaluation was based on respirometry, and mainly consisted on model calibration and interpretation of the oxygen uptake rate data, which exhibited an original and specific profile with a sequence of two peaks and three plateaus. A specific model was defined for this purpose, which identified four different biodegradable COD components with significantly different process kinetics. The major fraction accounting for 57% of the total biodegradable COD in the wastewater had to be hydrolyzed before biodegradation with a low hydrolysis rate of 1.3 day-1. The analysis of the experimental data showed that the oxygen utilization started with a delayed response after substrate addition. The delayed logarithmic phase could be characterized by a Haldane type of inhibition kinetics.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 35-41 |
| Number of pages | 7 |
| Journal | Journal of Hazardous Materials |
| Volume | 161 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 15 Jan 2009 |
Keywords
- Biodegradation
- Chemical industry
- Modeling
- Process kinetics
- Substrate inhibition