Sequencing batch membrane bioreactors can be a good option in up-grading small municipal plant and for industrial applications, maintaining some of the advantages of both original technologies (effluent quality improvement, flexibility and simplicity of realization, operation and control). In this study, the effects of volumetric exchange ratio (VER) and aeration/filtration strategy have been evaluated. Moreover, with the adoption of cycles shorter than 8 h, the opportunity of further simplification of the membrane operation has been tested by choosing a continuous filtration mode instead of the usual short cycle of permeation/relaxation. Two lab-scales MBR equipped with Zenon hollow fiber modules were fed on real primary effluent. For all tests, hydraulic retention time of 10 h and sludge retention time of 60 days have been adopted. Different cycles have been investigated, lasting between 1 and 8 h and all comprising an anoxic phase to allow for denitrification. Operation at low VER resulted in better effluent quality with no limitations to the denitrification phase. For VER >33% a pre-aeration step was required before effluent withdrawal for optimal ammonium removal. Moreover, VER appeared to have limited negative effect on sludge concentration and yield, while the membrane cleaning frequency slightly increased for increasing VER.
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Research Article|
July 01 2011
Application of sequencing batch membrane bioreactors (SB-MBR) for the treatment of municipal wastewater
G. Laera;
1Istituto di Ricerca Sulle Acque, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Viale F. De Blasio 5, Bari, Italy
2School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA 5005, Australia
E-mail: giuseppe.laera@ba.irsa.cnr.it
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Bo Jin;
Bo Jin
2School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA 5005, Australia
3School of Chemical Engineering, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA 5005, Australia
4Australian Water Quality Centre, SA Water Corporation, 250 Victoria Square, Adelaide, SA 5100, Australia
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A. Lopez
A. Lopez
1Istituto di Ricerca Sulle Acque, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Viale F. De Blasio 5, Bari, Italy
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Water Sci Technol (2011) 64 (2): 391–396.
Article history
Received:
December 24 2010
Accepted:
March 24 2011
Citation
G. Laera, Bo Jin, A. Lopez; Application of sequencing batch membrane bioreactors (SB-MBR) for the treatment of municipal wastewater. Water Sci Technol 1 July 2011; 64 (2): 391–396. doi: https://doi.org/10.2166/wst.2011.622
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