Biodegradation of Phenolic Compounds with a Sequencing Batch Biofilter

Sequencing batch reactor systems have been used to manipulate both the organisms’ distribution established in the reactor and the physiological state of the organisms developed, in particular they have been used to remove specific organic compounds present in industrial effluents. It has been observed that a way to improve the bioreactor activity is maintaining a high biomass concentration; i.e., using a biofilm system. This chapter presents the study of a sequencing batch biofilter packed with a low cost material for toxic wastewater treatment. The packing material was a porous volcanic rock (puzolane) with a mean diameter of 2.5 cm and 75% of porosity. The water in the reactor was maintained at the laboratory temperature (15°C). A synthetic effluent mixture of chlorophenols (60–400 mg/L) was used as the toxic wastewater model (phenol, 4-chlorophenol, 2,4-dichlorophenol and 2,4,6-trichlorophenol, 25% each). The mixture of contaminants was eliminated with an efficiency superior to 93% as total organic carbon and 99% as total phenols. A maximal applied load of 3.6 kg COD/m³-d was achieved. The kinetic of phenols degradation under starvation period was examined.