ABSTRACT
Operation of the pilot trickling filter and activated sludge systems began in late June 1984 and continued through April 1985. The stability of the process in each of the studies that achieved nitrification is difficult to ascertain since many were batch tests and short-term bench or pilot plants. The loadings on the trickling filter and activated sludge pilot plants were based on removing both phenol and ammonia with ammonia being the limiting factor. Phenol removal was consistently good throughout the course of the study. The required effluent phenol concentration is between 0.05 and 0.100 mg/L, depending on the flow, and typical effluent concentrations in the trickling filter and activated sludge pilot plants were below 0.05 mg/L. The municipal sludge was selected to obtain nitrifying bacteria while the coke plant sludge was selected to provide the phenol degrading portion of the population. The proposed treatment scheme was a tall trickling filter with plastic medium.
