Developing a complex technology for removing aromatic hydrocarbons from industrial wastewater and air

Summary

The issues of the treatment of industrial wastewater of a petrochemical plant at the biological treatment facilities are considered. The results of studies and pilot tests at a real-world object with a complex technology of removing aromatic hydrocarbons from industrial wastewater and waste air generated during wastewater treatment are presented. A fine-bubble aeration method with an efficiency of pollution removal 85–95% was proposed for wastewater treatment. The process of disposing of air generated during wastewater treatment in a biofilter is described in detail. It is shown that the most important condition of the efficient biological air cleaning is the stabilization of the chemical composition of wastewater; therefore, the relative measures have been proposed for the implementation of the process. It is stated that while observing the given condition, the efficiency of air cleaning in the biofilter can reach minimum 90% at the specific capacity up to 100 m³/(m²·h).

Key words

biological treatment , aeration , biofilter , aeration tank , industrial wastewater , aromatic hydrocarbons , air pollution

Designing a modular biofilter for cleaning gas emissions

Summary

The issues of designing a modular biofilter for cleaning air polluted with aromatic hydrocarbons are considered. The technology of air cleaning using biofiltration was tested earlier at a pilot plant. Basing on the analysis of various biofilter designs and taking into account the high required air capacity of the industrial unit (70,000 m³/h), an option was adopted with prefabricated separate modular biofilters in the form of heat-insulated containers with dimensions providing for the delivery to the assembly platform by regular transport. The required capacity is achieved by parallel connection of the required number of individual apparatus. To identify possible design flaws, a full-scale biofilter was fabricated and tested. The identified negative factors were eliminated in the industrial modular biofilter project.

Key words

biological treatment , biofilter , industrial wastewater , aromatic hydrocarbons , air pollution , container-type