USING LAB SCALE SEQUENCING BATCH BIOFILM REACTOR (SBBR) FOR DOMESTIC WASTEWATER TREATMENT WITH OPERATION PHASES AND COST COMPARISONS
Abstract
Recently, modifying of conventional Sequencing Batch Reactor (SBR) treatment technology has been researched and developed extensively to enhance performance as well as to be cost effective. One of the most recent uses of modified SBR (MSBR) is sequencing batch biofilm reactor (SBBR) treatment technology. In this study, SBBR was applied as a modified version of SBR for domestic wastewater (DWW) treatment to achieve the effluent standards, cost effective and flexibility in operation. This study was carried out through the laboratory-scale tank which operated in both SBR and SBBR system for DWW treatment of residential apartments in Erbil city. Chemical oxygen demand (COD), total suspended solids (TSS), and ammonia-nitrogen (NH3-N) for the real fresh DWW were 250 mg/L, 300 mg/L and 13 mg/L, respectively. The results of SBBR revealed that the removal efficiencies of TSS, COD, and NH3-N were 88.2%, 95.5% and 81.7% respectively, for organic load 400 g COD/m3.d, 17.42 g NH3-N /m3.d and hydraulic retention time (HRT) was 18 hrs. While, removal efficiencies for the TSS, COD, and NH3-N in SBR were 89.5%, 92.8% and 82.5% correspondingly. Both SBR and SBBR effluent quality were meet discharge standards after comparison with Iraqi standard of effluent discharge. SBBR was more cost-effective comparing to SBR which, saving 5415 Iraqi Dinars (ID) for one kWh per annum. SBBR was superior than traditional SBR regarding cost effectiveness as well as start-up period which was slightly faster than SBR benefiting from biomedia plastic carrier. SBBR was applied due to their advantages in different residential projects as decentralized wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) in Erbil city.
