Open AccessNutrient limitations during the biofiltration of methyl isoamyl ketone
Author(s) -
Son HyunKeun,
Striebig Bradley A.,
Regan Ramond W.
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
environmental progress
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1547-5921
pISSN - 0278-4491
DOI - 10.1002/ep.10040
Subject(s) - biofilter , nutrient , chemistry , pollutant , environmental chemistry , adsorption , methyl isobutyl ketone , waste management , pulp and paper industry , environmental engineering , ketone , environmental science , organic chemistry , engineering
With biofiltration, both organic and inorganic compounds that are toxic to humans and volatile organic compounds from a variety of industrial and public sector sources have been effectively removed. During the initial stage of the acclimation period, the removal capacity of the biofilter is primarily attributed to the adsorption capacity of the media. The adsorption capacity of different types of biofilter media was studied. MIAK (methyl isoamyl ketone), which is one of the major air pollutants in painting operations, was used as the target air pollutant for the biofiltration experiments. All the materials tested exhibited very poor adsorption capacity for MIAK. The effect of nutrient limitation was also evaluated. A gradual decrease of removal capacity was observed under the nutrient‐limited environment. When nutrient was provided to the biofilter, the removal capacity increased from 55 to 93% in 3 days. A nutrient ratio of chemical oxygen demand (COD):N:P = 200:4:1 was sufficient for the removal of volatile organic compounds from the polluted air stream. © 2004 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Environ Prog, 2004