Record Details
Kinetics of biological contact beds
ScholarsArchive at Oregon State University
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Title | Kinetics of biological contact beds |
| Names |
Seaders, John
(creator) Phillips, Don C. (advisor) |
| Date Issued | 1963-04-25 (iso8601) |
| Note | Graduation date: 1963 |
| Abstract | The influence of media size upon the effective removal of organic waste from a liquid substrate was studied by the use of three experimental trickling filters under a set of uniform operating conditions. The range of experiments involved hydraulic loadings of increasing magnitude and of constant organic strength. The trickling filter columns consisted of three 18-foot, 5.8-inch diameter pipes with ports cut at various levels to permit the taking of samples and observation of conditions existing within the media mass. The media selected for the analysis were 9/16-, 7/8- and 1-1/4-inch diameter marbles which were placed in the columns in such numbers that the surface areas were related in the ratio of the inverse diameter of the marbles. The data collected for a basis of analysis were COD, BOD, film quantity, pH, ORP and temperature at influent, 1-, 2-, 4-, 8-, 12- and 18-foot or effluent levels. The other variable introduced intentionally was the hydraulic loading rate which started at 15 mgad and was increased to 75 mgad in 15 mgad steps between data test runs. A data test run consisted of five consecutive tests at each sampling point for each of the items selected as data basis. The performance of the three filter columns was measured in terms of BOD and COD removals. These performance data were subjected to an analysis of variance to detect significant differences between columns. There were observable differences in Columns II and III, but at the 90 percent significance level the analysis of variance showed a similarity in treatment capacity at each level and each rate applied between these filter units. Failure to pass hydraulic loads above 45 mgad put Column I out of the test series. This left Columns II and III for comparison at the 60 and 75 mgad rates. The performance of the filter columns showed that the 9/16-inch marbles were not a practical size media for use in a trickling filter, as clogging and ponding made the filter very hard to maintain and operate. COD and BOD removals became less and less, and the filter failed to function satisfactorily above the 45 mgad rate. The 7/8- and 1-1/4-inch media both maintained treatment capacity at the maximum rates applied. The measurable conditions indicated a much greater removal of organic load in total organic material removed at the higher rates than at the lower rates even though effluent quality deteriorated. The high rates of application favor the creation of a healthy environment for bacterial growth in providing better ORP and pH conditions. The media size and thus surface area is shown to be of great influence in the establishing of optimum treatment conditions. The media size should be small enough to provide for a large amount of surface area per unit volume of media yet large enough to provide for a pore space giving adequate reaeration and fluid passing channels. The smallest media tested does not meet these requirements, while the larger size media tested appeared to meet them better at the higher rates of application. |
| Genre | Thesis/Dissertation |
| Topic | Water -- Purification |
| Identifier | http://hdl.handle.net/1957/49974 |
