title: Parameters affecting performance and modeling of biofilters treating alkylbenzene-polluted air.
abstract: Both short-term and long-term biofiltration experiments were undertaken with a biofilter inoculated with a defined microbial consortium and treating an alkylbenzene mixture. The results obtained with such a biofilter in short-term experiments were very similar to those obtained with a biofilter inoculated with a non-defined mixed culture, in terms of maximum elimination capacities (70-72 g m(-3) h(-1)) and the corresponding removal efficiencies (>95%). However, in long-term experiments, a better performance was reached, with a maximum elimination capacity of 120 g m(-3) h(-1), corresponding to a removal efficiency >99% after 2 years of operation. Inoculation proved to be useful for shortening the start-up period. In the long term, it appeared that biomass distribution was not homogenous along the biofilter, which in some cases resulted in a bad fit between simple model equations and experimental data.
authors.affiliation: Chemical Engineering Laboratory, Faculty of Sciences, University of La Coruña, Spain.
authors.forename: M C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Veiga
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Kennes
mesh_terms: D000393:Air Pollutants / Q000378:metabolism*; D001407:Bacillus / Q000378:metabolism*; D001555:Benzene Derivatives / Q000378:metabolism*; D001673:Biodegradation, Environmental; D019149:Bioreactors; D005374:Filtration / Q000379:methods*; D011549:Pseudomonas / Q000378:metabolism*; D014250:Trichosporon / Q000378:metabolism*; D014992:Xylenes / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D000393:Air Pollutants; D001555:Benzene Derivatives; D014992:Xylenes; C004912:ethylbenzene; C026114:2-xylene