Remediation of MTBE from drinking water: air stripping followed by off-gas adsorption.
The widespread use of methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) as an oxygenate in gasoline has resulted in the contamination of a large number of ground and surface water sources. Even though air stripping has been proven to be an effective treatment technology for MTBE removal, off-gas treatment often is required in conjunction with it. This study evaluated the combined treatment technologies of air stripping followed by off-gas adsorption on a pilot scale for the treatment of MTBE-contaminated water. The effect of air/water ratios on the treatment efficiency was studied, and the mass transfer coefficient was determined. Air/water ratios of 105:1, 151:1, 177:1, 190:1, 202:1, and 206:1 were used, and a treatment efficiency of >99% was achieved for all the runs conducted. The depth of packing required to achieve maximum treatment efficiency decreased with increasing air/water ratio. Relative humidity (RH) impacts on the MTBE adsorption capacity of a granular activated carbon (GAC) and carbonaceous resin were determined from pilot plant studies. Breakthrough profiles obtained from the pilot plant studies conducted at 20, 30, and 50% RH indicated that GAC has a higher adsorptive capacity than resin. The adsorptive capacity of GAC decreased with increasing RH, whereas RH did not impact the resin adsorptive capacity.
Ramakrishnan
Balaji
B
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio 45221, USA.
Sorial
George A
GA
Speth
Thomas F
TF
Clark
Patrick
P
Zaffiro
Alan
A
Patterson
Craig
C
Hand
David W
DW
D000327:Adsorption; D002273:Carcinogens / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D005740:Gases; D008738:Methyl Ethers / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D018508:Water Purification / Q000379:methods*
D002273:Carcinogens; D005740:Gases; D008738:Methyl Ethers; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; C043243:methyl tert-butyl ether