title: Removal of hydrogen sulfide by immobilized Thiobacillus thioparus in a biotrickling filter packed with polyurethane foam.
abstract: In the work described here, a biotrickling filter with Thiobacillus thioparus (ATCC 23645) immobilized on polyurethane foam is proposed for the removal of hydrogen sulfide contained in air. The effect of surface velocity of the recirculation medium (5.9-1.2 m/h), sulfate concentration inhibition (3.0-10.7 g/L), pH (6.0-8.2), empty bed residence time (EBRT) (150-11 s) for constant loads of 11.5 and 2.9 g S/m(3)/h, and pressure drop of the system were investigated. The total amount of biomass immobilized on the carrier was 8.2+/-1.3x10(10) cells/g. The optimal values of the operating variables were: pH between 7.0 and 7.5, surface velocity of 5.9 m/h and sulfate concentration below 5 g/L. The critical EC value was 14.9 g S/m(3)/h (removal efficiency of 99.8%) and the EC(max) was 55.0 g S/m(3)/h (removal efficiency of 79.8%) for an EBRT of 150 s. For loads of 2.89+/-0.05 and 11.5+/-0.1 g S/m(3)/h, the removal efficiency was higher than 99% for an EBRT over 90 s.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, Food Technology and Environmental Technologies, Faculty of Sciences, University of Cádiz, CP 11510 Puerto Real, Cádiz, Spain. martin.ramirez@uca.es
authors.forename: Martín
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ramírez
authors.forename: José Manuel
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Gómez
authors.forename: Germán
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Aroca
authors.forename: Domingo
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Cantero
mesh_terms: D000222:Adaptation, Physiological / Q000187:drug effects; D001673:Biodegradation, Environmental / Q000187:drug effects; D018441:Biofilms / Q000187:drug effects / Q000254:growth & development; D018533:Biomass; D018914:Cells, Immobilized / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D003470:Culture Media; D005374:Filtration / Q000295:instrumentation*; D006862:Hydrogen Sulfide / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration / Q000187:drug effects; D007700:Kinetics; D011140:Polyurethanes / Q000737:chemistry*; D011312:Pressure; D013431:Sulfates / Q000494:pharmacology; D013499:Surface Properties / Q000187:drug effects; D013855:Thiobacillus / Q000166:cytology* / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000502:physiology; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D003470:Culture Media; D011140:Polyurethanes; D013431:Sulfates; C028279:polyurethane foam; D006862:Hydrogen Sulfide