Biological Oxygen-dosed Activated Carbon (BODAC) filters – A bioprocess for ultrapure water production removing organics, nutrients and micropollutants

Olga Bernadet, Amanda Larasati, H. Pieter J. van Veelen, Gert Jan Willem Euverink*, Maria Cristina Gagliano

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

4 Citations (Scopus)
122 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

Biological oxygen-dosed activated carbon (BODAC) filters in an Ultrapure water plant were demonstrated to have the potential to further treat secondary wastewater treatment effluent. The BODAC filters were operated for 11 years without carbon regeneration or replacement, while still functioning as pre-treatment step to reverse osmosis (RO) membranes by actively removing organic micropollutants (OMPs) and foulants. In this study, the removal of nutrients and 13 OMPs from secondary wastewater treatment effluent was investigated for 2 years and simultaneously, the granules’ characterization and microbial community analysis were conducted to gain insights behind the stable long-term operation of the BODAC filters. The results showed that the BODAC granules' surface area was reduced by ∼70 % of what is in virgin carbon granules and covered by biofilm and inorganic depositions. The BODAC filters reduced the concentration of soluble organics, mainly proteins, performed as an effective nitrification system, and almost completely removed manganese. During the 2 years of observation, the filters consistently removed some OMPs such as hydrochlorothiazide, metoprolol, sotalol, and trimethoprim by at least 70 %. Finally, through microbial community analysis, we found that nitrifying and manganese-oxidizing bacteria were detected in high relative abundance on BODAC granules, supporting BODAC performance in removing OMPs and manganese as well as converting nitrogenous species in the water.

Original languageEnglish
Article number131882
Number of pages11
JournalJournal of hazardous materials
Volume458
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 15-Sept-2023

Keywords

  • Biofilms
  • Biological activated carbon
  • Manganese removal
  • Nitrification
  • Organic micropollutants

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