EFFECT OF SINUSOIDAL PERTURBATIONS OF FEED CONCENTRATION ON MULTI-SUBSTRATE CARBON OXIDATION AND NITRIFICATION PROCESS IN AN UPFLOW PACKED-BED BIOFILM REACTOR

The performance of an upflow packed bed biofilm reactor has been analy zed under multi-substrate limitation by considering simultaneous carbo n oxidation and nitrification reactions. For an inlet concentration of 200 mg l(-1) of NH4+-N and 50 mg l(-1) of methanol, the results show that organic substrate is consumed very rapidly near the inlet of the reactor while most of the NH4+-N is converted in the central region of the reactor. When the inlet concentration of methanol is subjected to sinusoidal variation, the exit concentration of NH4+-N also follows a sinusoidal pattern although its inlet concentration was subjected to step input. However, the methanol exit concentration exhibits the typi cal step input response when the inlet NH4+-N concentrations subjected to sinusoidal variation. The concentration profiles within the biofil m reactor show that oxygen is a limiting component at the middle of th e reactor when both methanol and NH4+-N inlet concentrations follow si nusoidal variation. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science S.A.