Engineering Commons^™

A Combined Gel Entrapped And Membrane Attached Microbial Process For Biodegrading Organic Compounds, Fayaz Saifuddin Lakhwala

Dissertations

A comparative study has been performed between two bioreactors treating phenol, one using calcium alginate entrapped microorganisms, and the other using microorganisms attached on the surface of a polymeric membrane. Laboratory experiments conducted in batch recirculation mode, as well as a continuous feed mode, showed that the calcium alginate bio-bead reactor is more efficient in treating high feed concentrations of phenol, while the membrane bioreactor is more effective in the lower concentration regime (less than 150 ppm). In batch recirculation mode, the reaction rates (expressed as mg phenol/hr*gm dry cells) in the membrane reactor are an order of magnitude higher …