Influence of hydraulic loading and air flowrate on urban wastewater nitrogen removal with a submerged fixed-film reactor.

Nutrient disposal to sensitive areas, particularly nitrogen and phosphorus from wastewater treatment plants, provokes eutrophication reducing water quality. Fixed film technology is widely used for the removal of organic matter and nitrogen by the biological process of nitrification-denitrification. This paper studies a nitrification and post-denitrification lab-scale plant with a downflow aerobic submerged filter for removal of organic matter and nitrification, followed by an anoxic upflow biofilter for denitrification. Recycled construction material (clay shists) was employed as support material and methanol was used as carbon source. After 2 weeks of acclimation in which nitrification reached steady-state conditions, different hydraulic loadings (0.35-1.59 m(3)/m(2)h) and air flowrates (7.78-43.5 m(3)/m(2)h) were applied for 1 year. The highest hydraulic loading which complied with the EU regulation on nitrogen disposal was 0.71 m(3)/m(2)h (1.6 h). Hydraulic retention time (HRT), which corresponded to a nitrogen removal of 0.64 kg N/m(3) per day operating at an air flowrate of 25.6 m(3)/m(2)h. Concerning to organic matter removal efficiency, the aerobic reactor accepted a maximum chemical oxygen demand (COD) volumetric loading of 16.0 kg COD/m(3) per day with a 75% COD removal efficiency. For all the tests carried out, suspended solids (SS) concentration in the outlet water was less than 35 mg/l.