PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT OF A UASB REACTOR COUPLED WITH POLYMERIC FILTER MEDIA FOR NUTRIENT REMOVAL

This study investigates the performance of an Up-flow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket (UASB) reactor for the treatment of low-strength domestic wastewater. The polymeric filter medium (PFM) improved the effectiveness of post-treatment. At steady-state, the average COD removal efficiency of UASB reactor achieved by 85.54 ± 6.53%. However, the effluent remains contained in residual nutrients, like total phosphorus (TP) and total Kjeldahl nitrogen (TKN), imposing further treatment. To address this, a polymeric filter medium made of chitosan-agarose cryogels was used, considerably reducing nutrient contents. The optimised experiments revealed that a 20 cm bed height and a flow rate of 100 mL/h bring about the optimum removal performance. The combined UASB-PFM system promotes wastewater treatment by reducing both organic and nutrient loading, providing an attractive option for improving the quality of wastewater prior to release.