Long-term operation of a compost-based biofilter for biological removal of n-butyl acetate, p-xylene and ammonia gas from an air stream

Abstract An experimental study on the removal of the mixtures of n -butyl acetate ( n -BA), p -xylene ( p -XY) and ammonia gas (NH 3 ) from an air stream was performed in a laboratory scale three-segment biofilter over a period of 4 months. The biofilter was packed with the mixture of mature pig compost, forest soil and a packing material made of polyethylene (PE) which was used in the moving bed biological reactor (MBBR) for treating wastewater. n -BA elimination capacities of 157 and 150 g m −3  h −1 were obtained at empty bed residence time (EBRT) of 60 and 30 s, respectively, corresponding to removal efficiency of approximate 100 and 96%. An approximate 100% removal of NH 3 could be achieved with inlet concentration varying from 0.043 to 0.15 g m −3 at EBRT of 30 and 90 s. For p -XY, the maximal inlet concentration (0.51 g m −3 ) with removal efficiency of 100% at EBRT of 60 s was a little higher than 0.4 g m −3 at EBRT of 90 s due to NH 3 feeding. The pH of the packing media varied in the neutral range (6.5–7.9) during the operation period. The results indicated that the mixtures of n -BA, p -XY and NH 3 were successfully eliminated simultaneously in this biofilter.

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