Biofilters are an effective and economically feasible technique for mitigating odor and other gaseous emissions from livestock production systems. They consist of a media containing a biofilm, where microorganisms break down compounds in livestock building exhaust air into energy and nutrients for growth and reproduction. In addition to capital costs, continuous filtering of exhaust air from me...

Plastic media trickling biofilter technology is being used on a pilot-scale to treat swine lagoon wastewater for use in a hydroponic greenhouse system. Two treatments of 9 filters each were installed to compare the treatment performance of commercially available BioballsTM and recycled soda six-pack rings and to verify a mathematical description of nitrification in a trickling filter. Determini...

Swine (Sus scrofa) slurry stored in open storages is a source of airborne contaminants. A customary practice for ammonia and odor control consists of covering the surface of the slurry with floating materials, such as straw. Although straw covers have been proven to generally reduce gaseous emissions, more knowledge is needed regarding how age, moisture content, and microbiological development ...

A biofilter using granular activated carbon with immobilized Paracoccus sp. CP2 was applied to the elimination of 10-250 ppm of trimethylamine (TMA), dimethylamine (DMA), and methylamine (MA). The results indicated that the system effectively treated MA (>93%), DMA (>90%), and TMA (>85%) under high loading conditions, and the maximum degradation rates were 1.4, 1.2, and 0.9g-Nkg(-1) GAC d(-1). ...

Competition between heterotrophic and nitrifying bacteria is of major practical importance in aquaculture biofilter design and operation. This competition must be understood to minimize the negative impact of heterotrophic bacteria on an aquaculture system. On the other hand, the heterotrophic population is suspected of having a positive effect against pathogenic bacteria. Little information is...

Despite the low biodegradability of seawater NOM, problems associated with biofouling are common in facilities that handle seawater. In this work, a fixed-film aerobic biofilter is proposed as an effective unit for preventing biofouling in such facilities. A packed-bed biofilter with an EBCT = 6 11 min was employed. The results demonstrated that the DOC is reduced by 6% and the BOD7 is reduced ...

Butanol, ether, toluene, and hexane, which have Henry's constants ranging from 0.0005 to 53, were used to investigate the effects of substrate solubility or availability on the removal of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in trickle-bed biofilters. Results from this study suggest that, although removal of a VOC generally increases with a decrease in its Henry's constant, an optimal Henry's cons...

Biotilters are recognized by an increasing number of state air quality regulatory agencies as ”best available control technology” (BACT) for treatment of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and odor. This has been the case for two cocomposting facilities permitted by Bedminster Bioconversion Corporation in Cobb County, Georgia, and Marlborough. Massachusetts. Both areas are in ozone non-attainmen...