Preface
Due to the rapid increase in population growth, urbanization, industrialization and
more luxurious lifestyles, huge amount of pollutants are produced day by day and
discarded into the water system. Billions of gallons of wastewater are produced
every day from domestic and industrial sources. Due to the adverse effect of different pollutants of wastewater on the surrounding water environment, wastewater
treatment becomes inevitable nowadays. The treatment of wastewater should be
adequate enough to satisfy the discharge standard so that potential of the final
effluent remains within natural purification capacity of the watercourse. Biological
treatment method plays an important role in removing biodegradable carbonaceous
matter from domestic and industrial wastewater. Out of various biological methods,
hybrid bioreactor carrying both suspended-growth and attached-growth microorganisms has been found a novel and excellent bioreactor system for treating the
wastewater. It may be used for the treatment of wastewater containing slow
biodegradable/recalcitrant substances also where it has improved the efficiency of
biodegradation for the same. Solid retention time is higher for the adhered biomass
than for the flocs in suspension, thereby making feasible for growth of nitrifying
microorganisms preferentially adhered onto the support. Conventional activated
sludge process has flexibility and provides high degree of treatment, whereas
fixed-film attached-growth processes are inherently stable and resistant to organic
and hydraulic shock loadings. On the other hand, hybrid bioreactor being the
integrated process by inserting fixed-film media into activated sludge basin combines the advantage of both systems. The word “hybrid” signifies the mixed condition of both suspended-growth and attached-growth biomass.
About This Book
The book is intended to guide students and professional engineers in understanding
a fixed-bed aerobic hybrid bioreactor as an advanced biological process in the
treatment of wastewater. It discusses the area in its historical perspective together
vii
Due to the rapid increase in population growth, urbanization, industrialization and
more luxurious lifestyles, huge amount of pollutants are produced day by day and
discarded into the water system. Billions of gallons of wastewater are produced
every day from domestic and industrial sources. Due to the adverse effect of different pollutants of wastewater on the surrounding water environment, wastewater
treatment becomes inevitable nowadays. The treatment of wastewater should be
adequate enough to satisfy the discharge standard so that potential of the final
effluent remains within natural purification capacity of the watercourse. Biological
treatment method plays an important role in removing biodegradable carbonaceous
matter from domestic and industrial wastewater. Out of various biological methods,
hybrid bioreactor carrying both suspended-growth and attached-growth microorganisms has been found a novel and excellent bioreactor system for treating the
wastewater. It may be used for the treatment of wastewater containing slow
biodegradable/recalcitrant substances also where it has improved the efficiency of
biodegradation for the same. Solid retention time is higher for the adhered biomass
than for the flocs in suspension, thereby making feasible for growth of nitrifying
microorganisms preferentially adhered onto the support. Conventional activated
sludge process has flexibility and provides high degree of treatment, whereas
fixed-film attached-growth processes are inherently stable and resistant to organic
and hydraulic shock loadings. On the other hand, hybrid bioreactor being the
integrated process by inserting fixed-film media into activated sludge basin combines the advantage of both systems. The word “hybrid” signifies the mixed condition of both suspended-growth and attached-growth biomass.
About This Book
The book is intended to guide students and professional engineers in understanding
a fixed-bed aerobic hybrid bioreactor as an advanced biological process in the
treatment of wastewater. It discusses the area in its historical perspective together
vii