Treatment of high strength pharmaceutical wastewaters in a Thermophilic Aerobic Membrane Reactor (TAMR)

• Pharmaceutical wastewater was treated with a Thermophilic Aerobic Membrane Reactor.
• The removal yields of COD and total phosphorus were higher than 94%.
• The most important phenomena in phosphorus removal is the chemical precipitation.
• The specific production of biomass is very lower than mesophilic aerobic treatment.
• The effluents of thermophilic process are well biodegradable by a mesophilic biomass.

In the present work we studied the thermophilic biological treatability of high strength liquid wastes from a pharmaceutical industry (rich in organic matter – COD: Chemical Oxygen Demand, nutrients and salinity). Different mixtures (with concentrations of COD, phosphorus and chloride up to 57,000 mg L−1, 2000 mg L−1 and 9000 mg L−1, respectively) were tested. The pilot plant used in this work was designed and built with dimensions comparable to a semi-industrial unit. The results are therefore representative for full-scale applications. During four months of experimentation, the pilot plant (TAMR – Thermophilic Aerobic Membrane Reactor) was operated at 49 ± 1 °C and the organic loading rate was 1.5–5.5 kgCOD m−3 d−1 with a hydraulic retention time of 5–10 days.Main results are the following: a) extremely high COD removal rate (up to 98%); b) very low sludge production (∼0.016 kgVSS produced kgCOD removed−1); c) suitability as a pre-treatment to a conventional (e.g. activated sludge) biological treatment (the studied pharmaceutical industrial wastewaters are discharged into the sewer system for final polishing in a centralized municipal wastewater treatment plant) and d) high phosphorus removal (up to 99%).

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