Effect of gas empty bed contact time on performances of various types of rotating drum biofilters for removal of VOCs

The effects of gas empty bed contact time (EBCT), biofilter configuration, and types of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were evaluated to assess the performance of rotating drum biofilters (RDBs), especially at low EBCT values. Three types of pilot-scale RDBs, a single-layer RDB, a multi-layer RDB, and a hybrid RDB, were examined at various gas EBCTs but at a constant VOC loading rate. Diethyl ether, toluene, and hexane were used separately as model VOC. When EBCT increased from 5.0 to 60 s at a constant VOC loading rate of 2.0 kg COD/(m3 day), ether removal efficiency increased from 73.1% to 97.6%, from 81.6% to 99.9%, and from 84.0% to 99.9% for the single-layer RDB, the multi-layer RDB, and the hybrid RDB, respectively, and toluene removal efficiency increased from 76.4% to 99.9% and from 84.8% to 99.9% for the multi-layer RDB and the hybrid RDB, respectively. When hexane was used as the model VOC at a constant loading rate of 0.25 kg COD/(m3 day), hexane removal efficiency increased from 31.1% to 57.0% and from 29.5% to 50.0% for the multi-layer RDB and hybrid RDB, respectively. The single-layer, multi-layer, and hybrid RDBs exhibited, respectively, the lowest, middle, and highest removal efficiencies, when operated under similar operational loading conditions. Hexane exhibited the lowest removal efficiency, while diethyl ether displayed the highest removal efficiency. The data collected at the various EBCT values correlated reasonably well with a saturation model. The sensitivity of removal efficiency to EBCT varied significantly with EBCT values, VOC properties, and biofilter configurations. Process selection and design for RDB processes should consider these factors.