Granular activated carbon adsorption of MIB in the presence of dissolved organic matter

•The influent MIB concentration was found not to impact the normalized breakthrough.•Increasing background DOM was found to decrease the GAC adsorption capacity for MIB.•Models were developed that predicted breakthrough based on inflow TOC concentration.•Models were verified with external field GAC breakthrough data.•Pore diffusion model also well simulated and predicted MIB breakthrough.

Based on the results of over twenty laboratory granular activated carbon (GAC) column runs, models were developed and utilized for the prediction of 2-methylisoborneol (MIB) breakthrough behavior at parts per trillion levels and verified with pilot-scale data. The influent MIB concentration was found not to impact the concentration normalized breakthrough. Increasing influent background dissolved organic matter (DOM) concentration was found to systematically decrease the GAC adsorption capacity for MIB. A series of empirical models were developed that related the throughput in bed volumes for a range of MIB breakthrough targets to the influent DOM concentration. The proportional diffusivity (PD) designed rapid small-scale column test (RSSCT) could be directly used to scale-up MIB breakthrough performance below 15% breakthrough. The empirical model to predict the throughput to 50% breakthrough based on the influent DOM concentration served as input to the pore diffusion model (PDM) and well-predicted the MIB breakthrough performance below a 50% breakthrough. The PDM predictions of throughput to 10% breakthrough well simulated the PD-RSSCT and pilot-scale 10% MIB breakthrough.

Graphical abstractNormalized MIB and TOC breakthrough at influent MIB concentrations of 50 and 200 ng/L.Figure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload high-quality image (98 K)Download as PowerPoint slide