Activated sludge studies of selected contaminants of PFH wastewater

• Main Authors: Dudley, Sandra K., Bustamante, R. B., Bonner, W. P.
• Other Authors: United States. Department of Energy.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Institute of Gas Technology 1991
• Subjects: Fuels; Chemical Reactions; Hormone Antagonists; Fluidized Beds; Drugs; Wastes; Acetone; Shales; Oil Shales; Azoles; 04 Oil Shales And Tar Sands; Liquid Wastes; Thiocyanates; Antithyroid Drugs; Rocks; Materials; Fossil Fuels; Water 040900* > Oil Shales & Tar Sands > Waste Management; Biodegradation; Sedimentary Rocks; Organic Compounds; Pyrroles; Waste Water; 040402 > Oil Shales & Tar Sands > Surface Methods; Heterocyclic Compounds; Functional Models; Oxygen Compounds; Sludges; Energy Sources; Carbonic Acid Derivatives; Nitriles; Organic Sulfur Compounds; Ketones; Retorting; Organic Nitrogen Compounds; Bench-Scale Experiments; Hydrogen Compounds; Bituminous Materials; Decomposition; Water Treatment; Carbonaceous Materials; Carbonic acid
• Online Access: https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc1090754/

Acetone, propionitrile, pyrrole, and thiocyanate were selected as representative compounds of wastewater expected from pressurized, fluidized-bed hydroretorting (PFH) of Eastern oil shales. The PFH process has been the subject of investigation by the Institute of Gas Technology, under contract with the United States Department of Energy, for the purpose of obtaining higher oil yields from Eastern shales than has been possible using conventional retorting methods. Preliminary batch experiments illustrated that acetone, propionitrile, pyrrole, and thiocyanate are aerobically biodegradable by heterogeneous microbiological cultures. Three continuous flow activated sludge reactors were used to further evaluate the biological treatability of the synthetic waste. The studies revealed that the compounds could be removed at hydraulic residence times of as low as one day. Three one-day experiments demonstrated that biological system's capability to accept organic shock loadings without a change in effluent quality. A no-recycle reactor illustrated that the flocculent microbiological population had a high resistance to solids washout. Because a supplementary nitrogen source was not included in synthetic waste treated by the no-recycle unit, it was shown that propionitrile, pyrrole, and/or thiocyanate supplied the nitrogen necessary for biological activity.