Efficiency of pozzolan and sawdust as biofilter in the treatment of wastewater

Abstract

AbstractWastewater can offer a favorable solution for wastewater treatment. This work reviews series of filters with different particle sizes, namely pozzolan and sawdust, as an alternative for wastewater treatment. A permeability coefficient was determined for each filter. The biofilm was prepared by passing a stream of wastewater containing bacteria through different filters separately. The purification of wastewater was performed on the biofilm with different particles sizes. The results show an inverse relationship between the permeability coefficient and the contact time that affects the efficiency of the filtration. Filtration efficiency yield is around 85–94% for chemical oxygen demand (COD) and around 92–97% for biological oxygen demand (BOD). High efficiency in removing some minerals is also observed by bacteria. The biofilm prepared from wastewater seems to be an efficient agent to filter wastewaters in particular rural areas. The formation of biofilms has significantly reduced bacterial activity and heavy metal content.