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Removal of volatile fatty acids from synthetic leachate by anaerobic biofilms on drainage aggregates: a laboratory study

Removal of volatile fatty acids from synthetic leachate by anaerobic biofilms on drainage aggregates: a laboratory study
Removal of volatile fatty acids from synthetic leachate by anaerobic biofilms on drainage aggregates: a laboratory study
Populations of anaerobic bacteria derived from gassing landfills were established on various solid media in laboratory-scale models of landfill drains. Solutions of salts and volatile fatty acids (VFAs), simulating landfill leachates, were circulated through the models for periods of 400 to 800 days and the removal of VFAs and the formation of gas were measured. The ability of the colonized aggregate to remove VFAs from the leachates increased to a maximum over periods of time ranging from 50 to 150 days after the initial colonization phase. The highest rates of VFA removal [3500 mg 1-1 (bed vol.) day -1 at a leachate flow rate of 2.59 1 d-1 with 16 500 mg 1-1 total VFAs] were found at the tops of the columns, but the lower sections were also colonized by bacteria capable of removing VFAs. The initial adaptation of the bacterial population to propionic acid degradation was slower than the adaptation to acetate and butyrate degradation. Increasing the propionate concentration in the leachate from 2500 to 7500 mg 1 -1 caused a 50% reduction in the rate of removal of VFAs by a bacterial population adapted to a mixture of acetate, propionate and butyrate. The bacterial population eventually adapted to the higher concentrations of propionate. Changing from saturated to unsaturated flow conditions in the drainage models reduced the specific rate of removal of VFAs by 50%.
bioreactor, drainage, leachate recirculation, landfill, solid waste
0734-242X
141-149
Peeling, Louise
056d0380-722a-4f19-b338-858bdd19ba16
Paksy, Andras
3a983930-f9f6-4269-9b04-f9b67a0d465f
Robinson, John P.
9862bbb5-95b1-421a-af4a-0e69436d7a16
Powrie, William
600c3f02-00f8-4486-ae4b-b4fc8ec77c3c
Peeling, Louise
056d0380-722a-4f19-b338-858bdd19ba16
Paksy, Andras
3a983930-f9f6-4269-9b04-f9b67a0d465f
Robinson, John P.
9862bbb5-95b1-421a-af4a-0e69436d7a16
Powrie, William
600c3f02-00f8-4486-ae4b-b4fc8ec77c3c

Peeling, Louise, Paksy, Andras, Robinson, John P. and Powrie, William (1999) Removal of volatile fatty acids from synthetic leachate by anaerobic biofilms on drainage aggregates: a laboratory study. Waste Management & Research, 17 (2), 141-149. (doi:10.1177/0734242X9901700209).

Record type: Article

Abstract

Populations of anaerobic bacteria derived from gassing landfills were established on various solid media in laboratory-scale models of landfill drains. Solutions of salts and volatile fatty acids (VFAs), simulating landfill leachates, were circulated through the models for periods of 400 to 800 days and the removal of VFAs and the formation of gas were measured. The ability of the colonized aggregate to remove VFAs from the leachates increased to a maximum over periods of time ranging from 50 to 150 days after the initial colonization phase. The highest rates of VFA removal [3500 mg 1-1 (bed vol.) day -1 at a leachate flow rate of 2.59 1 d-1 with 16 500 mg 1-1 total VFAs] were found at the tops of the columns, but the lower sections were also colonized by bacteria capable of removing VFAs. The initial adaptation of the bacterial population to propionic acid degradation was slower than the adaptation to acetate and butyrate degradation. Increasing the propionate concentration in the leachate from 2500 to 7500 mg 1 -1 caused a 50% reduction in the rate of removal of VFAs by a bacterial population adapted to a mixture of acetate, propionate and butyrate. The bacterial population eventually adapted to the higher concentrations of propionate. Changing from saturated to unsaturated flow conditions in the drainage models reduced the specific rate of removal of VFAs by 50%.

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More information

Published date: April 1999
Keywords: bioreactor, drainage, leachate recirculation, landfill, solid waste

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 75694
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/75694
ISSN: 0734-242X
PURE UUID: 40c775b2-70ba-4870-8d4e-ae99aacba69c
ORCID for William Powrie: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-2271-0826

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 11 Mar 2010
Last modified: 14 Mar 2024 02:38

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Contributors

Author: Louise Peeling
Author: Andras Paksy
Author: John P. Robinson
Author: William Powrie ORCID iD

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