A moving bed bioreactor is a biological sewage treatment process. In many instances, wastewater is full of organic matter that can be difficult to filter out by physical or chemical means. Thus, one of the best methods of dealing with organic matter is treating it with a biological process. The basic idea behind biological water treatment processes is using micro-organisms to break down sewage.
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The media that carries out decomposition can be implemented in a number of ways. One of the most common is the activated sludge process, a type of suspended growth system that utilizes a loose sludge solution that is aerated to aid in the metabolic breakdown.
Another method is a trickling filter, a fixed film system that sprays the sewage on top of a bed of stones that are covered in a biofilm.
Both activated sludge and trickling filters have their advantages and are effective processes, but they also have certain disadvantages.
However, a moving bed bioreactor (MBBR) is a biological process that utilizes aspects of each of these systems and the associated benefits without their disadvantages. This process uses a biofilm that is attached to a carrier like the trickling filter, but the carriers are suspended in the solution with aeration bubbles like the activated sludge process.
Below, we&#;ll describe the pros and cons of an moving bed bioreactor system (MBBR) in wastewater treatment.
Pros
Higher effective sludge retention time (SRT)
Sludge retention time is effectively the length of time that a particular unit of biological media is actively working within the bioreactor.
As a fixed film system, the SRT of MBBR is much longer than that of a suspended growth system where the bio media can be pulled from the reactor at the outlet. Such systems require a recirculation line for the sludge. In the moving bed bioreactor process, the plastic carriers are kept within the reactor by a mesh sieve at the outlet, so none of the biofilm is lost.
Lower hydraulic retention time (HRT)
Hydraulic retention time refers to the amount of time the bioreactor needs to effectively treat the waste water influent. Thanks to the combination of the moving carriers with the highly concentrated biofilm, HRT is shorter for these moving bed bioreactor systems when compared to others, typically only needing a few hours at maximum based on organic load.
Responds to load fluctuations without operator intervention
Many other treatment methods, biological or otherwise, need to be diligently monitored for load fluctuations so that dosages may be adjusted accordingly. WIth MBBR, this is unnecessary for fluctuations that aren&#;t considerably large.
The biofilm is naturally able to self adjust slightly to accommodate for different volumes, concentrations, or contaminants.
Lower sludge production
One of the biggest issue when dealing with wastewater is the resulting sludge after certain processes. Biological systems are no different. However, because MBBR is a fixed film system, nothing is being added to the effluent so the produced sludge volume is smaller than in additive biological processes.
Less area required
Thanks to the large inner surface area of the plastic carriers and the high bacterial concentration of the biofilm, moving bed bioreactor units are more compact and occupy less land area than other biological treatment systems.
Resilient to toxic shock
In a similar vein to its response to load fluctuations, MBBR systems are also resilient against toxic shock, which is an issue with other biological treatments. Some contaminants in wastewater can kill the bacteria in the biological media, but MBBR biofilms can respond and recover from such toxins.
Process performance independent of the secondary clarifier
Activated sludge systems use recirculated sludge to increase their SRT. However, if there are issues in the separation that occurs in the clarifier, the return sludge can be of lower quality and affect the performance of the reactor.
This is not an issue in MBBR systems because there is no need for recirculation being that it is a fixed film system.
Improved settling characteristics
How well the reactor effluent settles in the clarifying tank can affect the quality of the treated water.
This can be an issue in certain other biological treatment systems, but MBBR systems and their combined fixed film and suspended media qualities ensure that the solids settle out well, with little to no turbidity in the supernatant and low water content in the sludge.
Cons
Manual bacterial monitoring required
Biological systems are more difficult to monitor than other treatments. You cannot simply put a sensor in the tank to consistently keep track of the bacteria in the bio media. Operators have to regularly take samples of the media and analyze them in a lab by hand to ensure that the bacteria are alive and healthy.
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Skilled operator needed
In order to monitor the bio media, the operators need to be experts in biological water treatment. The physical operation of these systems are not particularly complex, but the biological processes that occur are complex and require some skilled staff to ensure they are working properly.
MBBR treatment systems combine some of the best qualities of the activated sludge process and trickling filters without their disadvantages, but it is not without a few of its own. But, in instances and applications, the benefits can outweigh the negatives.
Do you want to learn more about the pros and cons of the moving bed bioreactor technology and how this technology could apply to your wastewater treatment application?
Contact Genesis Water Technologies, Inc., your water & wastewater treatment specialist at 1-877-267- in the USA, reach out to our local offices and partners around the world or contact us at to speak with one of our knowledgeable representatives.
The use of MBBR technology has several advantages and disadvantages, which we explain in our article today. We are pleased to receive your inquiries about the effectiveness of treating gray water and wastewater using MBBR technology.
There are many advantages of using MBBR technology compared to its disadvantages:
Sludge retention time is the length of time that a given unit of biological media operates effectively within the bioreactor.
As a fixed film system, the SRT of MBBR is much longer than a suspension growth system. As the biomedia can be drawn from the reactor at the outlet. Such systems require a sludge recirculation line. In the moving bed bioreactor process. The plastic carriers are kept inside the reactor by a mesh sieve at the outlet, so none of the biofilm is lost.
Hydraulic retention time refers to the amount of time the bioreactor needs to effectively treat the wastewater. Thanks to the combination of mobile carriers with highly concentrated biofilms. HRT is shorter for these mobile bioreactor systems when compared to others, usually only needing a maximum of a few hours based on organic load.
Many other treatment methods, biological or otherwise, must be diligently monitored for fluctuations in pregnancy so that doses can be adjusted accordingly. With MBBR, this is unnecessary for fluctuations that are not significantly large.
Biofilms are naturally able to adjust slightly to accommodate different sizes, concentrations or contaminants.
One of the biggest problems when dealing with wastewater is the sludge produced after certain processes. Biological systems are no different. However, since MBBR is a fixed membrane system, nothing is added to the effluent and so the volume of sludge produced is smaller than in additive biological processes.
Thanks to the large internal surface area of the plastic carriers and the high bacterial concentration of the biofilm, the moving bed bioreactor units are more compact and occupy less floor space than other biological processing systems.
In a similar vein to their response to load fluctuations, MBBR systems are also resilient to toxic shock, a problem with other biological therapies. Some pollutants in wastewater can kill bacteria in the biological medium, but MBBR biofilms can respond and recover from these toxins.
Activated sludge systems use recycled sludge to increase SRT. However, if there are separation problems occurring in the filter, the return sludge may be of lower quality and affect the performance of the reactor.
This is not a problem with MBBR systems because there is no need for recirculation since it is a fixed film system.
The quality of the reactor water flow into the clarification tank can affect the quality of the treated water.
This can be a problem in some other biological treatment systems, but MBBR systems and their fixed bed and suspended media properties ensure that the solids are well stabilized, with little to no turbidity in the supernatant and low water content in the sludge.
Biological systems are more difficult for microbial monitoring than other treatments. You cannot simply place a sensor in the tank to constantly track bacteria in biological media. Operators must regularly sample the media and analyze it in the laboratory by hand to ensure the bacteria are alive and healthy.
In order to monitor biological media, operators must be experts in biological water treatment. The physical operation of these systems is not particularly complex. However, the biological processes that occur are complex and require some skilled personnel to ensure they work properly.
MBBR treatment systems combine some of the best qualities of the activated sludge process and intermittent filters without their drawbacks, but they are not without a few of their own. But in cases and applications, the benefits can outweigh the negatives.
There are a wide range of factors that influence the design of a wastewater treatment plant and the choice of technologies that will be part of it. That is why it is important to analyze the specific characteristics of each case. As well as the needs and goals raised by the client.
In designing a water treatment plant, we may be faced with the need to choose between an MBR system or an MBBR reactor. Although the choice of one technique or another depends on the specific needs of the project and there is no formula that can be applied in general, there are a series of conditions that are usually met in most cases:
MBR systems produce high-quality treated water, thanks to their ability to remove small particles. Treated water can be reused in production processes and in other applications such as washing, irrigation, sanitary networks, etc.
The composition of wastewater indicates the types of pollutants to be treated and how much is present in the effluent. MBR systems offer greater versatility in the variety of contaminants they can treat. On the other hand, MBBR reactors can provide better performance in wastewater that is not as complex and requires simple processes, such as reducing COD or BOD.
MBBR reactors have a higher hydraulic capacity and can handle a larger amount of cubic meters daily.
Design, construction, operation, and maintenance costs are important factors in selecting a wastewater treatment system. An MBBR reactor usually has a higher cost in its design and construction but offers lower operating and maintenance expenses. The MBR system is characterized by higher operating and maintenance costs due to the presence of membranes. That requires higher energy consumption to maintain the required pressure and a greater investment in maintenance, due to their cleaning and replacement. That must be performed periodically.
Local environmental conditions, such as temperature, humidity, and the presence of chemicals can affect system selection.
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