Adsorption and Diffusion Effects on the Residence Time Distribution of Submerged Biofilters

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Abstract
The influence of adsorption and diffusion phenomena on the hydrodynamics of a submerged aerated filter was studied by using stimulus-response techniques. Two tracers, lithium chloride and blue-dextran, and two packing materials, sepiolite and puzzolane, were used. The RTD obtained were analyzed by using two theoretical models: the CSTR's (Completely Stirred Tank Reactor) in series model and the CSTR's with dead zone in series model. Experimental results confirmed that the influence of tracer adsorption on the liquid phase hydrodynamics is much smaller than the influence of its diffusion into the packing material. The use of different tracers brought about different results, which were interpreted according to their different diffusional behaviour. In all the experiments, the flow pattern approached to plug-flow. The results obtained from the RTD analysis with both models differed in less than 25% for the experiments done with lithium and sepiolite.

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