Carbon tetrachloride biodegradation in a fixed-biofilm reactor and its kinetic study

Kinetics of Carbon Tetrachloride biodegradation are evaluated in a continuous-flow fixed-biofilm reactor with controlled initial redox potential. The column was seeded with a mixed culture of indigenous microorganisms Pseudomonas cepacia and Providencia stuartii. The fixed biofilm reactor exhibited 98%-99.9% biodegradation of CT introduced into the reactor at an initial concentration of about 200 mu g/l for retention times of 1 to 4 days respectively. Four models were employed to evaluate the kinetics of CT biodegradation. These included: Eckenfelder (1989), Arvin (1991), Bouwer and McCarty (1985) and a biphasic model. Comparison of calculated results with observed results between these models agreed very closely to each other (0.968 < R-2 < 0.999). Predicted performance was best described by the model of Bouwer and McCarty (1985). However, the biphasic and Eckenfelder models provided excellent correlations and were much simpler to apply. The biphasic model yielded very good correlations of the data for all detention times evaluated; whereas, the Eckenfelder model effected comparable results only at the longer retention times studied. (C) 1998 IAWQ. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.