ORIGINAL RESEARCH
Nitrogen and Phosphorus Removal
from Sewage in Biofilter – Activated Sludge
Combined Systems
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Department of Sanitary Engineering and Water Management, University of Agriculture, Kraków, Poland
Submission date: 2018-02-19
Final revision date: 2018-03-31
Acceptance date: 2018-04-11
Online publication date: 2018-12-27
Publication date: 2019-02-18
Corresponding author
Dariusz Młyński
University of Agriculture in Krakow, Aleja Mickiewicza 24/28, 30-059 Kraków, Poland
Pol. J. Environ. Stud. 2019;28(3):1939-1947
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ABSTRACT
Our paper analyzes nitrogen and phosphorus removal from sewage in a biofilter. The analysis was
based on the multi-variant simulations of the combined system: fixed-film – activated sludge performance.
An activated sludge ASIM 2d model related with the model of pollutions’ transformations in fixed film
was used for the calculations. The results of exploitation analyses performed on the objective treatment
plant – average daily rate of wastewater, pH, COD values, total suspended solids, total Kjeldahl nitrogen,
nitrate nitrogen, total phosphorus, and alkalinity – were used as input parameters for the calculations.
The results indicated that there is a possibility of including fixed-film in the activated sludge technology
in order to improve nitrogen and phosphorus removal from the sewage. The nitrification process will be
performed in fixed-film, whereas nitrogen and phosphorus removal from the sewage will be performed
in anoxic chambers, which operate in the activated sludge technology. Denitrifying the dephosphatation
process guarantees the high level of total phosphorus reduction (81%) and the 42% total nitrogen
reduction, but only if the whole easily decomposable substrate will be consumed by microorganisms in
the anoxic chamber and if enough nitrates will be present in the environment.