| Development of economical technologies for the reduction or elimination of toxicity associated with industrial wastes is required from the environmental engineering profession. Anaerobic biological processes are expected to play a large role in the future treatment of high strength hazardous and/or industrial wastes, however lack of understanding of anaerobic treatment has hindered its widespread acceptance. In this study, the Anaerobic Biological Activated Carbon (AnBAC) process was assessed for the treatment of a multicomponent inhibitory wastewater, and an analytical predictive model was developed.; To develop a predictive model for the AnBAC process treating a multicomponent inhibitory waste, it was necessary to consider the adsorption and biodegradation characteristics of the major waste components and biological intermediates separately. The model developed in this research incorporates multi-component adsorption theory and multi-step anaerobic substrate conversion. Determination of kinetic coefficients was performed through a review of the literature and by conducting laboratory studies when necessary. Model corroboration was done using process operational data. The laboratory research and particularly the numerical simulation conducted in this research are distinguished from previous AnBAC studies because of the consideration given to the fate of individual compounds under both steady state and non-steady state conditions. |
