Prediction of Rotating Biological Contactor Efficiency Using TOC

Abstract

The results of experiments treating high‐strength vegetable‐pickling waste in an experimental rotating biological contactor (RBC) are described. The relationships between TOC, BOD, and COD for the particular waste are presented. A high correlation was found between TOC and BOD. The use of TOC led to a mathematical model describing the effluent concentration in terms of the output TOC concentration and the hydraulic loading rate. It was found that a relationship involving these two independent variables alone explained more than 98% of the variation in the dependent variable. The model predicts that the effluent TOC concentration will be more sensitive to changes in influent TOC concentration than to changes in hydraulic loading rate and that it can be used to predict the effect of recirculation on the substrate effluent concentration. The substrate concentration and fractional substrate loading rate removal are compared with predictions from other models.