Pelletization in the upflow anaerobic sludge bed (UASB) reactor

• Main Author: Sam-Soon, Paul Alan Li Nai Sing
• Other Authors: Marais, Gerrit van Rooyen
• Format: Doctoral Thesis
• Language: English
• Published: University of Cape Town 2016
• Subjects: Sewage - Purification; Activated sludge process
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/17151

Includes bibliography. === This investigation was prompted by a study into the feasibility of treating an apple juicing waste water in an upflow anaerobic sludge bed (UASB) reactor system. Past experience with this system suggested that a pelletized sludge would be produced due to the nature of the waste water. This indeed was observed but the system exhibited an unusual feature, a high removal of nitrogen far in excess of that normally found in normal anaerobic processes. This observation stimulated a far reaching investigation into, the behaviour of the pelletized sludge bed, the causes giving rise to pelletization, a biochemical model explaining pellet formation, verification of the biochemical model, criteria for pellet formation, pH control in the pelletized sludge bed, and a kinetic model for the UASB process.