Treatment of textile industry wastewater in anaerobic conditions; Subcategory: Cotton industry

Abstract

The aim of this work was to study the treatment of textile wastewater using an up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB). Textile wastewater was selected for the research due to its total volume (53.5% of all types of industry in Turkey). In this study, treatability of textile (cotton) wastewater diluted with a municipal one was examined in an UASB system. Three reactors were operated at mesophilic conditions (36-37.5 degrees C) in a temperature-controlled water-bath with two hydraulic retention times (HRTs) of 4.5 and 9.0 days, and with organic loading rates (OLR) between 0.087(+/- 0.016) - 0.517(+/- 0.090) kg COD/m(3)/day. Three different dilution ratios (15%, 30% and 40%) of municipal with textile waste-water were employed, and removal efficiencies of COD were 53 %, 46 % and 40 % for HRT of 4.5 days, as well as 53 %, 50 % and 46 % for HRT of 9 days, respectively. Additionally, the effects of glucose selected as a co-sub-strate, with constant HRT values of 4.5 days and 9 days, on the systems with different dilution ratios (60%, 40%, 45%, 30%, and 15%) were examined. The COD removal efficiencies at 75%, with added co-substrate (0.313(+/- 0.051) kg COD/m(3)/day as OLR) and almost 50%, for wastewater without co-substrate (0.089 (+/- 0.007) kg COD/m(3)/day as OLR), for the dilution ratio of 30% with municipal wastewater for HRT of 9 days were measured.