Application of a Thermophilic Aerobic Digestion Process to Industrial Waste Activated Sludge Treatment

Application of a Thermophilic Aerobic Digestion Process to Industrial Waste Activated Sludge Treatment

Thermophilic aerobic bacteria were applied in the degradation of industrial waste activated sludge (WAS) on a laboratory scale expreiment. The performance of digestion was estimated by measuring the reduction of total suspended solids (TSS), dissolved organic carbon (DOC), and total organic carbon (TOC). Among three strains of Bacillus stearothermophilus and three strains of Thermus species, B. stearothemophilus ATCC 31197 showed the best overall efficiency level for the degradation of industrial WAS, which was collected from a wastewater treatment plant in an oil refinery factory. Industrial WAS coul be successfully detraded in a batch digestion with ATCC 31197. The stability of the digestion process with ATCC 31197 was successfully verified by semi-continuous (fill-and-draw) digestion experiment. From the results of this study, it was shown that the thermophilic aerobic digestion process with ATCC 31197 could efficiently be applied to the degradation of industrial WAS.