Biological Clogging in Storm Water Filters

Abstract

AbstractBiological clogging of filtration and infiltration systems has been acknowledged as a significant problem in the case of wastewater systems. However, scant research has been conducted on biological clogging in storm water filtration and infiltration systems, with the main hypothesis being that biological clogging is insignificant due to the low level of organics present in storm water. This article tested that hypothesis, using a laboratory-based approach. Five replicates of each zeolite-based filter design were dosed with storm water manifesting the following forms: (1) typical storm water (base case); (2) storm water containing very high nutrient concentrations to accelerate biological clogging; (3) typical storm water that was sterilized to suppress biological clogging; and (4) typical storm water with the addition of chlorine to suppress biological activity. The hydraulic performances of these four configurations were monitored over time until the systems were fully clogged. Loss on ignition (...