Macroalgae and Activated Sludge Microbes in Treatment of Crepe Cotton Effluent

Abstract

Crepe cotton bandages (textile fabrics) are common household kit in the medical first aid boxes and are globally used in pharmaceutical and health care units to offer heat, insulation and support in many medical situations. Southern Tamilnadu comprises of more than 150 crepe bandage textile units and exports tonnes of crepe cottons. Many units are operated on continuous basis and therefore the amount of wastewater generated and its treatment is of critical importance. Unlike typical textile effluent, crepe cotton processing wastewater do not contain dyes, but significant proportions of caustic soda, soda ash, bleaching agents and COD. This paper discusses the effluent treatment of crepe cotton processing units using mixed cultures of macroalgae and activated sludge microbes. There are very few studies comparing the performance of activated sludge and macro algae in wastewater treatment. Fresh water macroalgae was collected from a nearby pond and activated sludge was collected from the aeration basin of domestic wastewater treatment plant. Crepe cotton processing effluent had significant concentrations of COD, TDS, TSS and was highly alkaline. The COD removal efficiency of about 73.8% and 99 % was obtained for macroalgae and activated sludge microbes respectively. COD removal was quick in activated sludge while macroalgae cultures took 144 h to remove 275 mg/L of COD. This study shows that activated sludge microbes are quick to adapt in uptake of organics from crepe cotton effluent when compared to macroalgal sp, further studies will provide insights on generating bioenergy from algal species grown in crepe cotton effluent for sustained plant operation.