Removal of 2,4,6-trichlorophenol and natural organic matter from water supplies using PAC in floc-blanket reactors

Abstract

The objective of this study was to evaluate the addition of powdered activated carbon (PAC) to upflow floc-blanket reactors for the adsorption of natural and synthetic organic chemicals. A 15.5-1. bench-scale floc-blanket reactor was operated with PAC addition for the adsorption of 2,4,6-trichlorophenol (TCP) and natural organic matter from one groundwater and two surface waters under laboratory and field conditions, respectively. Influent TCP concentrations ranged from 21 to 415 μg/l. The PAC doses ranged from 2 to 12 mg/l. While the hydraulic residence time in the floc-blanket reactor varied from 15 to 30 min, the carbon residence time ranged from 9 to 34 h. This is due to the high solids concentration in the floc blanket, which ranged from 1200 to 8700 mg/l. Comparison between the extent of TCP adsorption through the floc-blanket reactor and the equilibrium adsorption isotherms of TCP on PAC showed that the maximum adsorption capacity of PAC for TCP was utilized in the reactor. However, this study showed that the maximum adsorptive capacity of the carbon in a continuous process is dependent on the influent adsorbate concentration. This was in agreement with isotherm studies conducted with varying initial TCP concentration. The maximum PAC adsorption capacity for natural organic matter was also achieved in the floc-blanket reactor.