Study of an A/O Submerged Membrane Bioreactor for Oil Refinery Wastewater Treatment

Abstract

A 55-day experimental study was conducted to investigate the treatment process of oil refinery wastewater using submerged membrane bioreactor (MBR) technology. The results showed that the removal rates for chemical oxygen demand (COD) and 5-day biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5) were stable and averaged 92%. The average removal rates for NH3-N, oil, and turbidity were shown to be 93.7%, 75.3%, and 94.6%, respectively. The removal rates for total phosphorus (TP), total suspended solids (TSS), suspended solids (SS), and phenol were shown to be greater than 98.5%, 97.9%, 93.8%, and 99.9%, respectively. This demonstrated that MBR technology had superior treatment effect on the above contaminants. During the 55-day operation, there was no trace of contamination on the membrane. This illustrated that the polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) flat sheet membrane manufactured by Toray Industries (Tokyo, Japan) had the ability to resist contamination. Foundation idem: Cooperation idem of P.R. China and Japan (No. 16254002); Foundation of China Petroleum & Natural Gas Company (No. 196135).