Assessment of the Utilization Rate of Organic Substrates by the Microorganisms in Fixed and Suspended Biomass Reactors Treating Sanitary Landfill Leachates

In this study, we evaluated the utilization rate of organic substrates contained in sanitary landfill leachates (SLLs) by fixed and suspended biomass reactors. Five bioreactors were designed, constructed, and tested for chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal. We applied three levels of organic loading in the influent for each bioreactor, including (1) a rotating biological contactor (RBC) (12, 20, and 25 g COD/m2/day); (2) a trickling filter (TF) (2.67, 5.33, and 8 kg COD/m3/day); (3) an upflow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) (13.31, 15.98, and 18.65 kg COD/m3/day); (4) an upflow anaerobic filter in two separated stages (UAF-2SS) (3.71, 2.76, and 1.8 kg COD/m3/day); and (5) an upflow anaerobic filter in three separated stages (UAF-3SS) (2.25, 3.45, and 4.44 kg COD/m3/day). Two equations for predicting the substrate utilization rate (SUR) of organic compounds by microorganisms were calibrated and validated, modeled under a nonsteady state condition. We modified Monod’s equation to obtain the significant organic SUR and COD removal efficiency by the biomasses. These kinetic parameters were performed by the microorganisms fixing controlled experimental conditions for pH (8–9) and temperature for the UAFs (20°C, 27°C, and 34°C) and the remaining reactors (18°C– 20°C). The SUR and COD removal efficiency results were as follows: for UASB, −400 to −800 mg/L/h, 70% to 85%; for UAF-3SS, −100 to −300 mg/L/h, 85% to 95%; for UAF-2SS, −100 to −200 mg/L/h, 70% to 85%; and for RBC and TF, −50 to −250 mg/L/h, 70% to 80%. The results were mainly influenced by the structural arrangement of the organic compounds being biodegraded and the geometric configurations of the bioreactors in multiple separated stages, allowing the influence of the solubility of the recalcitrant substances, which varied from 7 to 14:1 COD dilition, to obtain subinhibitory levels for the microbial metabolism and achieve a high COD removal efficiency.