Effect of surfactant type and concentration on the gas-liquid mass transfer in biotrickling filters used for air pollution control.

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  • Additional Information
    • Source:
      Publisher: Academic Press Country of Publication: England NLM ID: 0401664 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1095-8630 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 03014797 NLM ISO Abbreviation: J Environ Manage Subsets: MEDLINE
    • Publication Information:
      Original Publication: London ; New York, Academic Press.
    • Subject Terms:
      Volatile Organic Compounds* ; Surface-Active Agents*/chemistry ; Filtration* ; Air Pollution*/prevention & control; Air Pollutants
    • Abstract:
      Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted into the atmosphere negatively affect the environment and human health. Biotrickling filtration, an effective technology for treating VOC-laden waste gases, faces challenges in removing hydrophobic VOCs due to their low water solubility and therefore limited bioavailability to microorganisms. Consequently, the addition of (bio)surfactants has proven to be a promising strategy to enhance the removal of hydrophobic VOCs in biotrickling filters (BTFs). Yet, up to now, no single study has ever performed a mass transfer characterization of a BTF under (bio)surfactants addition. In this study, the effect of (bio)surfactant addition on the gas-liquid mass transfer characteristics of two BTFs was measured by using oxygen (O 2 ) as a model gas. Through an empirical correlation, the mass transfer coefficients (k L a) of two hydrophobic VOCs, toluene and hexane, which are of industrial and environmental significance, were estimated. One BTF was filled with expanded perlite, while the other with a mixture of compost and wood chips (C + WC). Both BTFs were operated under different liquid velocities (U L : 0.95 and 1.53 m h -1 ). Saponin, a biological surfactant, and Tween 80, a synthetic surfactant, were added to the recirculating liquid at different critical micelle concentrations (CMCs: 0-3 CMC). The higher interfacial and surface area of the perlite BTF compared to the C + WC BTF led to higher k L aO 2 values regardless of the operational condition: 308 ± 18-612 ± 19 h -1 versus 42 ± 4-177 ± 24 h -1 , respectively. Saponin addition at 0.5 and 1 CMC had positive effects on the perlite BTF, with k L aO 2 values two times higher compared to those at 0 CMC. Tween 80 exhibited a neutral or slightly positive effect on the mass transfer of both BTFs under all conditions. Overall, the CMC, along with the physical characteristics of the packing materials and the operational conditions evaluated explained the results obtained. This study provides fundamental data essential to improve the performance and design of BTFs for hydrophobic VOCs abatement.
      Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
      (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)
    • Contributed Indexing:
      Keywords: Biotrickling filtration; Critical micelle concentration; Gas treatment; Hydrophobic VOCs; Oxygen transfer rate
    • Accession Number:
      0 (Volatile Organic Compounds)
      0 (Surface-Active Agents)
      0 (Air Pollutants)
    • Publication Date:
      Date Created: 20240728 Date Completed: 20240814 Latest Revision: 20240814
    • Publication Date:
      20240814
    • Accession Number:
      10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.121968
    • Accession Number:
      39068787