Zeitschrift für Bioremediation und biologischen Abbau

Abstrakt

Biodegradation of Coir Geotextiles Attached Media in Aerobic Biological Wastewater Treatment

Gopan Mukkulath and Santosh G. Thampi

Coir is a hard and tough organic fibre, rich in cellulose and lignin, and possesses high specific area and wetting
ability - factors which are important for bacterial adhesion in fixed film processes. Few studies have been reported on the durability of coir geotextiles, when used in Civil Engineering applications such as slope protection works. However, its durability when used as the media in biofilters, for wastewater treatment extensively has not been studied yet. Durability of coir geotextiles has been assessed by keeping it in wet condition and measuring the tensile strength of the fibres, at different times. In the present study, coir geotextiles that were used as the attachment media in a biofilter, for treatment of organic rich wastewater was tested for durability. The units were operated as aerobic, gravity flow filters. Different wastewater parameters were employed in each of these runs. Tensile strength of the fibres was determined after each run.