INVESTIGATION OF CLEANING EFFICIENCY OF A BIOFILTER WITH AN AERATION CHAMBER

The investigation was carried out using a biological air-treatment device, i.e. a biofilter with an aeration chamber filled with water saturated with biogenic elements. To accelerate the absorption of organic compounds, air polluted with volatile organic compounds is directed to a water reservoir installed in the lower part of the filter where organic compounds are destructed. In the process of aeration, microorganisms propagate in the chamber, degrading part of pollutants to harmless products, carbon dioxide and water. Since all hydrocarbons are water-soluble, the aeration chamber is the first phase in a hydrocarbon degradation process. Application of such a polluted air-feeding model improves the sorption qualities of a charge. When relative air humidity reaches 100%, water-drops evenly distribute over the entire surface area of the charge and improve the activity of microorganisms. Having passed through the aeration chamber, polluted air is filtered via charges of a different origin, composed of zeolite, foam, wood chips or their mixtures. The carried out experiment shows that the best charge filtering capacity is achieved when supplying air polluted with acetone at the rate of 0.1 m/s. At the initial pollutant concentration of 115 mg/m(3) the biofilter treatment efficiency reached 96%. The aeration chamber installed in the biofilter increases both microbiological activity of the charge and air treatment efficiency.