Biotrickling Filtration of Pharmaceutical Emissions

This monograph presents the experimental studies and kinetic modelling of biotrickling filtration of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emissions from pharmaceutical industries. Emissions from industries characterises with assortment of VOCs at low concentration and at high flow rates. This situation warrants the economically viable and environmentally friendly biological treatment technologies. This monograph particularly presents the biodegradation studies of various organic solvents and its kinetic modelling as single and multiple substrates. Biokinetics estimated from single substrate experiments were utilized to simulate the kinetics of biodegradation of mixture of substrates. Performance evaluation of a laboratory scale biotrickling filter treating complex mixture of VOCs were carried out to evaluate the effects of inlet loading rate and empty bed residence time on elimination capacity and removal efficiency. This study demonstrates that the biotrickling filtration as a viable and efficient operating system to control VOCs emissions. The monograph focuses on the work carried by the first author at Indian Institute of Technology Madras, India as part of his doctoral study.