Nutrient Biological Removal in an Up-flow Sludge Bed Reactor under Intermittent Aeration using Glycerol as the Sole Carbon Source

Abstract This work evaluated the feasibility of glycerol as the sole carbon source for nutrient biological removal in an intermittently aerated bioreactor. The reactor operation was divided into two phases: the first one aimed only at removing nitrogen; and the second one aimed at removing nitrogen and phosphorus. In the first operational phase, three C/N (Carbon / Nitrogen) ratios were tested: 1.2, 1.5 and 1.8. For a C/N ratio of 1.8, higher denitrification efficiency was achieved (91 ± 8%). During the second phase, the reactor was subjected to periods of aeration and non-aeration of 2 h and...