METHOD FOR THE ANAEROBIC DEGRADATION OF ORGANIC MATERIAL

摘要

A system for the anaerobic bacterial degradation of organic material in waste water, comprising introducing the waste water into a contact reactor, pumping the Waste water into the bottom of a fluidised bed reactor containing anaerobic bacteria attached to the particles in the bed, the fluidised bed reactor having an effective volume not more than 0.35 times the effective volume of the contact reactor, returning the waste water which has passed through the fluidised bed reactor to the contact reactor and continuously or discontinuously removing treated effluent from the system. A start-up procedure for the anaerobic treatment system is described comprising culturing anoxic bacteria in the system by adding nitrate ions to the waste water and gradually reducing the amount of nitrate ions in the stream until the population of anoxic bacteria is substantially replaced by a population of anaerobic bacteria. A viable microbial population is established in both the fluidised bed reator and the contact reactor.