ABSTRACT
Background: Application of membrane technology to wastewater treatment has expanded over the last decades due to increasingly stringent legislation, greater opportunities for water reuse/recycling processes and continuing advancement in membrane technology
Objectives: In the present study, a bench-scale submerged microfiltration membrane bioreactor [MBR] was used to assess the treatment of textile wastewater
Materials and Methods: The decolorization capacity of white-rot fungus coriolus versicolor was confirmed through agar plate and liquid batch studies. The temperature and pH of the reactor were controlled at 29+/-1[degree]C and 4.5+/-2, respectively. The bioreactor was operated with an average flux of 0.05 m.d[-1] [HRT=15hrs] for a month
Results: Extensive growth of fungi and their attachment to the membrane led to its fouling and associated increase of the transmembrane pressure requiring a periodic withdrawal of sludge and membrane cleaning. However, stable decoloration activity [approx. 98%], BOD [40-50%], COD [50-67%] and total organic carbon [TOC] removal [>95%] was achieved using the entire system [fungi + membrane], while the contribution of the fungi culture alone for TOC removal, as indicated by the quality of the reactor supernatant, was 35-50% and 70%, respectively
Conclusions: The treated wastewater quality satisfied the requirement of water quality for dyeing and finishing process excluding light coloration. Therefore, textile wastewater reclamation and reuse is a promising alternative, which can both conserve or supplement the available water resource and reduce or eliminate the environmental pollution