Received: February 1st, 2023 ; Accepted: June 16th, 2023 ; Published: July 2nd, 2023 ; Correspondence: [email protected] granular sludge (AGS) technology offers several benefits, such as
simultaneous removal of nutrients and organic matter from wastewater, stronger granule
structure, excellent settleability, and high resistance to toxicity. However, the formation of
granules can take a long time and needs to be dense and stable.
In this study, the formation of aerobic granules in sequencing batch reactors (SBRs) using a
granular activated carbon (GAC) and aluminium sulphate coagulant were evaluated for the
simultaneous removal of nutrient (phosphorus (TP) and nitrogen (TN)) and organic matter
(chemical oxygen demand (COD)) from wastewater. The reactors were continuously operated for
107 days and were fed with synthetic media and real domestic sewage. However, adaptation
process with the synthetic wastewater led to relatively slow granulation process (sedimentation
rate of sludge flocks was 3 m h-1
). During the experiments, there was no visible formation of
granules in SBRs based on the analysis of the sludge samples, only the formation of aggregate
structures similar to flocks. However, the results showed that total phosphorus (TP) removal
efficiency was over 90% in SBR operated with aluminium sulphate. However, COD and total
nitrogen (TN) removals were higher in GAC SBR, 75% and 10%, respectively. Thus, even if
granules are not developed yet, the system is working efficiently. The results of this study could
be useful in the development of AGS technology for full-scale wastewater treatment plant