A SEMINAR PRESENTATION PROJECT TOPIC: MODELLING THE RATE OF ADSORPTION OF CRUDE OIL BY BIOLOGICAL ACTIVATED CARBON WITH

THE APPLICATION OF LEAST SQUARE METHOD.

PRESENTED BY: DOUGLAS, BOMA PRINCE

MATRICULATION NUMBER: UG/09/1368

SUPERVISED BY: DR C.P UKPAKA

PHASE 1: INTRODUCTION TO THE CONCEPT OF BIOLOGICAL ACTIVATED CARBON

PHASE 2: DISCUSSION ON PREVIOUS LITERATURE

PHASE 3: EXPERIMENTAL MATERIAL AND METHODS APPLIED DURING RESEARCH

THESIS PROGRESS REPORT

THIS SEMINAR PRESENTATION COVERS

HAVE YOU HEARD OF BIOLOGICAL ACTIVATED CARBON?

Attempts at getting rid of Refractory Organics eventually led to a break through in 1961 at Amstaad Water Plant. It involved the combination of ozonation and activated Carbon treatment.

INTRO TO BIOLOGICAL ACTIVATED CARBON

By 1978, G.W. Miller and R.G. Rice of the United States and Switzerland respectively proposed the Bio-activated Carbon Process in a work titled “Biological Activated Carbon and its use in treating Drinking Water”.

What exactly is Bio-Activated Carbon?

Bio-Activated Carbon is a system that brings together the action of Activated Carbon and Biological Oxidation by Micro Organisms to create a process with greater efficiency in dissolved Organic Carbon (DOC) removal than either of the two parent processes.

HOW DOES THIS STUFF WORK?

In Bio-Activated Carbon, Activated Carbon is used as a Carrier, accumulating or artificially immobilizing Micro organisms under proper temperature and nutrition conditions.

Cell Immobilization is defined as the physical confinement or localisation of viable microbial cells to a certain defined region of space such that their free migration is limited in an area exhibiting hydro dynamic characteristics differing from prevalent environment.

What is Already known about BAC processes?

According to Literature from C .L. Cavalcante et al

Industrial Adsorption Processes are classified under three considerations;

1. Sorbate Concentration

2. Modes of Operation

3. Adsorbent Regeneration

This is sub-classified as either Purification processes or Bulk separation processes.

In purification, trace contaminants are eliminated from a process stream while Bulk separation aims to selectively recover components in a mixture by adsorption.

BAC as applied in this thesis will be considered as a Purification process.

SORBENT CONCENTRATION

Sub-classes considered under mode of operation include;

Cyclic Batch

Continuous Counter Current

Chromatographic Analysis

BAC process will be handled as a Batch Operation for purposes of this thesis.

MODES OF OPERATION

Temperature Swing Adsorption (TSA)

Pressure Swing Adsorption (PSA)

Desorption Displacement

Purge with Inerts

For purposes of this thesis, these shall be considered beyond the works scope.

ADSORBENT REGENERATION

A SIMPLE ILLUSTRATION OF THE BAC PROCESS.

The activated carbon used in BAC process, should be highly developed in pore structure, especially for the filter pores. Quality of the outflow is directly influenced by the filtering velocity, height of the carbon layer, the retention period and the gas-water ratio. In practice, the general filtering rate is 8-15 km/h

ACCORDING TO XIANBAO WANG ET AL

Adsorption of an impurity from water on to activated carbon may result from solute hydrophobicity, or it may be caused by a high affinity of the solute for the carbon. For most systems encountered in waste treatment, adsorption results from a combination of these factors. The solubility of a substance in water is significant: solubility in the sense of the chemical compatibility between the water and the solute. The more hydrophilic a substance the less likely it is to be adsorbed. Conversely, a hydrophobic substance will more likely be adsorbed.

WALTER J. WEBER JR

Integrated treatment processes that combine oxidation processes and activated carbon biofilters have been shown to be very effective at reducing natural organic matter (NOM) levels.

KERRY BLACK

Bio-filtration is a critical part of this integrated process:

Key purpose is to remove BDOC formed during oxidation, thereby reducing Disinfection By-Products Formation Potential & potential regrowth

Insufficient or inadequate bacterial growth within the filter leads to;

Incomplete removal of biodegradable organic matter

Increased potential of DBP formation

Production of biologically unstable water

Implications on treatment efficiency & distribution system health

Electron microscope view of Activated Carbon Filter Pores.

Despite all the various aspects of research, There is no data or Information on the response of Bio-Activated Carbon and its associated Biofilters to Crude Oil.

Nevertheless this thesis will hopefully provide desired data and information as it concerns Crude Oil.

DID YOU NOTICE THE DEFECT IN THE LITERATURE?

Four wood types are going to be used for preparation of Activated Charcoal/Carbon. The wood types are;

Hard Wood

Semi Hard Wood

Soft Wood

Indian Bamboo

THIS IS HOW THE EXPERIMENTATION WILL BE DONE

Chosen Biological Agent is Green Algae (Pithophora).

Algae will be Sun dried in preparation for immobilization.

Pyrolysis was carried out on the wood to obtain charcoal for further activation.

Activation of Charcoal is done using Calcium Chloride CaCl2.

Four experimental set ups will be made.

Identical Crude Oil : Water ratio will be applied to each System.

Physicochemical Analysis will be carried out to determine;

pH Content

Organic Compounds Concentration.

METHOD

Particle Size Analysis

Bulk Density Analysis

Pore Volume determination

Porosity Analysis

Bacteria content Analysis

BOD5

After these are obtained, the final model may be developed.

Carbonation of wood samples have been carried out. However, Pyrolysis yielded an average of 79% weight loss in each case causing a need of more wood samples.

Green Algae has been Acquired and dried.

Crude Oil sample is available.

UNFORTUNATELY, WORK HAS ONLY GONE THUS FAR

I THINK THAT’S ALL FOR NOW