Abstract
Toluene is one of 189 hazardous air pollutants proposed by the USEPA in the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990. This aromatic hydrocarbon is capable to create many environmental and health effects, and is necessary to remove. In this study, biodegradation kinetic parameters and substrate inhibitory effect of toluene in pine cone/compost biofilter were investigated. The experiments were carried out at different flow rates (6.66, 9.6, and 12.5 L/min) and various concentrations of toluene (20, 70, 130, 180, 220, and 250 ppm). The removal efficiency in all phases reached 100% in the final port. As the concentration of toluene was increased to 250 ppm, the pressure drop was non-linearly increased. A maximum elimination capacity of 24.875 gm−3h−1 was achieved. The biofilm thickness was theoretically calculated to be 80 μm. The experimental results were compared with the value obtained from the Ottengraf–Vanden Oever model. The model demonstrated a good agreement between the calculated data and the physics of the process.
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The datasets generated and analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.
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This work was supported by Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences (Grant Number: 4000230 and Approval ID: IR.KUMS.REC.1400.137).
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Investigation: S. Kianpour and H. Hossaini; funding acquisition: H. Hossaini; project administration: H. Hossaini; visualization: M. Pirsaheb and H. Nourmoradi; supervision: H. Hossaini; writing—original draft: S. Kianpour. All authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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This study was performed in line with the principle of declaration of Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, and it was granted by ethic committee of Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences (Date: 2021-5-8, No. IR.KUMS.REC.1400.137).
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Highlight
• The biofilter packed with pine cone/compost as natural packing materials, provide good surface area for biofilm development.
• The kinetic parameters was calculated based on Ottengraf–Vanden Over model and Michaelis–Menten kinetic.
• A ECmax of 24.875 gm−3.h−1 was achieved at a flow rate of 12.5 L/min and ks was obtained 0.231 gm−3.
• The biofilm thickness was theoretically calculated to be 80 μm.
• Different behavior of the sequins of the pine cone with relative humidity, could enhanced biodegradation.
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Kianpour, S., Hossaini, H., Pirsaheb, M. et al. Toluene removal by pine cone/compost biofilter: determination of kinetic/operational parameters and substrate inhibitory effect. Air Qual Atmos Health 17, 353–369 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11869-023-01448-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11869-023-01448-4