Anaerobic treatment of a furfural-production wastewater

Abstract The laboratory-scale treatment of a furfural-byproduct wastewater containing approximately 1.2% acetic acid was investigated using one fully-packed anaerobic filter and one partially-packed anaerobic upflow blanket filter operated at 35°C. Hydraulic retention times of 24 and 12 h were investigated, with organic loading rates ranging from 3 to 26 g COD/L/day. COD removal efficiencies in excess of 90% were observed for both reactors at organic loadings up to 23 g/L/day. Experiments at both HRTs were conducted to determine the effect on performance of a two-week shut-down of the reactors. Results from the shut-down studies indicated that the fully-packed filter handled the shut-down periods more efficiently than did the blanket filter.