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Development and Stability of Biofilms in Bioreactors

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Biofilms — Science and Technology

Part of the book series: NATO ASI Series ((NSSE,volume 223))

Abstract

Over the past few years the anaerobic digestion appeared as an alternative to aerobic digestion for the degradation of wastewaters with a high organic content. Consequently, a new generation of high-rate anaerobic reactors were developed. The performance of these advanced reactors depends on the retention of high bacterial concentrations. The prevailing mechanism is either the formation of bacterial aggregates with high settleable properties, the development of methanogenic biolayers at the surface of inert carriers or both (Hickey et al., 1991). In the present case, we will focus on the anaerobic reactors where the biomass is retained by adhesion to a support medium, although in some of them the biomass can also been trapped in the interstitial pore volume of the support media: anaerobic filter (AF), downflow stationary fixed film (DSFF) and fluidized bed reactor (FBR).

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Industrial and Fundamental Chemistry, University of La Coruña, Campus da Zapateira, s/n, E-15071, La Coruña, Spain

    M. C. Veiga

  2. Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Santiago de Compostela, Avenida de las Ciencias, s/n, E-15706, Santiago de Compostela, Spain

    R. Mendez & J. M. Lema

Authors
  1. M. C. Veiga
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  2. R. Mendez
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  3. J. M. Lema
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Minho, Braga, Portugal

    L. F. Melo

  2. University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK

    T. R. Bott

  3. University of Maryland, Baltimore, Maryland, USA

    M. Fletcher

  4. Institut National des Sciences Appliquées, Toulouse, France

    B. Capdeville

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© 1992 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht

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Veiga, M.C., Mendez, R., Lema, J.M. (1992). Development and Stability of Biofilms in Bioreactors. In: Melo, L.F., Bott, T.R., Fletcher, M., Capdeville, B. (eds) Biofilms — Science and Technology. NATO ASI Series, vol 223. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-1824-8_36

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-1824-8_36

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-94-010-4805-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-011-1824-8

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