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Biodegradation of High-Strength Palm Oil Mill Effluent (POME) through Anaerobes Partitioning in an Integrated Baffled Reactor Inoculated with Anaerobic Pond Sludge

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Abstract

Performance of a laboratory-scale integrated baffled reactor for the treatment of raw palm oil mill effluent (POME) was investigated. Initially, the reactor was fed with diluted POME (COD = 1,830 mg/L and OLR = 0.46 g COD/L day) which was then increased gradually to actual concentration (COD = 45,500 mg/L and OLR = 11.38 g COD/L day). Reactor operation was studied in two different hydraulic retention times (HRTs) (4 and 6 days) using POME with no effluent-recycled feed and after alkalinity supplementation. Chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal of 79 and 83 % at an HRT of 4 and 6 days were attained at the highest organic loading rate (OLR = 11.38 g COD/L day). The presence of Arcella-like and Metopus-like species and pH profile in the bioreactor’s compartments imply that anaerobic system is active in the reactor throughout the study. Use of methanogen-enriched inocula, smooth OLR augmentation, and appropriate separation of acidogens and methanogens in the reactor were the reasons for satisfactory performances of the system.

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Acknowledgments

The authors gratefully acknowledge Mr. Zaaba Mohamad for his support and efforts throughout this research. An honorable mention also goes to Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS (UTP) for the financial assistance and Nasaruddin Palm Oil Mill for allowing the collection of raw POME.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Civil Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS (UTP), Tronoh, Perak, 31750, Malaysia

    Amirhossein Malakahmad, Farhana Abd Lahin & Witton Yee

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  1. Amirhossein Malakahmad
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  2. Farhana Abd Lahin
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  3. Witton Yee
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Correspondence to Amirhossein Malakahmad.

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Malakahmad, A., Lahin, F.A. & Yee, W. Biodegradation of High-Strength Palm Oil Mill Effluent (POME) through Anaerobes Partitioning in an Integrated Baffled Reactor Inoculated with Anaerobic Pond Sludge. Water Air Soil Pollut 225, 1883 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-014-1883-3

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