Municipal Wastewater Treatment using Fluidized bed Bioreactors with Biofilms Fixed on Natural Supports Derived from Cacti
Municipal Wastewater Treatment using Fluidized bed Bioreactors with Biofilms Fixed on Natural Supports Derived from Cacti
PDFAuthors: Carlos Alfonso Orozco Castillo, Sebastian Ignacio Charchalac Ochoa, Victor Alberto López García-Salas, Bryan Enrique López Pérez, Pablo Andres Leal Nájera and Beáta Novotná
Volume/Issue: Volume 28: Issue 2
Published online: 18 Nov 2025
Pages: 159 - 166
Abstract
In recent years, the population in Western Guatemala has grown, increasing the demand for water and basic services, alongside a rise in waste production. Notably, wastewater generation has had a significant environmental impact on water bodies, leading to eutrophication and other harmful effects that negatively influence the quality of life and health of people. This project focused on assessing the technical feasibility of using fluidized bed bioreactors under aerobic and anaerobic conditions, employing natural supports derived from cactus materials native to Guatemala as an improvement over conventional plastic support. The research was divided into four stages: 1. Characterization of wastewater from the basin of interest. 2. Collection, treatment, and characterization of two cactus materials (Stenocereus spp. & Opuntia spp.) to be used as supports in the fluidized reactors. 3. Evaluation of treatment in fluidized bed bioreactors under aerobic and anaerobic conditions. 4. Development of mathematical models to describe the experimental data. The main results of the research included the removal of chemical oxygen demand (COD) in synthetic wastewater, achieving a range of 50% to 63% using fluidized bed reactors. During the research period, the Samalá River showed average COD values of 96.38 and 277. Biological oxygen demand (BOD) averaged 68.38 and 129.40. Nitrogen levels averaged 2.16 and 17.40. Phosphorus levels averaged 3.55 and 11.11. The most efficient natural support and treatment method was Stenocereus spp. with aeration, achieving a 86.76% reduction in COD. The reaction exhibited zero-order kinetics with an equation of K = −1.75 · 10−4 ±0.15.
Keywords: Wastewater, bioreactor, biofilms, cacti, aerobic, anaerobic
References
Ahmadi, M., Ramavandi, B., & Sahebi, S. (2015). Efficient degradation of a biorecalcitrant pollutant from wastewater using a fluidized catalyst-bed reactor. Chemical Engineering Communications, 202(8), 1118–1129. https://doi.org/10.1080/00986445.2014.907567
Alfredo, J. B., López, J. S., & Rodríguez, P. U. (2013). Fluidized bed series: Secondary treatments (Fact sheet). Technological Fact Sheets on Effluent Treatment in Textile Industry. http://www.thermopedia.com/content/46/?tid=104&sn=1297
Andalib, M., Elbeshbishy, E., Mustafa, N., Hafez, H., Nakhla, G., & Zhu, J. (2014). Performance of an anaerobic fluidized bed bioreactor (AnFBR) for digestion of primary municipal wastewater treatment biosolids and bioethanol thin stillage. Renewable Energy, 71, 276–285. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.renene.2014.05.039
Brackin, M. J., McKenzie, D. E., Hughes, B. M., & Heitkamp, M. A. (1996). Laboratory-scale evaluation of fluidized bed reactor technology for biotreatment of maleic anhydride process wastewater. Journal of Industrial Microbiology, 16(4), 216–223. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01570115
Ehlinger, F., Audic, J. M., Verrier, D., & Faup, G. M. (1987). The influence of the carbon source on microbiological clogging in an anaerobic filter. Water Science and Technology, 19(1–2), 261–273. https://doi.org/10.2166/wst.1987.0019
INSIVUMEH. (2017). Calidad del agua superficial de varias cuencas de la República de Guatemala. Boletín no. 19. Ministerio de Comunicaciones, Infraestructura y Vivienda.
Lin, J., Zhang, X., Li, Z., & Lei, L. (2010). Biodegradation of Reactive Blue 13 in a two-stage anaerobic/aerobic fluidized beds system with a Pseudomonas sp. isolate. Bioresource Technology, 101(1), 34–40. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biortech.2009.07.067
Lindgren, M. (1983). Mathematical modeling of the anaerobic filter process. Water Science and Technology, 15(8–9), 197–207. https://doi.org/10.2166/wst.1983.0122
Martínez, S. (2008). Investigación de la interrelación de la nitrato reducción, sulfato reducción y metanogénesis en un systema de biopelículas formadas sobre Opuntia imbricata. Doctoral dissertation, Universidad Autónoma de Coahuila.
Pen, R. I. F. J., & Jose, X. S. (2008). Feasibility study of degradation of phenol in a fluidized bed bioreactor with a cyclodextrin polymer as biofilm carrier. Biodegradation, 19, 589–597. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10532-007-9164-0
Peralta Salgado, I. N. (2015). Composición típica de las aguas residuales domésticas crudas in Guatemala. Revista Electrónica, Escuela Regional de Ingeniería Sanitaria y Recursos Hidráulicos.
Perfil ambiental de Guatemala 2010–2012: Vulnerabilidad local y creciente construcción de riesgo (Serie Perfil Ambiental No. 12). (2012). Instituto de Agricultura, Recursos Naturales y Ambiente de la Universidad Rafael Landívar (IARNA-URL).
Tisa, F., Raman, A. A. A., & Daud, W. M. A. W. (2014). Applicability of fluidized bed reactor in recalcitrant compound degradation through advanced oxidation processes: A review. Journal of Environmental Management, 146, 260–275. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2014.07.037
Zou, G., Papirio, S., Lakaniemi, A. M., Ahoranta, S. H., & Puhakka, J. A. (2016). High-rate autotrophic denitrification in fluidized-bed biofilm reactors. Chemical Engineering Journal, 284, 1287–1294. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cej.2015.09.074