Use of dehydrated peeled fruit of Luffa cyllindrica as support medium in biological trickling filters: analysis of performance regarding the reduction of the organic content and microbiologic considerations

ABSTRACT Domestic sewage treatment experiments were conducted in a pilot installation of biological trickling filters in laboratory, in which the peeled dehydrated fruits of Luffa cyllindrica were used as a support medium for microbiological growth, in order to verify its capacity to remove organic matter, measured in terms of biochemical oxygen demand and chemical oxygen demand. The results obtained, when compared to results from similar pilot plant using stones as supporting medium, indicated that Luffa cyllindrica can substitute, under specific conditions, the traditional support media. Although detailed microbiologic studies were not among the objectives of this study, it was also observed that the biofilm found in Luffa cyllindrica was richer in species and in a higher evolutive stage than the biofilm found in the stones. Further studies are recommended.

摘要：本研究在实验室规模的生物滴滤池（biological trickling filter）中试装置中开展生活污水处理实验，以去皮脱水的圆筒丝瓜（Luffa cyllindrica）果实体作为微生物生长载体，旨在验证其去除有机物的性能，有机物去除效果以生化需氧量（biochemical oxygen demand, BOD）和化学需氧量（chemical oxygen demand, COD）为评价指标。将本实验所得结果与以石块为载体的同类中试装置的实验结果进行对比后表明，在特定条件下，圆筒丝瓜可替代传统污水处理载体。尽管本研究未将详细的微生物学研究列为研究目标之一，但同时观察到，圆筒丝瓜表面附着的生物膜在物种丰富度与演化成熟度上均优于石块表面的生物膜。建议开展进一步相关研究。