Microbial community of Biological Oxygen-dosed Activated Carbon (BODAC) granules during two-year monitoring period

Resident microbial community growing in Biological Oxygen-dosed Activated Carbon (BODAC) filters is considered essential to prolong the carbon service life and ensure the filters' consistent performance at removing organics, nutrients, and organic micropollutants. Therefore, in this study, the composition of the microbial community in BODAC filters was monitored for two years to identify the possible composition shift and to assess whether such a shift direct affected the filters' performance. The possible formation of a core microbial community in the filters was also investigated. As regular backwashing is a necessary procedure to prevent biofilm overgrowth that can impair the filters' performance and reduce the quality of the treated water, the effect of backwashing on the total and the core microbial community of BODAC filters was also investigated.