Environmental and Energy Engineering

Experimental and numerical analysis of the hydrodynamic behaviors of aerobic granules

  1. Li Liu1,
  2. Guo-Ping Sheng1,†,*,
  3. Wen-Wei Li2,
  4. Raymond J. Zeng2,
  5. Han-Qing Yu2

Article first published online: 29 NOV 2010

DOI: 10.1002/aic.12476

Issue

AIChE Journal

AIChE Journal

Volume 57, Issue 10, pages 2909–2916, October 2011

Additional Information

How to Cite

Liu, L., Sheng, G.-P., Li, W.-W., Zeng, R. J. and Yu, H.-Q. (2011), Experimental and numerical analysis of the hydrodynamic behaviors of aerobic granules. AIChE J., 57: 2909–2916. doi: 10.1002/aic.12476

Author Information

  1. 1

    School of Earth and Space Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230026, China

  2. 2

    Dept. of Chemistry, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230026, China

  1. †

    Guo-Ping Sheng is also affliated with the Dept. of Chemistry.

*Dept. of Chemistry, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China

  • †

    Guo-Ping Sheng is also affliated with the Dept. of Chemistry.

Publication History

  1. Issue published online: 9 SEP 2011
  2. Article first published online: 29 NOV 2010
  3. Accepted manuscript online: 22 OCT 2010 10:26AM EST
  4. Manuscript Revised: 13 OCT 2010
  5. Manuscript Received: 26 JUN 2010

Funded by

  • Natural Science Foundation of China. Grant Numbers: 50625825, 50738006, 50828802
  • Key Special Program on the S&T for the Pollution Control and Treatment of Water Bodies. Grant Numbers: 2008ZX07316-003, 2008ZX07103-001

SEARCH

SEARCH BY CITATION

ARTICLE TOOLS

View Full Article (HTML) Get PDF (834K)

Keywords:

  • aerobic granule;
  • computational fluid dynamics;
  • flow field;
  • hydrodynamics;
  • permeability;
  • porosity;
  • sequencing batch reactor;
  • wastewater treatment

Abstract

Aerobic granular sludge has been recognized to be promising for wastewater treatment. Their hydrodynamic characteristics have a significant impact on the mass transfer process in reactors. In this study, the hydrodynamic characteristics of aerobic granules were studied using an experimental approach, and their fluid dynamic behaviors were analyzed using a numerical approach. Experimental results show that the aerobic granules are fractal-like aggregates with porosity. Their porosity and permeability were found to increase with increasing granule size. The numerical model simulated the flow field surrounding a granule, which distinguished the flow behaviors of the granules with different permeability at different outflow Reynolds numbers. The velocity vectors colored by velocity magnitude in the granule internal depended significantly on the permeability of the granule and the Reynolds number. The results provided a helpful tool to investigate the hydrodynamic behavior of aerobic granules with a consideration of their porous structure characteristics. © 2010 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2011

View Full Article (HTML) Get PDF (834K)