Health & Environmental Research Online (HERO)


Print Feedback Export to File
1540258 
Journal Article 
Evaluation of compost and a mixture of compost and activated carbon as biofilter media for the treatment of indoor air pollution 
Ondarts, M; Hort, C; Sochard, S; Platel, V; Moynault, L; Seby, F 
2012 
Yes 
Environmental Technology
ISSN: 0959-3330
EISSN: 1479-487X 
Taylor & Francis Group Ltd., 2 Park Square Oxford OX14 4RN United Kingdom 
33 
1-3 
273-284 
English 
22519112 
WOS:000301928400003 
Indoor air pollution (IAP), defined by a lot of pollutants at low concentrations (microg m(-3)), is recognized as a major environmental health issue. In order to remove this pollution, biofiltration was investigated in this study. Two biofilters packed with compost and a mixture of compost and activated carbon (AC) were compared during the treatment of an influent with characteristics close to those of IAP. Very high removal efficiencies (RE) were achieved for the two biofilters (RE more than 90% for butyl acetate, butanol, formaldehyde, limonene, toluene and undecane at mass loading from 6-24mg m(-3) h(-1) and 19s empty bed retention time). The fact that high RE of hydrophobic compounds (undecane and limonene) were achieved, along with the results of an abiotic sorption study, lead us to suggest a mechanism including adsorption followed by biodegradation at the interface of the biofilm where microorganisms tend to concentrate near the available substrate. Both chemical reactions with the packing materials and biological degradation led to average RE greater than 91.4% for nitrogen dioxide. It was observed that adding AC to compost had significant effects. First, its buffering capacity led to shorter acclimation duration and more stable operation efficiencies than for the compost biofilter. Secondly, the only compound which was not removed by the compost biofilter, trichloroethylene, was strongly adsorbed by the compost/AC biofilter. Finally, the concentration profile along the two biofilters demonstrated that adding of AC could lead to a reduction of the retention time required to reach the maximal RE. 
activated carbon; biofiltration; compost; hydrophobic compounds; indoor air