High efficiency of a coupled aerobic-anaerobic recycling biofilm reactor system in the degradation of recalcitrant chloroaromatic xenobiotic compounds

Chloroaromatic compounds are xenobiotics that cause great concern. The degradation of a model molecule, 3,4-dichlorobenzoate (3,4-DCB), was studied using three aerobic (AE)-anaerobic (AN) biofilm reactor systems: a coupled aerobic-anaerobic recycle biofilm reactor (CAR) system, an in-series anaerobic-aerobic biofilm reactor (SAR) system; and an independent aerobic and anaerobic biofilm reactor (IAR) system. In all three systems the inlet substrate concentration was 2.0 g/l and the dilution rates ranged from 0.045 to 0.142 per hour. The results show that the degradation efficiency of the CAR system (expressed as dechlorination and xenobiotic disappearance efficiencies, and biomass yield), was higher at all dilution rates tested than in both SAR and IAR systems. Moreover, dechlorination and xenobiotic disappearance efficiencies for resting suspended aerobic and anaerobic cells or mixed aerobic-anaerobic growing cells under anaerobic conditions were higher than under aerobic conditions. These results suggest that a “cooperative metabolism” between aerobic and anaerobic bacteria (caused by an exchange of cells and metabolites between AE and AN reactors) in the CAR system overcame the metabolic and kinetic limitations of aerobic and anaerobic bacteria in the AE and AN reactors of IAR and SAR systems. Therefore, the degradation efficiency of persistent and recalcitrant chloroaromatic xenobiotic compounds could be enhanced by using a CAR system. Received: 1 March 1999 / Received revision: 11 May 1999 / Accepted: 16 May 1999