Simulation studies of process scale membrane aerated biofilm reactor configurations

In the membrane aerated biofilm reactor oxygen diffuses through the membrane into the biofilm where oxidation of pollutants, supplied from the biofilm side of the membrane takes place. Despite numerous studies at the laboratory scale showing the potential of the technology, efforts to scale-up the technology to process scale have been hampered by problems such as excessive biofilm growth and consequent flow distribution problems. This paper presents results of simulation studies which utilise Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) to examine performance of several technical scale MABR design configurations. The simulations suggest that plate-and-frame membrane configuration with a suitable liquid inlet distributor will deliver superior performance compared to hollow fibre configuration with respect to liquid flow distribution.