Recovery of sulphur from contaminated air in wastewater treatment plants by biofiltration: a critical review

• Published in: Reviews in environmental science and biotechnology Vol. 14; no. 3; pp. 523 - 534
• Main Authors: Rabbani, K. A, Charles, W, Cord-Ruwisch, R, Ho, G
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dordrecht Springer Netherlands 01.09.2015; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: air; Air pollution; Analysis; Atmospheric Protection/Air Quality Control/Air Pollution; Biofilters; Biofiltration; Biological treatment; Biotechnology; Contamination; Earth and Environmental Science; Emissions; Environment; Environmental Engineering/Biotechnology; Hydrogen; Hydrogen sulfide; Leachates; Microbiology; Microorganisms; Plants (organisms); Pollutants; R&D; Research & development; research and development; Review Paper; Sewer systems; Studies; Sulfur; Sulphur; Waste streams; Wastewater treatment; Wastewater treatment plants; Water treatment; Hydrogen sulphide; Biofilter; Leachate; Wastewater treatment; Sulphur recovery
• ISSN: 1569-1705; 1572-9826
• DOI: 10.1007/s11157-015-9367-5

Biofilters are popular as an alternative method for treatment of volatile air pollutants like hydrogen sulphide originating from wastewater treatment plants. Despite several advantages over conventional chemical systems, one of the concerns of biological treatment of hydrogen sulphide is the production of large volumes of neutral or acidic leachate which needs to be treated or disposed safely. Instead of treating as an unwanted product, a waste stream of weakly acidic leachate can be thought of as a sulphur resource. This paper provides an overview of recent literature on the removal of H₂S from contaminated air in an aerobic environment and discusses the possibility of recovering sulphur from contaminated air with special emphasis on polluted air originating from wastewater treatment plants. We also add our perspectives on future research and development needs in this area.