Biofiltration technologies for air pollutants and odour abatement: results from pilot-scale applications

Mechanical-biological treatments of solid waste and wastewater treatments are the sectors that most use biofiltration for air pollution control. The growing need to avoid odour nuisance in industrialized countries is enlarging the field of application of biological technologies to emerging sectors. In this sense, pilot-scale studies are essential to test biological technologies in new fields of application and working conditions. Therefore, this paper aims at presenting the results of pilot-scale experiences involving advanced biofiltration systems applied to the treatment of the waste air emitted from different industrial activities: a food fermentation plant, an industrial wastewater treatment plant and a grey iron casting facility. Encouraging results were obtained in view of the implementation of scaled-up systems. In particular, biofiltration showed interesting potentials in the purification of indoor air in working environments.