Aims

Treatment of aqueous industrial effluents in view of their clean elimination or discharge and of their valorisation via recycling of the useful substances contained therein

Main themes

- The course covers the physical and chemical characterisation of aqueous effluents that are polluted by heavy metals and organic substances. One half of the course is devoted to "inorganic" aqueous effluents. In this part are studied the main treatment techniques of these effluents by physical or chemical approaches (chemical precipitation - ion exchange resins - liquid-liquid extraction - adsorption - stripping - reverse osmosis - flotation - electrodialysis). The principles and techniques developed in the course are largely illustrated by means of concrete cases of effluents. An important place is given also to particular problems affecting the water used in the feed of industrial processes.
The other half of the course is devoted to "organic" aqueous effluents. It covers essentially the main techniques of biological treatment of liquid effluents. Specific topics include:
1. Introduction into the problems exerted by aqueous industrial effluents and characterisation of the various technological options in existence for their treatment and safe discharge.
2. Overview of biological treatments. Definitions, useful terms. The role of micro-organisms in cleanup processes. Metabolic and energetic classification of the main groups of micro-organisms involved in the treatment of wastewater.
3. Microbial treatment and bio-oxidation of organic polluting substances (substrates). Kinetics of substrate-limited microbial growth. Application of kinetic models to biological treatment sequences of effluents. Relations useful in the design and quantitative analysis of biotreatment processes.
4. Aerobic treatment processes using microbial growth in suspension. Activated sludge treatment plants. Aerated lagoons and oxidation ditches. Aerobic treatment processes using attached microbial growth. Trickling filters.
5. Anaerobic treatment processes using suspended and attached microbial growth.

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