Pilot Testing and Modeling of a Membrane Biological Reactor System for Refinery Wastewater

Biological treatment of refinery wastewater is a common practice around the world. However, the situation at the Bahrain Petroleum Company (BAPCO, closed) Refinery, in Awali, Bahrain, presents several issues which make biological treatment of this wastewater challenging. These include stringent discharge limits, especially for nitrogen and phosphorus, along with high salinity (Total Dissolved Solids concentration was 28,865±2,743 mg/l during the test period) and temperature (25–40°C). These latter factors can adversely affect biological activity. An extensive study was conducted to identify the available technologies, management strategies and achievable performance for candidate biological processes. Based on this study, a membrane biological reactor (MBR) process was chosen and represents one of the first applications of MBR technology in the refining industry. This paper presents results of the pilot testing including kinetic and stoichiometric parameter determination experiments, as well as calibration of the ASM2d model used for future scenario analysis and final design.