This research assesses the potential for co-treatment of a dairy wastewater with a domestic wastewater in a lab-scale, continuous-flow, activated sludge system. To evaluate the influence of the dairy waste contribution, seven runs were conducted with each run being a mixture of dairy wastewater (either cheese or milk) in different ratios ranging from 1:0.01 to 1:0.30 by volume. More than 87% of the carbon was removed for both waste additions; however, while 95% ammonia-nitrogen removal was recorded for the cheese waste, only 75% removal was obtained for the milk. Kinetic studies for carbon consumption revealed a first-order model with lower kinetic constants as the cheese waste proportion increased. Specific carbon consumption rates indicated that the biomass had not reached its maximum potential to degrade carbon. The ability of the biomass to settle was hindered when the Gram negative to Gram positive filamentous bacteria ratio increased to approximately 1.5.
Keywords: carbon/nitrogen removal; dairy wastewater co-treatment; filamentous bacteria.