Appl Microbiol Biotechnol (2001) 55: 29±35
MINI-REVIEW
M. Zaiat á J. A. D. Rodrigues á S. M. Ratusznei
E. F. M. de Camargo á W. Borzani
Anaerobic sequencing batch reactors for wastewater treatment:
a developing technology
Received: 22 May 2000 / Received revision: 20 July 2000 / Accepted: 21 July 2000
Abstract This paper describes and discusses the main
problems related to anaerobic batch and fed-batch
processes for wastewater treatment. A critical analysis of
the literature evaluated the industrial application via-
bility and proposed alternatives to improve operation
and control of this system. Two approaches were pre-
sented in order to make this anaerobic discontinuous
process feasible for industrial application: (1) optimiza-
tion of the operating procedures in reactors containing
self-immobilized sludge as granules, and (2) design of
bioreactors with inert support media for biomass im-
mobilization.
Introduction
Anaerobic batch reactors for wastewater treatment have
been extensively studied as alternatives to continuous
systems due to their improved retention of biological
solids and process control. The batch operation permits
good e‚uent quality control since the reactor draw can
be made only when the standard emission has been at-
tained. The intermittent operation of the reactor results
in high initial substrate concentration and high biogas
production. The low substrate concentration at the end
M. Zaiat (&)
Departamento de HidraÂulica e Saneamento,
Escola de Engenharia de SaÄo Carlos,
Universidade de SaÄo Paulo (USP),
Avenue Trabalhador SaÄo-carlense,
400, CEP 13.566-590, SaÄo Carlos, SP, Brazil
e-mail: zaiat@sc.usp.br
Tel.: +55-16-2739546
Fax: +55-16-273-9550
J. A. D. Rodrigues á S. M. Ratusznei
E. F. M. de Camargo á W. Borzani
Departamento de Engenharia QuõÂ mica e de Alimentos,
Escola de Engenharia MauaÂ,
Instituto Maua de Tecnologia (IMT),
Estrada das LaÂgrimas 2035, CEP 09.580-900,
SaÄo Caetano do Sul, SP, Brazil
Ó Springer-Verlag 2001
of the operation cycle enables ecient sludge separation.
This sludge must be in a granular conformation to allow
ecient solid separation.
A scheme of the anaerobic sequencing batch reactor
studied extensively by Iowa State University (Ames,
Iowa, USA) group is presented in Fig. 1.
Operation of the anaerobic sequencing batch reactors
consists of four steps: feeding, reaction, settling and
liquid withdrawal.
Several feed strategies can be applied in discontinu-
ous reactors, using either batch or fed-batch systems
according to the adjusted values of in¯uent ¯ow-rates.
The increase in the time of feeding results in low sub-
strate concentrations inside the reactor, avoiding initial
organic overloads.
The type of agitation is very important during the
reaction step. Mechanical agitation and recycle of the
gas generated in the process provide mixing of the liquid
phase and the biomass. Liquid recycle increases liquid-
solid contact. The timing of this step depends on the
primary and intermediate substrate consumption rates.
The settling step is dependent on the self-immobilized
biomass, which should have good settling characteris-
tics. Biomass growth as granules is necessary to provide
high cellular retention in the reactor, since this improves
separation of the liquid from the solid phase. The time
required for this step may vary from some minutes to
several hours. The time should be chosen so as to obtain
a clari®ed e‚uent and an increasing granular biomass
concentration inside the reactor.
Wash- of the poorly settled biomass and retention of
the self-immobilized sludge is carried out in the liquid
withdrawal step. This step must be as rapid as possible,
since the entrance of oxygen into the system can a€ect
the activity of anaerobic bacteria. To overcome this
problem, Hollopeter and Dague (1994) installed a gas
bag to equalize the pressure. While decanting, the gas
bag decreases in volume, re®lling again during the
feeding step. This provides an oxygen-free atmosphere.
Brito et al. (1997) dispensed with this system and the top
of the reactor was maintained uncovered. It was
30
Fig. 1 The anaerobic sequencing batch reactor. (Reprinted with
permission from Hollopeter and Dague 1994)
observed that oxygen was easily removed from the sys-
tem, a step that was facilitated by facultative bacteria.
No oxygen inhibition occurred as a result of the fed-
batch ®ll and withdrawal operation. In fact, Kato et al.
(1997) observed that methanogenic bacteria were not
inhibited in the presence of oxygen in up-¯ow anaerobic
sludge blanket (UASB) and expanded-bed granular
sludge blanket (EGSB) reactors. According to the au-
thors, aerobic or facultative bacteria in the outer layer of
the granule consumed the oxygen.
Factors affecting the discontinuous reactor's
performance
Agitation, initial ratio between substrate and biomass
concentrations (S/X), geometric con®guration of the
reactor and the feeding strategy are the main factors
a€ecting the overall performance of the reactor.
Agitation
Agitation in discontinuous anaerobic reactors is pro-
vided mainly by recycling of the gas generated. Although
there has not yet been an exhaustive study of agitation
conditions, some preliminary ®ndings have been pre-
sented in the literature. However, results on agitation
intensity and mechanical agitation are, at this date, not
available far.
According to Angenent and Dague (1995), intense
agitation may cause rupture of the granules. Intermittent
agitation enhances the gas-liquid separation eciency by
improving the sludge settle characteristics and the
process performance. The authors thus proposed an
intermittent agitation of 4 min/h. Sung and Dague
(1995) recycled the generated biogas in the reactor for
2±5 min/h, and Zhang et al. (1996) proposed that the
gas should be injected for 3 min/h. Droste and MasseÂ
(1995) used higher recycle times, nearly 20 min/h; how-
ever, they concluded that agitation seemed not to be
necessary. Masse et al. (1996) also concluded that
psychrophilic anaerobic digestion of swine manure slurry
in sequencing batch reactors performed well without
external mixing. The sludge had excellent settling char-
acteristics. In systems that were not mixed there was a
clear interface between the liquid and the sludge zones. A
thick layer of sludge was observed at the bottom of the
reactor. In the mixed reactor there were no distinguish-
able supernatant and sludge zones, and the sludge blan-
ket completely settled when mixing was stopped.
Hirl and Irvine (1996) reported a problem related to
agitation by gas recycle. These researchers veri®ed that
this type of agitation could lead to the release of volatile
substances. Angenent and Dague (1995) reported on
high foam generation when agitation by gas recycle was
employed.
According to Brito et al. (1997), the anaerobic se-
quencing batch reactor approach is unsuitable for the
treatment of low-strength wastewaters, since the low gas
production will result in insucient turbulence in the
reactor, increasing the possibility of stagnant zones and/
or external mass-transfer resistance. For this reason, a
bench-scale reactor, called the pulse sequencing batch
reactor, was evaluated in the treatment of a synthetic
low-strength wastewater. Mixing was supplied by recir-
culating the e‚uent with a diaphragm pump as a pul-
sator unit. A swept/reactor-volume ratio of 1.8% and a
stroke rate of 20 spm was sucient to minimize possible
stagnant zones in the reactor or liquid-phase mass-
transfer resistance.
Mechanical agitation is another alternative to mixing
the contents in batch reactors. Timur and OÈsturk (1999)
used magnetic bars in bench-scale anaerobic sequencing
batch reactors. Intermittent mixing of only 1 min/h was
provided, but even with this low agitation time the ef-
¯uent was not completely free of suspended solids.
Dugba and Zhang (1999) also equipped anaerobic batch
reactors with a mechanical mixer, providing mixing for
1 min/h.
Ratio between substrate and biomass concentrations
The initial ratio between substrate and biomass concen-
trations (S/X) is signi®cant in discontinuous processes
using self-immobilized sludge, since it is one of the most
important factors that a€ect the biomass granulation
phenomena. According to Dague et al. (1992) and Sung
and Dague (1995), low S/X ratio resulted in optimum
sludge granulation with good settling characteristics.
Reyes III and Dague (1995) studied discontinuous

anaerobic reactor start-up with the S/X ratio ranging
from 0.09 to 1.00 mg chemical oxygen demand (COD)/
mg Volatile Suspended Solids (VSS). A better biomass
retention in the reactor and a rapid and stable start-up
were observed when low S/X ratios were applied. The
best results were obtained by using an S/X ratio of 0.5.
High S/X ratios were found to cause low organic matter
removal eciencies based on total COD due to sludge
wash-out, since high gas production was observed.
Fernandes et al. (1993) observed biomass activity
inhibition when the organic loads and the S/X ratios
su€ered disturbances. In fact, inhibition by primary or
intermediate substrates occurred when the reactor was
subjected to severe changes in organic loads. The overall
reaction rates are sensitive to very high substrate con-
centrations and will subsequently decrease, inhibiting
biomass activity. In this case, an equalizing tank could
be necessary to minimize such variations. However, if
the organic load can be predicted, the timing of the
batch can be increased in order to provide good e‚uent
quality even at very high organic load condition.
Timur and OÈsturk (1999) observed that the volu-
metric methane production rate increased linearly with
the S/X ratio in a batch reactor treating land®ll leachate.
However, it was not possible to reach the optimum S/X
ratio that provides the maximum methane production
rate.
Geometric reactor characteristics
According to Sung and Dague (1995), the geometric
characteristics of the reactor can a€ect the removal of
organic matter, since the characteristics of the biomass
(¯occulent vs granular) were a€ected signi®cantly by this
parameter. Reactors with a high length-to-diameter
ratio (L/D) performed better regarding retention of self-
immobilized biomass in a granular form than did
reactors with low L/D. However, the latter had a higher
cell concentration capability. Therefore, utilization of an
high L/D (L/D ˆ 1.83±5.60) instead of a low L/D ratio
(L/D ˆ 0.61±0.93) is preferable.
Feeding strategy
The feeding strategy in sequencing batch or fed-batch
reactors can a€ect their performance, since it is directly
related to the S/X ratios employed and to the retention
of solids. According to Angenent and Dague (1995), an
increase in the feeding time resulted in a decrease in the
concentration of total volatile acids, which are inter-
mediate products of the anaerobic degradation.
Results obtained by Bagley and Brodkorb (1999)
con®rmed these ®ndings. The authors described the
weakness of the short-®ll cycle operation, especially
when rapidly acidi®ed organic matter was used. The
results suggested that a longer ®ll cycle can be extremely
bene®cial to batch reactor operation. On the other hand,
31
Droste and Masse (1995) and Masse et al. (1996) ob-
served no signi®cant variations in the reactor's perfor-
mance when the feeding conditions were changed.
Biomass granulation in discontinuous reactors
All of these reported factors can a€ect to a lesser or
greater degree the sludge granulation. As pointed out
previously, granulation is desirable in batch or fed-batch
systems, in this conformation the sludge permits the
attainment of high cellular retention times.
Rapid biomass self-immobilization is necessary in such
anaerobic systems, since after granule formation the
treatment performance is more stable and the eciency
for COD removal is improved (Sung and Dague, 1995).
Usually, conformation of the biomass into granules
in anaerobic sequencing batch reactors is slow, taking
several months. For example, Sung and Dague (1995)
observed granule formation after 300 days of operation.
Considering that start-up of the reactor is established
only after granulation, such reactors are characterized
by long start-up periods compared with other anaerobic
systems.
Wirtz and Dague (1996, 1997) attempted to minimize
the length of the time required to develop granulation in
anaerobic sequencing batch reactors. Granulation en-
hancements were added to the reactors to initiate early
granule development and to aid in start-up, and several
attachment matrices and coagulants were independently
studied. Powdered activated carbon, granular activated
carbon, silica sand, garnet sand, polymers and ferric
chloride were added to the reactors as alternatives
to improve granule formation. In fact, the addition of
coagulants such as cationic polymer, polyquanternary
amine polymer and ferric chloride promoted aggrega-
tion of the biosolids and physical chemical organic
matter removal besides the biological one, while the at-
tachment matrices provided conditions for supported
bacteria growth besides self-immobilization. Cationic
polymer had a greater positive e€ect on biomass gran-
ulation and reactor start-up. Complete biomass granu-
lation was achieved after nearly 2 months of operation,
while 4±5 months were necessary for self-immobilization
in a reactor with no enhancement.
Temperature effects and temperature-phased reactors
Another important characteristic of anaerobic sequenc-
ing batch reactors is related to temperature, as reported
by Dague et al. (1992) and Schmit and Dague (1993).
Both reports described experiments using anaerobic
batch reactors to treat swine wastes at di€erent tem-
peratures. It was observed that this type of reactor is
able to compensate for lower temperatures by increasing
the biomass concentration. According to Schmit and
Dague (1993), the adaptive ability was found to be lower
from 25 to 20 °C than from 35 to 25 °C.
32
Banik et al. (1997) observed the microstructure of
granules taken from anaerobic sequencing batch reac-
tors treating synthetic substrate at temperatures ranging
from 5 to 25 °C. As the temperature decreased from
mesophilic (25 °C) to psychrophilic (5 °C), there was a
slight shift in the microstructure of the granules. Those
grown at 5 °C had a greater species diversity on the in-
side of the granules than on the exterior. The outer layer
consisted of a uniform and less dense bacterial consor-
tium of diverse morphologies, including cocci, bacilli and
some ®laments. The inside of the bisected granules was
densely packed with bacteria of various morphologies,
and the center core was loosely packed with two types of
cell structure typical of Methanotrix. The granules ob-
tained from operation at 15 and 25 °C did not exhibit
such a layered structure. The granules observed at 25 °C
did not present a wide variety of species and were pre-
dominantly composed of loosely packed Methanotrix-
like cells, inorganic material and extracellular polymers,
while granules with irregular shape and complex surface
were observed at 15 °C. High levels of organic removal
were observed even at a low temperature of 5 °C (Banik
and Dague 1997; Dague et al. 1998).
A temperature-phased anaerobic sequencing batch
reactor was proposed by Welper et al. (1997) to treat a
high-strength industrial wastewater. The system con-
sisted of two reactors operated in series at di€erent
temperatures: the ®rst-stage reactor at 55 °C and the
second-stage at 35 °C. According to the authors, the
temperature-phased batch reactor incorporates the ad-
vantages of both thermophilic (high reaction rates) and
mesophilic (higher quality e‚uent) treatment. The suc-
cess of the reactor was demonstrated, since the system
achieved COD removals as high as 95%. Development
and retention of rapidly settling granular biomass was
another advantage reported for this system.
The temperature-phased anaerobic sequencing batch
reactor was tested later by Dugba and Zhang (1999) in
the treatment of dairy wastewater. A two-stage system
consisting of a thermophilic reactor (55 °C) followed
by a mesophilic one (35 °C) was compared to two
mesophilic reactors in series (35 °C). The thermophilic-
mesophilic system performed better than the mesophilic-
mesophilic one. The total solids and volatile solids
removals were improved in the temperature-phased
reactor and, consequently, the biogas production rate
was higher than that observed in the reactor operating at
35 °C. The authors concluded that temperature-phased
anaerobic digestion can o€er the bene®ts of a high di-
gestion rate, fecal bacteria destruction, process stability
and favorable economics for animal wastewater treat-
ment. However, the increased heating energy require-
ment needs to be considered.
Studies performed by Ndon and Dague (1997a) in-
dicated that application of the sequencing batch anaer-
obic reactor to the treatment of low-strength wastewater
at low temperatures could allow lower-cost treatment of
industrial and municipal wastes, which are normally
treated aerobically.
Considerations regarding the development
of anaerobic discontinuous reactors
Research and development of anaerobic sequencing
batch or fed-batch reactors are very recent, and the re-
sults thus far can be considered indicative rather than
conclusive. The industrial application of this process has
not been established, since several fundamental features
and technological aspects remain to be investigated.
Anaerobic discontinuous processes for wastewater
treatment can be employed under special conditions,
such as by industries that only intermittently produce
wastewater. When the standard emission is very restric-
tive or when the wastewater contains recalcitrant organic
compounds, these types of reactors can be used success-
fully. In these cases, e‚uent discharge can be performed
only when its quality has been guaranteed or when the
toxic compound has been satisfactorily degraded.
Systems that aim at wastewater reuse or dissolved
compounds recovery represent other potential applica-
tions of discontinuous reactors. The control of waste-
water reuse in these systems is potentially more adequate
than that obtained in continuous systems. Moreover, due
to the facility of instrumentation and control, these re-
actors can be employed in fundamental research in order
to elucidate some aspects of anaerobic degradation.
The discontinuous anaerobic processes for waste-
water treatment o€ers several advantages over current
anaerobic technologies: (1) there is no short circuit, as in
the case of ®xed-bed continuous systems; (2) better
e‚uent quality control; (3) the absence of primary or
secondary settles; (4) no liquid or solids recycling is
involved; (5) suitable process control; (6) high organic
matter removal eciency; (7) a simple and stable oper-
ation process. Besides these operating characteristics,
some kinetic advantages have also been reported, such
as and high methanogenic activity.
Despite these described advantages, this type of bio-
reactor lacks well-de®ned and established methodologies
and operation techniques. The occurrence of dead zones,
high settle time, solids wash-out, slow start-up period,
inhibition due to organic overloading, and poor
knowledge of agitation and feed strategy are some of the
problems that a€ect the treatment eciency. In results
presented by Droste and Masse (1995), Zhang et al.
(1996) and Dugba and Zhang (1999), the settle time was
found to be up to 25% of the total cycle time. Hollopeter
and Dague (1994) reported a settle time corresponding
to 22% of the total cycle time.
These shortcomings cannot be considered as disad-
vantages as such, since anaerobic discontinuous pro-
cesses are a new and developing technology and several
of the reported problems can be solved through intensive
research. Such studies must address not only techno-
logical aspects of anaerobic sequencing batch reactors,
but also fundamental aspects, such as mass-transfer,
kinetics and hydrodynamics, in order to provide a ra-
tional basis for the accurate design of these reactors.
 33

Experimental data obtained from the operation of
anaerobic sequencing batch reactors, reported mainly in
bench-scale units, are summarized in Table 1.
An interesting non-conventional application of an-
aerobic batch reactors was presented by Ndon and
Randall (1999), who employed a periodically aerated
anaerobic batch reactor for biodetoxi®cation of poly-
halogenated compounds. The method of operation
permitted the development of a microbial culture con-
sisting of facultative anaerobes. According to the au-
thors, such a mixed culture is more e€ective for treating
mixed pollutants than an enriched strictly anaerobic
culture. The reactor was maintained under anaerobic
conditions for 14 days, and then aeration was supplied
for 7 days. Preliminary studies show that tetrachloro-
ethylene degradation may have occurred during the
anaerobiosis-aerobiosis transition.
the literature, these investigations are at an initial stage,
and research must be further developed in order to
achieve optimal operating conditions. These studies can
be carried out in bench-scale units with suitable instru-
mentation and control of the most important parame-
ters. Such reactors can be essential tools for
optimization of the operating parameters on an indus-
trial scale.
Two areas of research are proposed to make the se-
quencing batch and fed-batch anaerobic reactors for
wastewater treatment feasible for industrial applica-
tions; ®rst, studies on optimization of operating pa-
rameters making use of self-immobilized biomass
through automation of the process, and second, devel-
opment of an anaerobic discontinuous reactor contain-
ing an inert support for biomass immobilization.

Optimization of anaerobic discontinuous

New approaches for anaerobic discontinuous process containing self-immobilized biomass
process development
The control of fermentation processes can be performed
Although some indicative results concerning agitation, either in a conventionally or computer-aided. In con-
feeding strategy and S/X ratio have been presented in ventional systems only the monitored variables can be
+
Table 1 Performance data obtained from operation of anaerobic sequencing batch reactors. NFDM Non-fat dry milk, BOD removal
eciency, ++ temperature-phased reactor (35±55 °C), T total COD, S soluble COD

Wastewater Reactor Cycle T (C) ECODa (%) EVSb (%) Reference

volume (l) length (h)

NFDM 13 ± 35 70±80T ± Dague et al. (1992)

Swine waste 12 24 20 Mean value of 50%T 40±60 Dague et al. (1992)
25 77±92 Schmit and Dague (1993)
35 74±87 Schmit and Dague (1993)
Leachate 12 6 35 85T ± Hollopeter and Dague (1994)
90S Hollopeter and Dague (1994)
Swine manure 42 48 20 50±83T 27±78 Droste and Masse (1995)
84±96S Droste and Masse (1995)
NFDM 11.5 6 35 50±90T ± Reyes III and Dague (1995)
70±95S Reyes III and Dague (1995)
Synthetic (sucrose) 13 4 35 53±82T ± Angenent and Dague (1995)
78±95S Angenent and Dague (1995)
NFDM 12 6 35 58±97T ± Sung and Dague (1995)
90±99S Sung and Dague (1995)
Synthetic (sucrose) 14 6 35 95% ± Wirtz and Dague (1996)
Swine manure 12 8 25 59±79+ 39±49 Zhang et al. (1996)
12 73±86+ 53±61 Zhang et al. (1996)
24 58±82+ 40±59 Zhang et al. (1996)
Swine manure 42 1344 20 41±83T 46±84 Masse et al. (1996)
84±93S Masse et al. (1996)
Synthetic 1.2 5.6±6.6 22 60±70T ± Brito et al. (1997)
(glucose + fatty acids)
Swine manure 25 1344 20 58±73T 27±74 Masse et al. (1997)
85±96S Masse et al. (1997)
NFDM 10 2 ++ 90T ± Welper et al. (1997)
95S Welper et al. (1997)
NFDM 6 ± 25 90+ ± Banik and Dague (1997)
5 75+ Banik and Dague (1997)
NFDM 6 4 15±35 69±95T ± Ndon and Dague (1997a, b)
82±99S Ndon and Dague (1997a, b)
Land®ll leachate 2.8 24 35 64 ±85 ± Timur and OÈzturk (1999)
Screened dairy manure 15 4 ++ ± 22±44 Dugba and Zhang (1999)
35 ± 9±35 Dugba and Zhang (1999)
a
COD removal eciency
b
Volatile solids removal eciency
34
controlled, and the set-point values are maintained
constant during the process.
By contrast, computer-aided control can enhance data
acquisition functions in several respects: by improving
the reliability and accuracy of the data using statistical
methods, by recording from several sensors, and by
storing large quantities of measured results. In addition
to this, computers expand opportunities for data analysis
and interpretation, improving process control and opti-
mization. Operation of a batch or fed-batch process re-
quires a carefully controlled and coordinated sequence of
valve openings and closings and pump starts and stops
that can be managed eciently by computer (Bailey and
Ollis 1986; Onken and Weiland 1985). By using this re-
source it is possible to obtain operating conditions that
maximize the substrate consumption rates and thereby
minimizing the construction and operating costs of dis-
continuous anaerobic plants for industrial purposes.
Even though industrial application of automatic units is
economically unfeasible, bench-scale units are useful to
obtain information leading to process optimization.
Knowledge of the optimal conditions can be applied on
an industrial scale without need of additional complex
instrumentation and control.
Fernandes et al. (1993) developed a dynamic model
to describe substrate degradation in sequencing batch
anaerobic reactors. It was assumed that: substrate de-
gradation takes place in the feeding and reaction stages
only, the reactor is completely mixed during ®ll and re-
act stages, biomass increase in one cycle is insigni®cant
compared to the total amount of biomass in the reactor,
and the pH is controlled in an optimum range. Haldane-
type and non-competitive inhibition models were used in
non-steady-state mass balances, and it was observed that
such inhibition functions could fairly well predict the
performance in sequencing batch reactors. In¯uent
substrate concentration and pH were found to be the
most sensitive parameters in the model.
A dynamic model based on a simpli®ed scheme for
the psychrophilic anaerobic digestion of swine manure
slurry in an anaerobic sequencing batch reactor was
developed and veri®ed by Masse and Droste (1997). The
model was developed in order to predict the rate limiting
steps during feeding and reaction phases, to reduce the
number of experimental tests, to gain a better knowledge
of psychrophilic anaerobic digestion in sequencing batch
reactors, and to optimize the bioreactor design and
control strategy. A ®rst-order kinetic model was used for
hydrolysis of particulate material and the Monod kinetic
model was applied for COD and volatile acids degra-
dation. The dynamic model was found to be acceptable
for predicting the accumulated volatile acids, soluble
COD and methane ¯ow rates in the reactor.
Bagley and Brodkorb (1999) proposed a more com-
plex and detailed model of anaerobic sequencing batch
reactors. The model includes ®ve anaerobic digestion
steps and was validated using data obtained from
operation of a bench-scale batch reactor treating glucose-
based substrate. The proposed model permits the
prediction of primary substrate concentration, hydrogen
partial pressure, and volatile acids concentration (acetate,
propionate, butyrate and lactate) along the cycle time.
Although the dynamic model presented by Bagley
and Brodkorb (1999) is more precise than others pre-
sented previously, the model requires several parame-
ters, which are not always available. Moreover, the
estimation of such parameters can be very dicult for
complex wastewaters.
The behavior of a temperature-phased sequencing
batch reactor treating dairy wastewater was simulated
by Dugba et al. (1999). A dual-substrate model was
applied in which soluble organics and volatile fatty acids
were used as the substrates for the anaerobic digestion
process. The model consisted of equations developed to
predict the transient variation in the biomass concen-
tration of acetogenic and methanogenic microorganisms
and their substrates. A Monod kinetic equation was
assumed to represent the microorganisms' growth and
substrate consumption. Experimental data obtained
from operation of a temperature-phased reactor (Dugba
and Zhang 1999) were used to test the proposed model,
which was found to represent satisfactorily the behavior
of the batch reactor. According to the authors, the
model provides an e€ective tool for use in the study and
design of temperature-phased anaerobic batch reactors,
since these types of reactors are new and no extensive
experimental data are available.
Development of anaerobic discontinuous process
containing inert support for biomass immobilization
New con®gurations of discontinuous anaerobic reactors
are another alternative to solve the problems related to
the applications of such reactors. The utilization of an
inert support for cell immobilization seems to be
promising, since solids retention could be improved. In
this way, the settle step would be unnecessary, resulting
in a decrease in the total cycle time. Furthermore, the
immobilization of biomass in an inert support eliminates
uncertainty about the sludge granulation.
Hirl and Irvine (1996) used a bench-scale, anaerobic
sequencing batch bio®lm reactor to promote the de-
chlorination of perchloroethylene to ethylene. The re-
actor consisted of an up-¯ow packed column ®lled with
acid-washed pea gravel as support for biomass retention.
Although the reactor performed well, it was not com-
pared with anaerobic sequencing batch reactors con-
taining granular sludge.
Ratusznei et al. (2000) proposed a new con®guration
for a stirred anaerobic bioreactor, containing biomass
immobilized in polyurethane foam support. The bench-
scale reactor was composed of a cylindrical ¯ask
containing a basket in which the support material for
biomass entrapment was allocated. A stirring bar at the
bottom of the reactor supplied the mixing. Operating
stability was attained after 36 days (108 consecutive 8-h
cycles) when the reactor was assayed for treating a

low-strength synthetic wastewater. The maximum COD
removal eciency was attained after about 3 h from the
beginning of the cycle. The reactor con®guration actu-
ally improved the biomass retention, permitting sup-
pression of the settle step.
Extensive reports on the utilization of this type of
reactor have not been found in the literature and the
problems most likely to be encountered remain to be
investigated. Finally the feasibility of large-scale reactor
applications has not been discussed so far.
Acknowledgements This study was supported in part by the Fun-
daaÄo de Amparo aÁ Pesquisa do Estado de SaÄo Paulo-FAPESP,
process numbers 97/05.987-3 and 97/13.270-1 (Dr. J.A.D. Rodri-
gues), 98/10.303-9 (Dr. S.M. Ratusznei) and 98/07.131-1 (Eng.
E.F.M. Camargo).
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