Removal of xenobiotic compounds in water works sand filters

Sand filters in conventional water works treating groundwater harbour an active and diverse flora of micro organisms that are able to remove a range of easily biodegradable organic compounds concomitantly with the removal of the usual compounds methane, hydrogen sulphide, ammonia, iron, and manganese. The purpose of this project is to study the capacity of filters to remove gasoline compounds, BTEX, pesticides, phenols, and other biodegradable xenobiotic compounds. The study is conducted with filters that contain quarts sand and Filtralite (expanded clay) as filter materials. It has been observed that the gasoline compounds can be biodegraded effectively in the filters even in the low microgram per litre concentration range. The presences of iron, even in concentrations of 3 mg/L, did not have a significant inhibitory effect on the removal of gasoline compounds.