Optimized design of ozone microbubble aeration reactor to enhance the removal of dissolved organic matter: A pilot-scale study on drinking water treatment.

The application of microbubbles (MBs) in ozone contactors improves pollutant removal efficiency. However, conventional MB generation methods significantly increase maintenance and operational costs. This study discusses the application of ceramic membranes for ozone microbubble aeration. Effluent from a sedimentation tank was used as the influent to a pilot-scale system, and the system's degradation capacity for dissolved organic matter (DOM) was compared under different aeration systems and operating conditions. Analysis of the effluent using parallel factor analysis (PARAFAC) and LC-OCD revealed that the ceramic membrane aeration system enhances DOM degradation efficiency. This study confirmed that, unlike titanium diffusers, ceramic membranes are not directly arranged at the bottom of the ozone contactor. The results indicate that appropriately increasing the height of the ceramic membrane arrangement improves the ozone mass transfer rate. The flow-guiding effect of the ceramic membranes can be utilised to improve ozone concentration uniformity. The reaction of hydroxyl groups on the ceramic membrane surface with liquid-phase ozone also generates additional •OH radicals. Through degradation experiments with atrazine (ATZ), we found that ceramic membrane aeration offers promising potential to improve organic pollutant removal in water and reduce system energy consumption. Furthermore, the additional pressure required for ceramic membrane use does not increase energy consumption. The ceramic membrane aeration method is easier to implement and more environmentally friendly than other microbubble generation methods.