Submerged Attached Growth Bioreactor (SAGB)

The removal of inorganic nutrients has been of great importance following the severe effects of eutrophication on water resources. The submerged attached growth bioreactor (SAGB) is a biological nutrient removal process used in the removal of nitrogen from waste water. The SAGB is associated with two advantages, namely (Grady et al., 1999):

1. Small volume requirement
2. Removal of downstream clarification

Unlike other attached biological process and the suspended processes, the SAGB permits an escalated biomass concentration that leads to a short hydraulic retention time hence; a significantly decreased reactor volume. The SAGB also contains a fine media that allows separation of solids through physical filtration. There are different configurations of SAGB that have largely contributed to the advanced comprehension of these systems. This is very vital in achieving the second principle of good management which is the ability to develop and apply more tools in understanding microbial communities. A combination of nitrification and aerobic oxidation of organic are perceived as one operational unit during the complete removal of nitrogen from wastewater while denitrification is considered to be another separate unit (Andersen et al., 1995; Holbrook et al., 1998). The oxidation process entails following electrons thereby achieving the third principle of good management with regard to waste water treatment.