Utilization of micro-electrolysis, up-flow anaerobic sludge bed, anoxic/oxic-activated sludge process, and biological aerated filter in penicillin G wastewater treatment

System which included micro-electrolysis (ME), up-flow anaerobic sludge bed (UASB), anoxic/oxic (A/O) activated sludge process and biological aerated filter (BAF) were investigated in penicillin G-processing wastewater treatment. The main quality of the wastewater was shown as follows: chemical oxygen demand (CODcr) of 1,4507–1,5280 mg L−1, ammonium nitrogen (NH3–N) of 598–826 mg L−1, suspended solid of 1,850–2,190 mg L−1, and pH of 3.5–5.2. Moreover, penicillin G residue in the wastewater was 130–150 mg L−1. ME was utilized as the pretreatment method, UASB and A/O process were designed for the secondary treatment, and BAF was used as the advanced treatment. The results revealed that biodegradability of the wastewater could be effectively improved by ME, and most of CODcr and NH3–N in the wastewater could be removed by UASB and A/O process, and the residual COD and NH3–N could be removed by BAF. The average COD and NH3–N in final effluent was about 275.3 and 19.8 mg L−1, respectively, and the treated wastewater quality reached the requirement of the national discharge standards (wastewater quality standards for discharging into municipal sewer pipelines, China, COD ≤ 300 mg L−1, NH3–N ≤ 25 mg L−1 in C standard). Especially, about 80% of penicillin G residue in the wastewater could be removed or converted by ME reactor, and the wastewater could be effectively deposed in this system.