Diseño y evaluación de un filtro grueso horizontal (FGH) empleando diferentes lechos filtrantes, para la remoción de turbiedad en aguas residuales de una granja piscícola al Norte de Boyacá.

Abstract

Aquaculture in northern Boyacá generates wastewater with high turbidity and suspended solids, whose discharge without adequate treatment affects the quality of water bodies and compliance with current environmental regulations. The objective was to evaluate the efficiency of a horizontal roughing filter (HRF) with different types of filter media for turbidity removal in the wastewater of a fish farm located in northern Boyacá. The method consisted of a literature review using the Bibliographic Informational Mapping (MIB) methodology, through which filter materials (fine gravel, coarse gravel, anthracite, and activated carbon in two grain sizes) were selected, and a pilot-scale HRF was designed with two configurations: system 1 (fine gravel–coarse gravel–1/8" activated carbon–anthracite) and system 2 (fine gravel–coarse gravel–1/8" activated carbon–1/4" activated carbon–anthracite). Five operating runs were carried out for each system, measuring turbidity at the inlet, in each filter medium, and at the outlet. As results, both systems significantly reduced the turbidity of the effluent, decreasing from initial values close to 280–300 NTU to 33.9 NTU in system 1 and 49 NTU in system 2, with progressive reduction across the filter media layers and a greater contribution from the fine activated carbon. Finally, as a conclusion, the HRF proved to be efficient for turbidity removal in fish-farming wastewater, with system 1 being the most recommended configuration due to its higher overall efficiency, simplicity, and feasibility for implementation in rural farms.