The fiber used to fill biofilters comes from the mesocarp of the coconut. It is a highly fibrous material that must be screened to separate the long fibers, which will be used in biofilters. To make it usable, it must be artificially hydrated. This process allows the material to expand and increase its surface area.
This product is made from a blend of short and very short coconut fibers, followed by further processing at the plant to produce a material capable of absorbing odor-causing compounds and other pollutants from the exhaust air stream. Free-living microorganisms that naturally proliferate on this organic material use these compounds as a source of nutrients and energy through aerobic decomposition.
At our plant, this material undergoes a hydration process followed by screening, which yields a fibrous fraction with optimal characteristics for use as a biofilter.
This treatment increases the specific surface area of the material and creates humidity conditions that allow microorganisms to colonize the medium more effectively.
Furthermore, increasing the specific surface area of the biofilter bed material enhances the formation of a concentration gradient within the biofilm, which maintains a continuous mass flow from the gas components to the wet biofilm.
Coconut fiber is an extremely lightweight material (111 kg/m³) with a porosity of 96%.
Due to its properties, it can be used in systems where coconut fiber is the sole filtering medium. Its properties can be enhanced by combining it with other materials, such as heather, which increase its fluffiness. It is a material with a high odor adsorption rate.
To use it as the sole filtering medium, the bed must be stirred periodically to prevent compaction.
