With respect to the organic loading rates (Table 3), the sand
filter revealed an increased treatment capacity. Organic removal
rates at hydraulic loads of 100 L m2 day1 was 33.7 g COD m2
day1. At higher hydraulic loads, this amount reached 257.6 g m2
day1. These results show that sand
filters are very effective in
removing organic matter, regardless of the hydraulic loading rates
used. Thus, this system can be deemed robust and reliable.