Waste water purification using new porous ceramics prepared by recycling waste glass and bamboo charcoal

New porous ceramics (PC) prepared by recycling waste glass bottle of soft drinks (80 mass%) and bamboo charcoal (20 mass%) without any binder was applied to the waste water purification under aeration at 25 °C. Artificial waste water (15 L) containing 10 mL of milk was examined by combining 15 mL of activated sludge and 750 g of PC. Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) showed a marked decrease from 178 to 4.0 (±0.1) mg L−1 in 5 days and to 2.0 (±0.1) mg L−1 in 7 days, which was equal to the Environmental Standard for the river water (class A) in Japan. Similarly, chemical oxygen demand (COD) decreased from 158 to 3.6 (±0.1) mg L−1 in 5 days and to 2.2 (±0.1) mg L−1 in 9 days, which was less than the Environmental Standard for the Seawater (class B) in Japan: 3.0 mg L−1. These results prove the high water purification ability of the PC, which will be effectively utilized for the purification of drinking water, fish preserve water, fish farm water, etc. © 2017, The Author(s).