Results of the studies for determining fractions of organic contaminants in a pretreated petrochemical wastewater flowing into a pilot Aerated Submerged Fixed-Bed Biofilm Reactor (ASFBBR) are presented and discussed. The method of chemical oxygen demand (COD) fractionation consisted of physical tests and biological assays. It was found that the main part of the total COD in the petrochemical, pretreated wastewater was soluble organic substance with average value of 57.6%. The fractions of particulate and colloidal organic matter were found to be 31.8% and 10.6%, respectively. About 40% of COD in the influent was determined as readily biodegradable COD. The inert fraction of the soluble organic matter in the petrochemical wastewater constituted about 60% of the influent colloidal and soluble COD. Determination of degree of hydrolysis (DH) of the colloidal fraction of COD was also included in the paper. The estimated value of DH was about 62%. Values of the assayed COD fractions were compared with the same parameters obtained for municipal wastewater by other authors.

The aim of the study was to determine the impact of selected factors on the reduction of organic pollutants, expressed in BOD₅ and COD_Cr, in wastewater treated in a laboratory scale model of moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR). The factors included in the experiment: the degree of filling the fluidized bed with biomass carriers, hydraulic load, and aeration intensity. The tested model of the bioreactor consisted of five independent chambers with diameter D = 0.14 m and height H = 2.0 m, which were filled with biomass carriers at 0%, 20%, 40%, 60%, 70% of their active volume. During the test period, hydraulic loads at the level of Q_h1 = 0.073 m³·m^-2·h^-1 and Q_h2 = 0.036 m³·m^-2·h^-1 were applied, which ensured one-day and two-day sewage retention, respectively.The said reactors were subjected to constant aeration at P₁ = 3.0 dm³·min^-1 and P₂ = 5.0 dm³·min^-1. The highest efficiency of the reduction of the analysed indicators was demonstrated by reactors filled with carriers in the degree of 40–60%. Based on the statistical analyses (the analyses of the ANOVA variations and the Kruskal-Wallis test) carried out, it was found that the studied factors significantly modified the mutual interaction in the process of reducing BOD₅ in treated wastewater of the reactors tested. The significance of the impact of the discussed factors on the values of the studied indicators in treated wastewater depends on mutual interactions between the investigated factors.