This paper reports the performance of a compost biofilter subjected to periodic intermittent loads of gas-phase hexane and toluene. The biofilter was operated for 10 h per day, at different empty bed residence times (4, 2 and 1.3 mm), and at different inlet concentrations of hexane and toluene, varying between 2 and 3.8 g m(-3), respectively. Steady-state removal efficiency profiles, reaching more than 90% for both the pollutants, was observed after 44 days of operation. Periodic operation of the compost biofilter was characterized by an adsorption step, followed by biological conversion of the pollutants by the microorganisms inherent to the compost. After resuming daily biofilter operation, the required times for biochemical reaction to dominate the initial adsorption step was observed to be 2.5 and 1 h, respectively, for toluene and hexane. The maximum elimination capacity due to the biological step was found to be 61.6 g m(-3) h(-1). The results from this study showed the effectiveness of the biofilter to handle mixtures of gas-phase pollutants, subjected to regular intermittent operations, thus proving their worthiness for industrial use. (C) 2011 The Institution of Chemical Engineers. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.