Applied research on aquatic macrophyte fermentation broth in SBR denitrification.

Abstract

In the traditional biological process for nitrogen removal, an insufficient carbon source is often the limiting factor. To solve this problem, reed fermentation broth was selected as the source of denitrification carbon for nitrogen removal in a SBR, and the influence of different C/N conditions on the denitrification and the characteristics of bacteria in the reactor were examined. Leaching experiments with reeds employed fluorescence excitation-emission spectrophotometry and revealed that the reed material had a high capacity for carbon release, the average dissolved organic carbon release content proportion was 11.3mg/g, and the dissolved organic matter mainly consisted of humic acid-like compounds. Using reed fermentation broth as an additional carbon source promoted the denitrification of wastewater by microbes. When reed fermentation broth was added at a C/N ratio of 6, the best nitrogen efficiency for nitrogen removal was 88.3-96.4%. Analyses of microbial diversity indicated that in the SBR reactor, the relative abundance of denitrifying bacteria at the genus level reached 38.5%. These results revealed that reed fermentation broth promoted the growth of anaerobic denitrifying bacteria and improved the efficiency of denitrification. The findings will contribute to a better understanding of the use of reed fermentation broth as an external carbon source that increases the efficiency for denitrification of wastewater. PRACTITIONER POINTS: Using fluorescence excitation-emission spectrophotometry and parallel factor analysis to evaluate the supply capacity of DOMs released from reed. Research the feasibility of reed fermented broth as external carbon source under the condition of extremely low carbon source. Provides theoretical guidance for deep denitrification in sewage treatment plant with SBR process.