Insight into a Waste Material-Based Bioreactor for Nutrient Removal from Domestic Wastewater

Abstract

The feasibility of simultaneous nitrification denitrification and phosphate removal in a single-stage fixed-bed bioreactor was evaluated in this study. The bioreactor was packed with industrial wastes and agricultural wastes mixed in a definite proportion. A newly isolated simultaneous nitrifying and denitrifying bacterial strain was immobilized on the packed bed materials to facilitate nutrient removal. The bioreactor was fed with both real and synthetic wastewater under variable start-up and steady-state experimental conditions including hydraulic retention time (HRT), mode of aeration and nutrient loading rate and operated for 70 days continuously. In the steady-state condition ammonia, nitrate, and phosphate removal efficiencies of synthetic wastewater were 87.1–92.8%, 69.4–88.4%, and 88.4–100%, respectively, while the corresponding values of real domestic wastewater were 88.7–93.1%, 70.5–87.2%, and 84–89.4%, respectively. This work publicized the promising application prospect of the developed bioreactor in domestic wastewater treatment primarily focusing on nutrient removal.