Bilge Water Research Articles

Efficiency of Carbon-Based Electrodes on a Microbial Electrolysis System for the Treatment of Bilge Water

A coupled Microbial Electrolysis Cell (MEC) – Anaerobic Granular Sludge (AGS) system was settled to investigate for the first time the ability of various carbon-based electrodes to enhance biodegradation of real bilge water (BW) and increase methane generation as an emerging technology for converting organic matter into value-added products. Results revealed that the performance of the three types of electrodes named carbon foam (CF), carbon cloth (CC) and three-dimensional graphene foam (3DG), was both time and organic load content dependent during the experimental cycles. Cumulative CH4 generation reached 235 mL in just 13 days after feeding the AGS with 50% of BW and application of 1.0 V at 3DG electrodes, followed by CC electrodes (148.3 mL). CF proved to be more resistant in higher BW concentration showing a sufficient performance of 1 month. However, in the third cycle, the performances of MECs containing 3DG and CC were higher compared to the CF and the control. Over the first cycle, the soluble Chemical Oxygen Demand (sCOD) removal was found to be around 70% to all MECs, and this value was around 10% higher than the control. Among the different Volatile Fatty Acids (VFAs), acetic acid was identified in the highest concentration in the first cycle, whereas propionic acid was detected in the second and third cycles. Microbial profile analysis showed that Methanobacterium and Desulfovibrio had substantially higher abundances in the cathodes than in the suspended anaerobic sludge. An X-ray diffraction (XRD) investigation of the used electrodes pointed out the formation of various crystalline compounds on their surface, which were different for the anode and cathode.

Antifouling BaTiO3/PVDF piezoelectric membrane for ultrafiltration of oily bilge water.

Barium titanate/polyvinylidene fluoride (BaTiO3/PVDF) piezoelectric membrane was successfully prepared and generated in-situ vibrations to reduce membrane fouling by applying alternating current (AC) signal for oily bilge water ultrafiltration. The effect of in-situ vibration on membrane fouling was investigated through changing in the excitation alternating voltage and its frequency, pH, crossflow rate. The results indicated that the piezoelectric membrane by applying AC signal remarkably alleviated the membrane fouling for bilge water ultrafiltration. The membrane fouling decreased with increasing the AC signal voltage. The final steady-state permeate flux from the piezoelectric membrane for bilge water ultrafiltration increased with the AC signal voltage, raising it by up to 63.4% at AC signal voltage of 20 V compared to that of the membrane without applying AC voltage. The high permeate flux was obtained at the resonant frequency of 220 kHz. During the 50-h ultrafiltration of bilge water with the piezoelectric membrane excited at 220 kHz and 15 V, the permeate flux from the membrane was stable. The oil concentration in outflow from the piezoelectric membrane was below 14 ppm, which met the discharged level required by IMO convention. The total organic carbon removal rate in bilge water was over 94%.

Assessment of Bilge Water Degradation by Isolated Citrobacter sp. and Two Indigenous Strains and Identification of Organic Content by GC-MS

Bilge water is oily saline wastewater accumulated on the hull at the bottom of a vessel, generated from leakage from pipes and engines and wash-down freshwater containing cleaning solvents. The present study focused on isolating microorganisms from oil-contaminated sites and indigenous species from raw bilge water and assessment of their ability to biodegrade bilge water. Using phenanthrene as a carbon source Citrobacter species was isolated from oil-contaminated sites and its optimum growth condition was found. The results indicated significant tolerance of the bacterium which presented great biodegradation ability for the tested carbon source. At high salinity (33 g L−1 of NaCl), sufficient phenathrene removal was achieved (81%), whereas variation of pH from 5 to 10 did not affected the survival of the microorganism. Regarding the effect of temperature and nutrients, Citrobacter sp. was better adapted at 30 °C, while lack of nutrients presented a negative impact on its growth. Halomonas and Exiguobacterium sp. were isolated from real bilge water using phenanthrene and phenol as a carbon source. The isolated strains independently exposed to high and low range bilge water pointed out around 83% and 53% chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal, respectively. Analysis of untreated bilge water by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was carried out, and the results confirmed the presence of organic compounds having a high similarity with Heptane, N-hexadecanoic acid, Methyl isobutyl Ketone and 1-butoxy-2-propanol. Chromatographic analysis of treated bilge water after exposure to isolated strains indicated the existence of new compounds. These metabolites presented high similarity with N-hexadecanoic, methyl ester, N-hexadecanoic and Octadecanoic acid methyl ester.

Пространственно-временные изменения содержания загрязняющих веществ в поверхностных водах бассейна Северной Двины

The long-term (for the period 2000-2020) series of pollutant content in the water of the river Northern Dvina and its tributaries are analyzed. The spatio-temporal change in the average age and average seasonal concentrations of especially high concentrations that affect water quality, formed as a result of monitoring natural and anthropogenic factors is shown. The interannual and intraannual variability of the content of organic substances (according to COD and BOD5), compounds of iron, copper, zinc, and lignosulfonates in the water of the rivers of the Northern Dvina basin was studied. The influence of anthropogenic factors on the water quality of the right and left tributaries of the upper reaches of the Northern Dvina River - Sukhona, Pelshma, Vychegda. The change in water quality for the period 2010-2020 was assessed throughout the river Northern Dvina, Sukhona, Pelshma, Vychegda, the water quality of which is most affected by wastewater from timber industry enterprises, hydromechanized works in the channel part of the Northern Dvina and its tributaries; agricultural activities of enterprises of the agro-industrial complex, as well as bilge waters of river transport.

Microbial electrolysis cell coupled with anaerobic granular sludge: A novel technology for real bilge water treatment

In the current study, treatment of undiluted real bilge water (BW) and the production of methane was examined for the first time using a membraneless single chamber Microbial Electrolysis Cell (MEC) with Anaerobic Granular Sludge (AGS) for its biodegradation. Initially, Anaerobic Toxicity Assays (ATAs) were used to evaluate the effect of undiluted real BW on the methanogenic activity of AGS. According to the results, BW shown higher impact to acetoclastics compared to hydrogenotrophic methanogens which proved to be more tolerant. However, dilution of BW caused lower inhibition allowing BW biodegradation. Maximum methane production (142.2 ± 4.8 mL) was observed at 50% of BW. Operation of MEC coupled with AGS, seemed to be very promising technology for BW treatment. During 80 days of operation in increasing levels of BW, R2 (1 V) reactor resulted in better performance than AGS alone. Exposure of AGS to gradual increase of BW content revealed that CH4 production was possible and reached 51% in five days even after feeding with 90% of BW using simple commercial iron electrodes. Successful chemical oxygen demand (sCOD) removal (up to 70%) was observed after gradual biomass acclimatization. Among the different monitored volatile fatty acids (VFAs), acetic and valeric acids were the most frequently detected compounds with concentrations up to 2.79 and 1.81 g L−1, respectively. The recalcitrant nature of BW did not allow the MEC-AD (anaerobic digester) to balance the consumed energy. Microbial profile analysis confirmed the existence of several methanogenic microorganisms of which Desulfovibrio and Methanobacterium presented significantly higher abundance in the cathodes compared to anodes and AGS.

Ship bilge water (pathway vector)

This datasheet on Ship bilge water (pathway vector) covers Identity.

Determination of the perception of ship management towards environmental pollion caused by routine operations of ships

In order to leave a livable world to future generations, the elimination of environmental pollution, which is one of the important dimensions of sustainability, increases its importance every day. Undoubtedly, among the factors that cause environmental pollution, the role of ships is quite high. The seas are also polluted by the routine operation of ships as well as marine accidents. Pollution arising from the routine operations of ships is caused by the discharge of pollutants such as ballast water, bilge water, sludge or garbage into the sea. In addition, emissions from ships and oil and fuel pollution caused by the routine operation of ships also play an important role in environmental pollution. In this study, the phenomena resulting from the routine operations of ships and causing environmental pollution were examined using the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) method, which is one of the multi-criteria decision-making methods, and the perceptions of ship operators towards environmental pollution were tried to be determined.

Organic material removal from bilge water by chemical treatment processes

Organic material removal from bilge water by chemical treatment processes

Membrane Distillation of Saline Water Contaminated with Oil and Surfactants.

Application of the membrane distillation (MD) process for the treatment of high-salinity solutions contaminated with oil and surfactants represents an interesting area of research. Therefore, the aim of this study is to investigate the effect of low-concentration surfactants in oil-contaminated high-salinity solutions on the MD process efficiency. For this purpose, hydrophobic capillary polypropylene (PP) membranes were tested during the long-term MD studies. Baltic Sea water and concentrated NaCl solutions were used as a feed. The feed water was contaminated with oil collected from bilge water and sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS). It has been demonstrated that PP membranes were non-wetted during the separation of pure NaCl solutions over 960 h of the module exploitation. The presence of oil (100–150 mg/L) in concentrated NaCl solutions caused the adsorption of oil on the membranes surface and a decrease in the permeate flux of 30%. In turn, the presence of SDS (1.5–2.5 mg/L) in the oil-contaminated high-salinity solutions slightly accelerated the phenomenon of membrane wetting. The partial pores’ wetting accelerated the internal scaling and affected degradation of the membrane’s structure. Undoubtedly, the results obtained in the present study may have important implications for understanding the effect of low-concentration SDS on MD process efficiency.

A Preliminary Study on the Intense Pelagic and Benthic Mucilage Phenomenon Observed in the Sea of Marmara

In the intense mucilage formation observed in the Sea of Marmara in 2021, Phaeocystis pouchetii (Prymnesiophyceae) together with Skeletonema costatum, Cylindrotheca closterium, Thalassiosira rotula (Bacillariophyceae), and Gonyaulax fragilis (Dinophyceae) were detected in the foamy mucilage in the surface layer, and Chrysoreinhardia giraudii and Nematochrysopsis marina (Chrysophyceae), which are known to produce filamentous mucilage in benthic habitat. In addition, with the contribution of these groups, a higher cell abundance (2.1×107 cells/L) and chlorophyll-a value (15.9 µg/L) was reached than the mucilage event experienced in previous years. In the microscopic observations, typical dominant genera of the Sea of Marmara such as Protoperidinium and Tripos were observed very little in terms of species composition, and the fact that three previously unobserved species became dominant and the Cyanophyceae group was represented by different species indicated that phytoplankton composition changed in the mucilage formation in this period. The changing species composition with these 3 species that are known to make mucilage and which are new records for the Sea of Marmara point to the transportation by ship ballast waters or the inflow of brackish water with heavy rains. It is recommended to take the necessary measures to control domestic and industrial wastes and terrestrial inputs, which cause these species to reach numerical abundance and form mucilage, to carry out fisheries in a controlled manner, and to prevent the discharge of ship ballast waters and bilge waters.

Impact of mixed surfactant composition on emulsion stability in saline environment: anionic and nonionic surfactants

The influence of anionic and nonionic surfactant ratios on emulsion stability in saline environments was investigated in the context of bilge water. Sodium laureth sulfate (SLES) and Triton X-100 were selected as surfactants likely present in bilge water emulsions. Interfacial tension results revealed that with 0.42 M NaCl, SLES is a more surface-active surfactant with a smaller head group area than Triton X-100. Increasing the proportion of SLES resulted in a higher surface charge, thus creating a greater repulsive interaction energy barrier between oil droplets, preventing flocculation. Size distribution results showed emulsions with 500 ppm surfactants at different surfactant ratios had long-term (more than 20 days) stability against coalescence. However, SLES-rich emulsions had smaller oil droplets (<8 μm) generated with the same energy input and were more stable against flocculation when compared to Triton X-100-rich emulsions. Visual observation showed more small oil droplets (<10 μm) with a slow creaming rate in SLES-rich emulsions than in Triton X-100-rich emulsions. Turbidity measurements showed that SLES-rich emulsions had higher remnant oil content in the subnatant than Triton X-100-rich emulsions, which is undesirable for phase separation and bilge water treatment. This work provides experimental results on how anionic and nonionic surfactant ratio influences emulsion properties in saltwater environments, which is valuable in developing strategies to minimize and remove remnant oil in bilge water.

Treatment of Bilge Water by Fenton Oxidation Followed by Granular Activated Carbon Adsorption

Due to its high oil content, the discharge of bilge water from ships is one of the most important pollutants in marine ecosystem. In this research, we investigated the treatment of bilge water for Haydarpasa Waste Collection Plant by Fenton oxidation followed by granular activated carbon (GAC) adsorption. We applied the following optimum operational conditions for Fenton oxidation: [Fe2+]: 6 mM; [H2O2]: 30 mM; and the ratio of [Fe2+]/[H2O2]: 1/5. Adsorption was performed in the effluent sample of Fenton oxidation. The effects of different adsorption periods, adsorbent concentrations, temperature, and pH were examined. Additionally, Freundlich and Langmuir isotherm models were applied. We obtained the following optimum operational conditions: 24 h, 2 g of GAC L−1, 20 °C, and pH = 6. We observed an 89.5 ± 1.9% of Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) removal efficiency under these conditions. Data generated from the experiments fit both isotherm models well, though we preferred the Langmuir isotherm model to the Freundlich isotherm model because the former’s regression coefficient (0.90) was larger than that reported for the Freundlich isotherm model (0.78). The potential to treat bilge water by Fenton oxidation followed by granular activated carbon is promising for the Haydarpasa Waste Collection Plant.

Application of high molecular weight flocculants for the purification of oily waters

In flotation separators, to intensify the purification process, the method of preliminary reagent treatment is used with a combination of solutions of mineral coagulants and organic flocculants. This method causes the corrosive activity of water, a significant amount of sediment, and secondary water pollution with products of hydrolysis of mineral salts. The above disadvantages are nnot typical of the method of preliminary treatment of oily waters with ionogenic high-molecular flocculants, which is used in the practice of coastal treatment of oily waters. The paper presents the results of the experimental studies on the use of high-molecular flocculants for the preliminary reagent treatment of bilge water sent to the flotation unit. The following high-molecular flocculants were investigated: Praestol 852, Praestol 853, Praestol 2540. It was found that Praestol 853 provides the highest degree of oil pollution recovery from the bilge water solution. The fractional composition of oil products in bilge water was analyzed before and after cleaning. It was determined that in the flotation cleaning, coarse and medium-dispersed particles of oil pollution are completely extracted.

Determining the Bilge Water Waste Risk and Management in the Gulf of Antalya by the Monte Carlo Method

ABSTRACT Bilge water waste poses an environmental risk for humans and marine creatures by causing cancer and developmental disorders due to the toxic substances. This study aims to create a calculation method to calculate the amount of bilge that a ship can produce. The number of ships and the amount of bilge water that they have given the port waste reception facilities in the past years were collected to prevent marine pollution caused by ships in the Gulf of Antalya. The amount of possible future bilge water discharge in the gulf was estimated by using the collected data by linear regression method. The risk distribution of the amount of bilge water that a ship can produce was determined with the data obtained by the Monte Carlo method for the first time in this study. As a result, although the number of ships in the gulf will decrease in number, it is predicted that the amount of bilge water discharge and the needs of a waste receptions facility will increase in the coming years. It is found that the amount of bilge water that a ship can generate will vary in 0.78-3.16 m3, and this data can apply to every ship type. Since the calculation method used in this study can be used for each region with all ship types in calculating the amount of bilge waste a ship can produce, it ensures that the inspections made are more effective. Thus, the management of wastes originating from ships can be effectively and adequately implemented by those who carry out wastes, and marine pollution from ships can be prevented.

Native bilge water bacteria as biosurfactant producers and implications in hydrocarbon-enriched wastewater treatment

Seawater and bilge water samples were used to isolate hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria to be screened for biosurfactant production in the presence of different carbon sources, namely tetradecane, d-glucose and sunflower oil. The panel of tested isolates, affiliated to Alcanivorax, Acinetobacter, Pseudomonas, Halomonas and Marinobacter genera, showed promising results both in terms of emulsifying activity and surface tension reduction. The selected strains Marinobacter sp. BIC3M3, Alcanivorax sp. BIC1A5 and Halomonas sp. BIC1H44 achieved total raw biosurfactant amount of 3.148, 2.922 and 2.596 g/L, respectively. The sunflower oil, here proposed as low-cost carbon source, was successfully used by all strains as substrate for biosurfactant production, with the only exception of Halomonas sp. BIC1H44, while different efficiency levels were detected during incubation in the presence of glucose and tetradecane. Among all strains, Marinobacter spp. strains from bilge waters were proven to be very competitive, although this genus has been poorly reported for biosurfactant production. The high efficiency exhibited by some strains (especially Alcanivorax sp. BIC1A5, Acinetobacter sp. BIC1AC, and Marinobacter sp. BIC3M3) during growth with tetradecane and sunflower oil suggested a promising potential for application in bioremediation purposes and hydrocarbon-enriched wastewater treatment.

Waste generation and management onboard a cruise ship: A case study

Modern cruise ships produce high amounts of various wastes. They operate in picturesque and valuable but often vulnerable marine ecosystems. The aim of this paper is to study the waste types and amounts as well as the management practices employed onboard an average-sized cruise ship operating in the Caribbean Sea. Daily data on waste production for the year 2018 were analysed using descriptive statistics. The results show that the mean weekly production of waste is around 2358 m3 of greywater and treated sewage, 84 m3 of oily waste, and 266 m3 of solid waste. The wastes are either incinerated (part of the domestic and operational waste), legally discharged at sea (grey water plus treated sewage, bilge water with ≤5 ppm of oil and pulped food) or disposed to port reception facilities. There is a lack of adequate land waste management infrastructure in the Caribbean area. Therefore, waste management and marine pollution prevention onboard will contribute to the reduction of the environmental footprint of the cruising industry and to the sustainable development of the coastal and island states.

Resistance of Polypropylene Membrane to Oil Fouling during Membrane Distillation.

The influence of oil emulsion presence in the water on the course of water desalination by membrane distillation was studied. The feed water was contaminated by oil collected from the bilge water. The impact of feed composition on the wetting resistance of hydrophobic polypropylene membranes was evaluated during long-term studies. Two types of the capillary membranes fabricated by thermally induced phase separation method were tested. It has been found that these membranes were non-wetted during the separation of NaCl solutions over a period of 500 h of modules exploitation. The addition of oil (5–100 mg/L) to the feed caused a progressive decline of the permeate flux up to 30%; however, the applied hydrophobic membranes retained their non-wettability for the consecutive 2400 h of the process operation. It was indicated that several compounds containing the carbonyl group were formed on the membranes surface during the process. These hydrophilic compounds facilitated the water adsorption on the surface of polypropylene which restricted the oil deposition on the membranes used.

Untapped Potential of Moving Bed Biofilm Reactors with Different Biocarrier Types for Bilge Water Treatment: A Laboratory-Scale Study

Two labscale aerobic moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR) systems, with a different type of biocarrier in each (K3 and Mutag BioChip), were operated in parallel for the treatment of real saline bilge water. During the operation, different stress conditions were applied in order to evaluate the performance of the systems: organic/hydraulic load shock (chemical oxygen demand (COD): 9 g L−1; hydraulic retention time (HRT): 48–72 h) and salinity shock (salinity: 40 ppt). At the same time, the microbiome in the biofilm and suspended biomass was monitored through 16S rRNA gene analysis in order to describe the changes in the microbial community. The dominant classes were Alphaproteobacteria (families Rhodospirillaceae and Rhodobacteraceae) and Bacteroidia (family Lentimicrobiaceae), being recorded at high relative abundance in all MBBRs. The structure of the biofilm was examined and visualized with scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis. Both systems exhibited competent performance, reaching up to 86% removal of COD under high organic loading conditions (COD: 9 g L−1). In the system in which K3 biocarriers were used, the attached and suspended biomass demonstrated a similar trend regarding the changes observed in the microbial communities. In the bioreactor filled with K3 biocarriers, higher concentration of biomass was observed. Biofilm developed on Mutag BioChip biocarriers presented lower biodiversity, while the few species identified in the raw wastewater were not dominant in the bioreactors. Through energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX) analysis of the biofilm, the presence of calcium carbonate was discovered, indicating that biomineralization occurred.

Saline oily wastewater treatment using Lallemantia mucilage as a natural coagulant: Kinetic study, process optimization, and modeling

Saline oily wastewater is among the greatest environmental issues that requires effective treatment methods. The new trend of using natural coagulants to treat saline oily wastewater can help overcome the drawbacks of inorganic coagulants such as high costs, health risk, and large amounts of sludge. In the present study, the Lallemantia mucilage was used for the first time as a novel natural coagulant, which offered a remarkable performance in bilge water treatment at the optimum condition of coagulants dose = 10 mg/L, pH = 7.00, and contact time = 23.8 min with the maximum chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal efficiency of 87.57 % and influent COD of 1202.5 ± 8.5 mg/L. Also, at the optimum condition, Lallemantia mucilage could remove surfactant up to 20.6 % with influent concentration of 55 ± 0.4 mg/L. A quadratic polynomial with R2 = 0.9943 for COD removal showed a satisfactory fit and consistency. The predictability of Multivariate Adaptive Regression Splines (MARS) method with R2 = 0.95235 was significant compared to the Response Surface Methodology (RSM) with R2 = 0.9599. The second-order kinetic equation performed better in terms of kinetic determination with k = 0.00009, E = 1.42776E+13, and R2 = 0.9642 than the first-order model with k = 0.0159, E = 2.52237E+15, and R2 = 0.9431.

Biosecurity risk associated with bilge water from small vessels: an evaluation of systems and operator behaviours

Vessel movements are considered the main anthropogenic pathway for secondary spread of marine non-indigenous species. Recent studies have highlighted the potential for viable organisms to be transported within bilge water of small vessels. In this study, a survey was conducted to (1) describe the bilge water operational profiles of a range of domestic vessels operating in New Zealand and (2) identify factors driving the level of biosecurity risk. The proportion of vessels with pre-discharge treatments was low (13.7%), confirming the potential for organisms to be viable at discharge. Significant differences in risk scores among vessel types were shown; risk scores were highest for yachts, followed by launches, trailer boats and commercial vessels. Yachts were characterised by a high frequency of use, visits to multiple regions and a high likelihood of bilge water on board when leaving port (i.e. high-risk source regions). Almost all yachts operated automatic bilge systems, suggesting that discharge occurs primarily when the volume is sufficient to trigger the pump mechanism and that associated bilge water could be carried significant distances. Validation of vessel risk profiles through targeted sampling is recommended, along with research to identify potential practical and cost-effective mitigation measures such as public awareness campaigns.