Biological Aerated Filter System Research Articles

The Treatment of Aquaculture Wastewater with Biological Aerated Filters: From the Treatment Process to the Microbial Mechanism

Algal cell proliferation has posed significant problems for traditional water treatment facilities; these problems are attributed to surface hydrophilicity and electrostatic repulsion. Biological aerated filters (BAFs) have been extensively used in wastewater treatment to remove pollutants such as algal cells by utilizing the adsorption and separation capabilities of the filter media. In this study, a BAF was supplemented with biological filter medium (Marchantia polymorpha) to assess its effectiveness of pretreating aquaculture wastewater. In terms of process performance, steady and consistent treatment was achieved by the BAF with M. polymorpha (BAF2) under an algal cell density as high as 1.65 × 108 cell/L, with average removal rates for NH4+-N and algae cells of 74.4% and 81.9%, respectively. The photosynthetic activity parameters (rETRmax, α, Fv/Fm, and Ik) of the influent and effluent were quantitatively assessed, and M. polymorpha was found to remove algae by disrupting the photosynthetic system of the algal cells. Furthermore, the addition of the M. polymorpha filter medium enhanced the community structure of the functional microbes in the BAF system. The highest microbial community richness and diversity were observed in the BAF2. Meanwhile, M. polymorpha promoted an increase in the abundance of denitrifying bacteria, including Bdellovibrio and Pseudomonas. Overall, this work offers a unique perspective on the aquaculture wastewater pretreatment process and BAF design.

Use of dewatered sludge and fly ash to prepare new fillers: Application and evaluation in wastewater treatment

Fillers are core components of biofilm wastewater treatment systems and directly affect the pollutant removal efficiency. New fillers were prepared using a non-sintered process with dewatered sludge as the raw material. The structure of the new filler and the microbial community were investigated and the results showed that the new filler had a complex composition and nature, a large specific surface area and many attached microorganisms; the new filler was applied to the biological aerated filter (BAF) system and the amount of biofilm on the surface of the new filler was 102 mg/g during start-up. At an hydraulic retention time (HRT) of 6 h and a gas to water ratio of 7:1, the removal rates of COD, NH3-N and TN of the new BAF (biological aerated filter) system reached 74%, 73% and 32%, respectively. At different filler heights, the biofilm amount, biological activity, and pollutant removal effectiveness of the new filler were higher than those of the conventional filler. The microbial diversity and microorganism selectivity of the new filler BAF system were better and more abundant than those of the conventional filler. The study results could provide some scientific basis and technical support for applying the new filler in biofilm wastewater treatment systems.

Developing the mathematical model to predict the nitrogen removal and N2O emission by the biological aerated filter

Despite the established evidence that the influent Carbon/nitrogen (C/N) ratio affects nitrogen removal properties and nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions in the biological aerated filter (BAF), N2O production is difficult to predict when influent C/N ratios fluctuate widely for actual wastewater treatment systems. In this study, a simplified mathematical model was developed and applied to the BAF system. The operational parameters that influenced the effluent quality and N2O emissions were optimized by sensitivity analysis. Using an experimental dataset with C/N ratio of 5, model parameters were developed for predicting N2O emissions. Subsequently, the model was extended to predict N2O concentrations over a larger range (i.e., C/N 2 and 8), and comparisons were performed to verify its applicability. Results from this study indicated that YNO2,HB was the most sensitive stoichiometric coefficient for predicting N2O emissions (sensitivity = 15.5 %), and that the developed model could accurately predict nitrogen removal and N2O emissions over a C/N ratio range of 2 to 8 in BAF. The proposed mathematical model could benefit the estimation of GHG emissions from full-scale wastewater treatment plants and thereby contribute to improving the friendly operation of BAF treatment facilities.

Advanced treatment of secondary effluent by the integration of heterogeneous catalytic ozonation and biological aerated filter.

The advanced treatment of secondary effluents was investigated by employing heterogeneous catalytic ozonation integrated with a biological aerated filter (BAF) process. The results indicated that catalytic ozonation with the prepared catalyst (MnxCuyOz/γ-Fe2O3) significantly enhanced the performance of pollutant removal and broke up macromolecules into molecular substances by the generated hydroxyl radicals. These molecular substances were easily absorbed by microorganisms in the microbial membrane reactor. In the BAF process, chemical oxygen demand (COD) (chemical oxygen demand) decreased from 54.26 to 32.56 mg/L, while in catalytic ozonation coupled with the BAF, COD could be reduced to 14.65 mg/L (removal ratio 73%). Under the same condition, NH4+-N decreased from 77.43 to 22.69 mg/L and 15.73 mg/L (removal ratio 70%) in the BAF and the catalytic ozonation coupled with BAF, respectively. In addition, the model that highly correlated influent COD to effluent COD and reactor height for filler could predict the removal ratio of COD of the BAF system. Based on the microbial community analysis, ozone in the solution had a certain screening effect on microorganisms, which helped to better adapt to the ozone-containing environment. Therefore, the integrated process with its efficient, economic, and sustainable advantages was suitable for the advanced treatment of secondary effluents.

Enhancing nitrogen removal from domestic sewage with low C/N ratio using a biological aerated filter system with internal reflux-coupled intermittent aeration

Biological aerated filter (BAF) systems with internal reflux-coupled intermittent aeration enhance the removal of nitrogen pollutants from low-C/N ratio domestic sewage. Two experimental systems with the same specifications, a BAF system with internal reflux-coupled intermittent aeration (system A) and a traditional BAF system (system B) was constructed to explore the efficiency of nitrogen removal. Overall, the nitrification in system B was higher than that in system A due to the influence of aeration model. Conversely, the system A can use the alternating anoxic (DO<0.5 mg·L−1) and aerobic (DO around 1 mg·L−1) environment to obtain better Total Nitrogen (TN) removal rate of 21.56 mg·(kg·h)−1 in the bottom of 30–70 cm zone of the reactor by combining reflux nitrate with influent COD. This section had a low specific oxygen uptake rate but high triphenyl tetrazolium chloride-dehydrogenase activity, indicating that the system enhanced nitrogen removal by denitrification in this section. The 16 S rDNA high-throughput sequencing analysis showed that the diversity index of system A was higher than that of system B. The abundance of microorganisms involved in denitrification was higher in the 30–50 cm zone of system A, mainly in the phylum (10.63%) and the phylum Bacillus (32.05%), indicating that system A was used for denitrification through nitrate reflux and intermittent aeration.

Changes in antibiotic resistance genotypes and phenotypes after two typical sewage disposal processes

Antibiotic resistome is a growing concern around the world. Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) have been identified as hotspots for antibiotic resistance gene (ARG) research. However, the distribution of antibiotic resistance genotypes and phenotypes in biofilm wastewater treatment system is poorly understood. In this study, the abundance and fate of antibiotic resistance genotypes and phenotypes in two typical wastewater treatment processes [biological aerated filter (BAF), anaerobic-oxic (A/O)] were quantitatively studied. The average removal rate of total ARGs was greater than 90%. In the biological treatment unit, the abundance of ARGs increased in the A/O unit and decreased in the biofilm unit. In addition, the resistance of tetracycline resistant bacteria changed after sewage disposal, which was closely related to the evolution of bacterial community. In total, the removal rate of resistance bacteria in A/O system was lower than that in BAF system. Genotypes were the basis of determining the phenotypes of microbial resistance. But it is necessary to pay close attention to antibiotic resistance phenotype due to its high variability. More specifically, antibiotic resistance mitigation in WWTPs should focus more on removing bacterial hosts to reduce the release of ARGs into the environment.

Regulatory strategies and microbial response characteristics of single-level biological aerated filter-enhanced nitrogen removal

A single-level biological aerated filter (BAF) was used to treat domestic wastewater. The response surface method (RSM) model was applied to optimize the operating parameters such as hydraulic retention time (HRT), reflux ratio (R), and aeration-stop ratio. The characteristics of the wastewater were analyzed. The results showed the average removal efficiencies for COD, TN, and NH4+-N were 87.77, 75.41, and 87.28%, for a COD/N ratio of 3.44 under the RSM optimized conditions of HRT = 7 h, R = 105%, and aeration-stop ratio of 1:1. The environment was favorable for enhanced denitrification in the 30–70 cm section. The proportion of Proteobacteria showed a valley pattern along the range direction, while Planctomycetes and Nitrospirae were gradually increasing. The microorganisms involved in denitrification were more abundant at the phylum level, notably Proteobacteria (22.87–47.56%), Planctomycetes (6.62–10.68%), Nitrospirae (0.79–3.02%), and denitrifying bacteria were also evident at the genus level, i.e., Flavobacterium (0.21–1.43%). The BAF system with internal reflux-coupled intermittent aeration enhances nitrification and denitrification, thereby facilitating nitrogen removal.

Technology review of the biological aerated filter systems BAFs for removal of the nitrogen in wastewater

The removal of nitrogen compounds in wastewater is receiving wide attention and the effluent standards will be tougher in the near future. The overall aim of this article is a review of biological aerated filter systems BAFs for removal of the nitrogen in wastewater. The BAFs technology is based on the principle of biofiltration where can be operated either in an upflow or downflow mode depending upon the position of the influent feed, where the media which attached growth zone can be either denser than water to give sunken media or less dense than water to produce floating media. The BAFs combines biological treatment and ammonia-nitrogen and solids removal in one reactor unit, where accumulated solids are removed from the BAFs through backwashing.

Effect of DO, Alkalinity and pH on Nitrification Using Three Different Sunken Materials Types in Biological Aerated Filter BAFs

The overall aim of this search investigated the effect of DO, alkalinity, and pH on nitrification in biological aerated filter system BAFs. The laboratory experiments by three identical pilot-scales downflow of BAFs using three different sunken materials types, 0.78±0.60 mm activated carbon-based material bed, 0.95±0.58 mm sand-based material bed, and 3.28±2.14 mm ceramic particle-based material bed, as attached growth zone in the treatment of municipal wastewater. As results of the experiments showed that activated carbon-based material bed when the mean concentration of dissolved oxygen was 6.76±2.25 mg/L and the mean alkalinity concentration was 77.25±2.60 mg CaCO3/L and the mean pH value was 7.21±0.20 the mean nitrification efficiency has reached of 90.11%. In the sand-based material bed when the mean concentration of dissolved oxygen was 7.33±1.82 mg/L and the mean alkalinity concentration was 77.56±2.77 mg CaCO3/L and the mean pH value was 7.22±0.20 the mean nitrification efficiency has reached of 87.74%. In the ceramic particle-based material bed when the mean concentration of dissolved oxygen was 6.37±1.84 mg/L and the mean alkalinity concentration was 77.31±2.71 mg CaCO3/L and the mean pH value was 7.22±0.20 the mean nitrification efficiency has reached of 85.17%.

Effect of calcinated pyrite on simultaneous ammonia, nitrate and phosphorus removal in the BAF system and the Fe2+ regulatory mechanisms: Electron transfer and biofilm properties

To efficiently remove nitrogen and phosphorus from secondary effluent with low values of COD/TN, a novel biological aerated filter (BAF) utilizing calcined pyrite with a large specific surface area (SSA) and pore diameter (PD) was designed to address this challenge. From the perspective of nutrients removal performance, and the corresponding effluent total nitrogen (TN) and PO43--P in the calcined pyrite autotrophic denitrification (CPAD) process decreased from 40.21 to 1.07 mg/L to 1.22 and 0.14 mg/L, respectively. Furthermore, the nutrients removal kinetics analysis showed that the CPAD and pyrite autotrophic denitrification (PAD) processes could be fitted with Half-order and Zero-order reactions via kinetics analysis, respectively, indicating that the TN removal performance of CPAD processes was better than that of the PAD process. Moreover, CPAD combined with sulfur autotrophic denitrification (SAD) processes was fitted by First-order reaction, and the TN removal performance was further enhanced over the CPAD process. From the perspective of microregulation, Fe2+ production in the PAD and CPAD processes could accelerate the electron transfer rate by increasing electron transport system activity (ETSA) and reducing electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). Moreover, Fe2+ stimulated microbes to produce more proteins (PN) and C10-HSL, which improved biofilm stability and interspecific communication processes. Notably, nitrifiers and autotrophic denitrifiers were simultaneously enriched via detection of high-throughput sequencing of 16 S rRNA genes, which verified the feasibility of simultaneous nitrification and autotrophic denitrification. Therefore, BAF with calcined pyrite and sulfur as composite fillers have a considerable advantage in nutrients removal.

Occurrence and removal of sulfonamides and their acetyl metabolites in a biological aerated filter (BAF) of wastewater treatment plant in Xiamen, South China.

Most sulfonamides, widely used around the world, are excreted via feces and urine along with their metabolites in humans and animals. Therefore, understanding the potential removal pathway of sulfonamides and their metabolites in wastewater treatment systems is of importance. The occurrence and fate of four sulfonamides and their acetyl metabolites in wastewater and sludge in a biological aerated filter in Xiamen city were evaluated. Six of the target compounds were detected in wastewater, but only parent compounds were detected in sludge. The highest concentration in wastewater was acetyl-sulfamethoxazole (Ac-SMZ) with a concentration of 75.2 ng/L. Removal efficiency and mass load in wastewater treatment systems were calculated. In terms of the overall removal efficiency, they ranged from 24.4 to 100%. The removal efficiencies of sulfamerazine (SM1), sulfamethazine (SM2), and sulfadiazine (SD) were up to 100% while N-acetyl sulfamerazine (Ac-SM1) showed the lowest removal efficiency. Biodegradation was the dominant remove pathway according to the mass balance analysis while SD and SM2 were sludge adsorption. The results can provide an insight into the fate of target sulfonamides in BAF systems and provide data to assess their potential ecological risks.

Treatment of chlorpyrifos manufacturing wastewater by peroxide promoted-catalytic wet air oxidation, struvite precipitation, and biological aerated biofilter.

Chlorpyrifos manufacturing wastewater (CMW) is characterized by complex composition, high chemical oxygen demand (COD) concentration, and toxicity. An integrated process comprising of peroxide (H2O2) promoted-catalytic wet air oxidation (PP-CWAO), struvite precipitation, and biological aerated filters (BAF) was constructed to treat CMW at a starting COD of 34000-35000 mg/L, total phosphorus (TP) of 5550-5620 mg/L, and total organophosphorus (TOP) of 4700-4840 mg/L. Firstly, PP-CWAO was used to decompose high concentrations of organic components and convert concentrated and recalcitrant TOP to inorganic phosphate. Copper citrate and ferrous citrate were used as the catalysts of PP-CWAO. Under the optimized conditions, 100% TOP was converted to inorganic phosphate with 95.6% COD removal. Then, the PP-CWAO effluent was subjected to struvite precipitation process for recovering phosphorus. At a molar ratio of Mg2+:NH4+:PO43- = 1.1:1.0:1.0, phosphate removal and recovery reached 97.2%. The effluent of struvite precipitation was further treated by the BAF system. Total removals of 99.0%, 95.2%, 97.3%, 100%, and 98.3% were obtained for COD, total suspended solids, TP, TOP, and chroma, respectively. This hybrid process has proved to be an efficient approach for organophosphate pesticide wastewater treatment and phosphorus reclamation.

Startup strategy for nitrogen removal via nitrite in a BAF system.

A biological aerated filter (BAF) pilot plant consisting of two reactors (aerobic and anoxic one) was used to determine a strategy to remove nitrogen via nitrite. RNA/DNA analysis was performed to assess microbial activity and support chemical results. In less than 13 days the pilot plant was able to remove COD and suspended solids. Nitrogen removal via nitrite pathway could not be observed until day 130 when the empty bed contact time (EBCT) was set at 0.71h. Nitrite was detected in the aerated BAF effluent but never nitrate. qPCR of amoA gene from RNA and DNA extracts of the aerobic biofilm confirmed that ammonia oxidizing bacteria (AOB) were present from the beginning of the operation but not active. AOB activity increased with time, reaching stability from operational day 124. The combination of both, low EBCT together with high OLR, has been demonstrated to be a feasible strategy to startup a BAF to achieve nitrogen removal via nitrite.

Co-metabolic degradation of iomeprol by a Pseudomonas sp. and its application in biological aerated filter systems

ABSTRACTThe non-ionic water-soluble X-ray contrast agent iomeprol (IOM) enters the water supply through sewage treatment plants, which can cause considerable environmental harm. In this study, Pseudomonas sp. I-24 (I-24) was tested for its ability to remove IOM from water via co-metabolic pathways. The optimum removal rate of IOM by I-24 was 38.43% ± 3.70% when starch served as the source of external carbon, and its co-metabolism of IOM conformed to the first-order kinetics. The highest activity of intracellular enzyme (degrading enzyme) extracted from I-24 was 0.143 ± 0.005 mU in starch condition. The Michaelis constant of the degrading enzyme was found to be 91.08 μmol L−1. However, glucose and maltose showed the best promotive effects on the growth and electron transport activity of I-24, indicating that overgrowth may result in competitive inhibition and a reduced degradation rate of IOM. Adding I-24 and degrading enzymes to biological aerated filters increased IOM removal rates without affecting CODMn removal.

Enhanced phosphorus and ciprofloxacin removal in a modified BAF system by configuring Fe-C micro electrolysis: Investigation on pollutants removal and degradation mechanisms

A modified biological aerated filter (BAF) system configured Fe-C micro electrolysis was applied to enhance phosphorus and ciprofloxacin (CIP) removal. A novel sludge ceramic and sintering ferric-carbon ceramic (SFC) were separately packed into a lab-scale BAF and Fe-C micro electrolysis reactor. The BAF and Fe-C micro electrolysis coupled system was operated about 230days. The enhancement of phosphorus and ciprofloxacin removals by Fe-C micro electrolysis, the degradation mechanisms of CIP and the variations of microbial population were investigated. The removal efficiencies of chemical oxygen demand (CODcr), ammonia (NH4-N), total phosphorus (TP) and CIP reached about 95%, 95%, 80% and 85% in the combined process, respectively. Configuring Fe-C micro electrolysis significantly enhanced phosphorus and CIP removal, whereas had no promotion on N removal. Four main degradation pathways were proposed according to the LC–MS analysis. More than 12 degradation products were detected through the treatment of Fe-C micro electrolysis and only 3 biodegraded products with low concentration were identified in BAF effluent. The high-throughput sequencing analysis showed that the microbial community changed a lot under CIP pressure. The relative abundance of Sphingomonadaceae, Xanthomonadaceae, Bradyrhizobium, Helicobacter and Pseudomonas increased with CIP influent. This study provides a promising process in CIP wastewater treatment.

Impact of dissolved oxygen on the production of nitrous oxide in biological aerated filters

Polymerase chain reaction-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE) and microelectrode technology were employed to evaluate the Nitrous oxide (N2O) production in biological aerated filters (BAFs) under varied dissolved oxygen (DO) concentrations during treating wastewater under laboratory scale. The average yield of gasous N2O showed more than 4-fold increase when the DO levels were reduced from 6.0 to 2.0 mg∙L–1, indicating that low DO may drive N2O generation. PCR-DGGE results revealed that Nitratifractor salsuginis were dominant and may be responsible for N2O emission from the BAFs system. While at a low DO concentration (2.0 mg∙L–1), Flavobacterium urocaniciphilum might play a role. When DO concentration was the limiting factor (reduced from 6.0 to 2.0 mg∙L–1) for nitrification, it reduced NO 2 - -N oxidation as well as the total nitrification. The data from this study contribute to explain how N2O production changes in response to DO concentration, and may be helpful for reduction of N2O through regulation of DO levels.

Removal of antibiotics from piggery wastewater by biological aerated filter system: Treatment efficiency and biodegradation kinetics

This study aimed to investigate the removal efficiency and mechanism for antibiotics in swine wastewater by a biological aerated filter system (BAF system) in combination with laboratory aerobic and anaerobic incubation experiments. Nine antibiotics including sulfamonomethoxine, sulfachloropyridazine, sulfamethazine, trimethoprim, norfloxacin, ofloxacin, lincomycin, leucomycin and oxytetracycline were detected in the wastewater with concentrations up to 192,000ng/L. The results from this pilot study showed efficient removals (>82%) of the conventional wastewater pollutants (BOD5, COD, TN and NH3-N) and the detected nine antibiotics by the BAF system. Laboratory simulation experiment showed first-order dissipation kinetics for the nine antibiotics in the wastewater under aerobic and anaerobic conditions. The biodegradation kinetic parameters successfully predicted the fate of the nine antibiotics in the BAF system. This suggests that biodegradation was the dominant process for antibiotic removal in the BAF system.

Key factors contributing to simultaneous nitrification-denitrification in a biological aerated filter system using oyster shell medium

Key factors contributing to simultaneous nitrification-denitrification in a biological aerated filter system using oyster shell medium

A novel process of dye wastewater treatment by linking advanced chemical oxidation with biological oxidation

Abstract Dye wastewater is one of typically non-biodegradable industrial effluents. A new process linking Fenton’s oxidation with biological oxidation proposed in this study was investigated to degrade the organic substances from real dye wastewater. During the combination process, the Fenton’s oxidation process can reduce the organic load and enhance biodegradability of dye wastewater, which is followed by biological aerated filter (BAF) system to further remove organic substances in terms of discharge requirement. The results showed that 97.6% of chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal by the combination process was achieved at the optimum process parameters: pH of 3.5, H2O2 of 2.0 mL/L, Fe(II) of 500 mg/L, 2.0 h treatment time in the Fenton’s oxidation process and hydraulic retention time (HRT) of 5 h in the BAF system. Under these conditions, COD concentration of effluent was 72.6 mg/L whereas 3020 mg/L in the influent, thus meeting the requirement of treated dye wastewater discharge performed by Chinese government (less than 100 mg/L). These results obtained here suggest that the new process combining Fenton’s oxidation with biological oxidation may provide an economical and effective alternative for treatment of non-biodegradable industrial wastewater.

Preparation and application of novel catalytic-ceramic-filler in a coupled system for TNT manufacturing wastewater treatment

2,4,6-Trinitrotoluene (TNT) has been widely used in military and civilian blasting all over the world, causing great concern with regard to its toxicity to environment and human health. Our research investigated preparation and application of the catalytic-ceramic-filler in the catalytic micro-electrolysis coupled with a biological aerated filter for TNT manufacturing wastewater treatment. As a possible pretreatment process of TNT manufacturing wastewater, catalytic micro-electrolysis packed with the catalytic-ceramic-filler had higher TNT and chemical oxygen demand removal (98.73% and 65.49%, respectively) than traditional micro-electrolysis at the optimum hydraulic retention time of 4.0h and slight aeration (dissolved oxygen of about 2.0mgL−1). Subsequently, biological aerated filter applied as the secondary biological treatment removed 81.68% of the influent chemical oxygen demand at the optimum hydraulic retention time of 16.0h. Moreover, the coupled catalytic micro-electrolysis and biological aerated filter system could remove chroma values by 95.21%. The residual TNT (1.5–1.6mgL−1), chemical oxygen demand (57.0–84.6mgL−1) and chroma (7.9–17.2) in the effluent met the national discharge standard (GB 14470.1-2002, TNT concentration ⩽5.0mgL−1, chemical oxygen demand ⩽100mgL−1, chroma ⩽50).