Phosphorus Removal Efficiency Research Articles

Removal of Nitrogen and Phosphorus from Municipal Wastewater Through Cultivation of Microalgae Chlorella sp. in Consortium

Demographic growth in developing countries has increased domestic wastewater generation, posing environmental and health risks due to nitrogen and phosphorus accumulation, the main contributors to eutrophication. This study explores microalgae–bacteria consortia for nutrient removal, using Chlorella sp. for its high pollutant assimilation efficiency and biomass production. A lab-scale experiment was designed using response surface methodology to optimize key variables, revealing that lighting and the culture medium significantly influenced biomass production and nutrient removal, with lighting having the strongest statistical impact (p = 0.0002). The optimal conditions (18 μmolm⁻2 s−1 light, municipal wastewater) achieved nitrogen and phosphorus removal efficiencies of 87.16% and 94.43%, respectively. A mathematical model was developed with two independent systems: (1) the first describes biomass generation via photosynthesis, considering CO2 as a limiting substrate, while (2) the second models nitrogen and phosphorus consumption, assuming nitrogen as limiting substrate and introducing an intermediate (I) that couples phosphorus and nitrogen removal. This coupling is regulated by factor k, which represents a percentage of the total consortium consumption rate. Model predictions showed high accuracy for biomass (SE = 0.07186) and phosphorus (SE = 0.63065), but nitrogen exhibited greater deviation (SE = 3.40285). These findings highlight the system’s potential as a sustainable and cost-effective wastewater treatment alternative.

Effects of norfloxacin on the interaction between duckweed and its growth-promoting bacterial assemblages.

Effects of norfloxacin on the interaction between duckweed and its growth-promoting bacterial assemblages.

Metagenomic insights into the response of microbial metabolic function and extracellular polymeric substances from microalgae-bacteria consortia to fluoroquinolone antibiotics.

Metagenomic insights into the response of microbial metabolic function and extracellular polymeric substances from microalgae-bacteria consortia to fluoroquinolone antibiotics.

Revealing real impact of microalgae on seasonal dynamics of bacterial community in a pilot-scale microalgal-bacterial consortium system.

Revealing real impact of microalgae on seasonal dynamics of bacterial community in a pilot-scale microalgal-bacterial consortium system.

Atypical removals of nitrogen and phosphorus with biochar-pyrite vertical flow constructed wetlands treating wastewater at low C/N ratio.

Atypical removals of nitrogen and phosphorus with biochar-pyrite vertical flow constructed wetlands treating wastewater at low C/N ratio.

Adsorption and immobilization of phosphorus in eutrophic lake water and sediments by a novel red soil based porous aerogel.

Adsorption and immobilization of phosphorus in eutrophic lake water and sediments by a novel red soil based porous aerogel.

Enhanced Tolerance and Growth of Chlorella vulgaris and Scenedesmus quadricauda in Anaerobic Digestate Food Waste Effluent.

Anaerobic digestate food waste effluent (ADFE) contains high nutrient loads and causes water pollution and waste of resources if discharged without treatment. Microalgae provides a promising strategy for nutrients recovery, biomass production, and CO2 capture. However, due to the characteristics of high ammonia nitrogen and low C/N ratio, it is hard for the original algae to remove N and P in ADFE. Hence, this study investigated the gradient domestication of C. vulgaris and S. quadricauda to enhance their tolerance to high concentrations of ADFE and evaluated their growth and metabolic responses under ADFE concentrations ranging from 20 to 60%. The results revealed that S. quadricauda exhibited better tolerance and growth performance compared to C. vulgaris, with a 42.31% biomass increase in the 40% BG11-diluted ADFE group after domestication. Additionally, extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) secretion increased by 27.66% to help shield algal cells from pollutants. The final removal efficiencies of total nitrogen, total phosphorus, and soluble chemical oxygen demand by S. quadricauda in BG11 dilution group were 37.13%, 40.64%, and 75.45%, respectively, which indicated that domestication alleviated oxidative stress to algal cells. This work demonstrates the simultaneous ADFE treatment and cost-effective microalgal biomass production, providing new insights into microalgal cultivation for the efficient treatment and valorization of nutrient-rich ADFE for sustainability.

Simultaneous nitrogen removal and phosphorus recovery in granular sludge-based partial denitrification/anammox-hydroxyapatite precipitation (PD/A-HAP) process under low C/N ratio and dissolved oxygen limitation.

Simultaneous nitrogen removal and phosphorus recovery in granular sludge-based partial denitrification/anammox-hydroxyapatite precipitation (PD/A-HAP) process under low C/N ratio and dissolved oxygen limitation.

Iron-carbon micro-electrolysis coupled to heterotrophic nitrification aerobic denitrification treating low carbon/nitrogen mariculture wastewater.

Iron-carbon micro-electrolysis coupled to heterotrophic nitrification aerobic denitrification treating low carbon/nitrogen mariculture wastewater.

Optimizing Wastewater Treatment Using Endophytic Fungi Isolated from Acacia saligna L. Bark

Endophytic fungi’s application in biological wastewater treatment is a cost, clean, and eco-friendly. This study aimed to assess the efficiency of three Aspergillus species in the mycoremediation of industrial (I) and agricultural (A) wastewater. These species were Aspergillus flavipes, Aspergillus niger, and Aspergillus flavus isolated from the bark of a medicinal plant (A0cacia saligna). Aspergillus species were subculture on potato dextrose broth at 28 °C for 7 days on a rotatory shaker at 180 rpm until fungal pellets were formed. Before and after treatment with fungi, all wastewater samples were examined for pH, TDS, salinity, EC, COD, BOD, TP, TN, and turbidity. According to the results, Aspergillus flavipes has a good removal efficiency of total phosphorus, removing 78% of it from sample (I) after 25 days, and turbidity removing 91% after 20 days in (A) sample. Aspergillus niger has a high chemical oxygen demand removal efficiency of 99% and 99.8% in (I and A) samples after the 15th and 10th day, respectively, in addition to total nitrogen removal efficiency of 99% in (A) sample after the 25th day; and turbidity removal efficiency of 99.7% in the same sample. Also, Aspergillus flavus recorded high removal of biological oxygen demand by 76% and 66% in (I and A) samples after the 10th day of each, respectively; total nitrogen by 69% after the 10th day in (I) sample; total phosphorus by 23% after 10th day in (A) sample; electrical conductivity by 10.7% after 10th day in (I) sample; and total dissolved salts by 1.3% after 5th day in (I) sample. The results explained that Aspergillus niger and Aspergillus flavus were the most efficient in the removal of chemical oxygen demand and biological oxygen demand which represented indicators of pollution in wastewater. The obtained results will be useful for optimal management of agricultural and industrial wastewater.

Removal of Nitrogen and Phosphorus by a Novel Salt-Tolerant Strain Pseudomonas sediminis D4

Managing nitrogen and phosphorus pollution in high-salinity wastewater is a critical challenge for sustainable aquaculture and environmental protection. In this study, a novel salt-tolerant strain, Pseudomonas sediminis D4, was isolated from a brackish water environment. This strain exhibited simultaneous heterotrophic nitrification–aerobic denitrification and phosphorus removal capabilities. Biosafety assays demonstrated that the strain was antibiotic-sensitive and safe for aquatic environments. The optimal conditions for nitrogen and phosphate removal of strain D4 were carbon/nitrogen (C/N) ratio 10, phosphorus/nitrogen (P/N) ratio 0.2, pH 7, and temperature 30 °C while using sodium succinate as the carbon source. Under these conditions, strain D4 achieved removal efficiencies of 97.36% for ammonia (NH4+-N), 100.00% for nitrate (NO3−-N), and 98.02% for nitrite (NO2−-N), along with 94.69%, 89.56%, and 97.40% removal of PO43−P, respectively. The strain exhibited strong salinity tolerance, functioning effectively within a range of 0% to 5% (w/v), and maintaining high nitrogen and phosphorus removal efficiency at a salinity of 3%. Enzyme activity assays verified the existence of key enzymes, such as ammonia nitrogen oxidase, nitrate oxidoreductase, nitrate reductase, nitrite reductase, polyphosphate kinase, and exopolyphosphatase, which are essential for the heterotrophic nitrification-aerobic denitrification and phosphorus removal capabilities of D4. These findings highlight the potential of Pseudomonas sediminis D4 for the biological treatment of high-salinity wastewater.

Phosphorus Removal from Constructed Wetlands： Efficiency, Limitations, and Intensification Measures

Excessive phosphorus can easily lead to the eutrophication of water bodies and affect the growth of aquatic plants and animals； therefore, it is particularly important to pay attention to and control phosphorus in sewage. Constructed wetlands have become a green and economical way to remove phosphorus from sewage. The research status of phosphorus removal in constructed wetland systems in recent years was summarized here, including the removal mechanism, influencing factors, and strengthening measures. The results showed that constructed wetlands could effectively remove most of the phosphorus in the water, and the removal mechanism involved physical, chemical, and biological processes, such as adsorption, absorption, and precipitation of fillers and plants. The efficiency of phosphorus removal in constructed wetland depends on the adsorption capacity of fillers, the oxygen environment in the wetland, plant growth, temperature, and other conditions. In recent years, the combination of biological, electrochemical, advanced oxidation, and other technologies has been the popular direction of enhanced phosphorus removal in constructed wetlands. However, how to optimize the performance parameters of phosphorus removal in constructed wetlands under complex conditions is still a difficult problem to overcome. Further research is needed to optimize the performance of the combined systems to ensure their effectiveness and long-term sustainability.

Microbial Community Structure Analysis of Activated Sludge in Chinese Biological Sewage Wastewater Treatment Processes

As a widely investigated issue in sewage treatment, the efficient and stable removal of carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, and other pollutants is the ultimate goal of biological wastewater treatment process control and optimization. A microbial community with reasonable composition and distribution and a dynamic response to changes in important control parameters is the key to achieving this goal. After sampling 19 typical sewage treatment processes in six large cities in China during summer and winter, the results of MiSeq high-throughput sequencing and the Microbial Database for Activated Sludge（MiDAS）comparison and classification showed that the core communities in Chinese sewage treatment processes were significantly similar： 29 genera could be observed in all 38 samples, while 1 901 genera were found in 1 or a few （n<10） processes； the abundance of high-frequency genera was high, whereas the abundance of low-frequency genera was relatively low, with 286 genera, numbering only 10% of all species, accounting for up to 80% of the total cumulative abundance. Among the dominant genera in the core community, the carbon removal populations were mainly dominated by anaerobic fermentation and aerobic/anaerobic heterotrophic bacteria, such as Bacillus and Lysinbacillus, which have strong survivability in various environments； the anaerobic fermenters Intestinibacter and Thermomonas, which are characterized by the function of substrate fermentation and parthenogenetic anaerobic fermenters Entercoccus； aerobic/anaerobic heterotrophic Ferruginibacter, IMCC26207, and Hyphomicrobium； Rhodoplanes, Ottowia, and Iamia with a denitrification function； Paracoccus with suspected denitrification function； and other functional genera. The abundance of these most dominant genera could be altered to a certain extent by process form, changes in influent quality, and seasonal temperature variations. The nitrifying genera were mainly composed of Nitrosomonas and Nitrospira； Rhodobacter and Paracoccus were the main dominant denitrifying functional genera in the processes； Tetrasphaera was widely distributed in the processes as a dominant polyphosphate-accumulating genus； the polyglucogenic-accumulating genera were dominated by Candidatus_Competibacter and Defluviicoccus； and the dominant genera of filamentous bacteria were Candidatus_Microthrix, Candidatus_Promineofilum, and Trichococcus. Although the geographic distance between the sampled processes in China was more than 1 000 km and the operational parameters were not the same, especially with Denmark being located on a different continent, it was again verified that the core community was widely present in the activated sludge of the sewage treatment process and had similar composition and ecological functions.

Simultaneous and efficient removal of nitrogen, phosphorus, COD and Vibrios from aquaculture tailwater based on synthetic microbial communities

Simultaneous and efficient removal of nitrogen, phosphorus, COD and Vibrios from aquaculture tailwater based on synthetic microbial communities

Eco-nano solutions for rapid phosphorus recovery: Closing the loop for sustainable agriculture.

Eco-nano solutions for rapid phosphorus recovery: Closing the loop for sustainable agriculture.

Removal of Phosphorus from Water onto Marsh Clam Shell to Predict Contour for Removal Efficiency and Mass of Adsorbent

Anthropogenic activities have resulted in considerable water quality degradation in water sources due to a common problem of the excessive nutrient content (phosphorus) in receiving water, resulting in eutrophication. Even though various wastewater treatment methods have been applied, focusing on phosphorus removal through biological, physical, and chemical treatment, there is still a need to identify the eco-friendly method using the adsorption process and verify the theoretical and experimental data via kinetic and isotherm models. Hence, this study investigates phosphorus removal efficiency from water onto raw marsh clam shells and verifies the experimental and theoretical data with kinetic and isotherm studies. The variable of this study used different masses (2, 4, 6, 8, 10 g) of adsorbents with particle sizes from 1.18 mm to 2.36 mm to remove phosphorus from an aqueous solution (5 mg/L). The physicalchemical properties of adsorbents were examined using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Energy Dispersive X-ray Fluorescence (EDXRF), and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) to support the experimental data and identify the possibility of phosphorus adsorption. The batch experiment data obtained were verified using the kinetic (pseudo-first-order and pseudo-second-order) and isotherm (Langmuir and Freundlich) models. The experiments showed that the best contact time for all masses was 1440 min and the best adsorbent dose was 10 g with 78.0%removal. By comparing the two adsorption isotherm models, the study finds that the adsorption isotherm fits the Langmuir isotherm model with a correlation coefficient, R<sup>2</sup> of 0.9006. The novel use of adsorbent marsh clam shell as a potential adsorbent in the application of future water treatment technologies.

Purification Effect and Microbial Community Analysis of Aquaculture Wastewater Using High-Efficiency and Stable Biochemical System

An adaptable, low-cost, and easy-to-operate biological treatment system for pollutant abatement in aquaculture water at the field pond scale needs to be developed. In this study, the pollutant removal capacity of a stable bioreactor for aquaculture wastewater was assessed, and the related mechanism was elucidated via an analysis of the microbial community’s characteristics and functions. The average removal efficiencies of chemical oxygen demand, suspended solids, total nitrogen, and total phosphorus were 40%, 86.22%, 38.62%, and 53.74%, respectively. The effluent quality meets the Requirement for Water Discharge from Freshwater Aquaculture Pond, SC/T9101-2007. The results indicate that the fillers under anaerobic conditions could attract Denitratisoma and unclassified_Rhodocyclaceae, promoting the denitrification reaction. This aligns with the characteristic that total nitrogen in aquaculture sewage mainly exists in the form of nitrate nitrogen. An anaerobic atmosphere helps degrade organic contaminants at liquid interfaces and remove nitrogen in the solid phase. The fillers under anaerobic conditions could attract Bacteroidota and promote the production of polysaccharides to form biofilms, which may be associated with phosphorus removal. The results indicate that the anaerobic stage can promote the formation of biofilm on the fillers to remove pollutants, thus achieving higher aquaculture sewage treatment efficiency.

Effect of microbial growth types (suspended and attached) in anoxic zone of innovative one-stage anaerobic/anoxic/oxic bioreactor with airlift regime on nitrogen removal through combined mechanisms and phosphorous removal: A comparative study

Effect of microbial growth types (suspended and attached) in anoxic zone of innovative one-stage anaerobic/anoxic/oxic bioreactor with airlift regime on nitrogen removal through combined mechanisms and phosphorous removal: A comparative study

The symbiotic system between Tribonema sp. and aerobic denitrifying phosphorus accumulating bacteria: A promising method for wastewater treatment

The symbiotic system between Tribonema sp. and aerobic denitrifying phosphorus accumulating bacteria: A promising method for wastewater treatment

EFFECT OF LOCALLY ISOLATED <i>SCENEDESMUS</i> SP. TN1 ON BIOMASS PRODUCTION AND NUTRIENT REMOVAL FROM COOKING COCOON WASTEWATER: EFFECTS OF INITIAL ALGAL CELL DENSITY AND TEMPERATURE

Scenedesmus sp. TN1, a local freshwater microalga, was cultivated in cooking cocoon wastewater. The effects of initial algal cell density and temperature on microalgae growth and the removal of total nitrogen (T-N), total phosphorus (T-P), and chemical oxygen demand (COD) were studied. The initial algal cell densities were 5, 10, 15, and 20 mg/l. The experimental temperatures varied from 20 °C to 30 °C. The growth rate increased with the increase in initial algal cell density up to 15 mg/l and was statistically stable thereafter. A similar trend of total nitrogen, total phosphorus, and COD removal efficiency was observed. The optimum temperature for microalgae growth and nutrient removal was 30 °C. After 9 days of cultivation, Scenedesmus sp. TN1 exhibited nutrient removal efficiencies of 88.28%, 82.91%, 92.01%, and 89.16% for T-N, T-P, biological oxygen demand (BOD5), and COD, respectively. The maximum biomass production and nutrient removal efficiencies of Scenedesmus sp. TN1 were observed at cultivation conditions of 15 mg/l initial algal cell density at 30 °C. This study compiled information on the cultivation conditions for cooking cocoon wastewater treatment practices.