Suspended Sludge Research Articles

Enhanced carbon and nitrogen removal in an integrated anaerobic/anoxic/aerobic-membrane aerated biofilm reactor system.

A pilot-scale anaerobic/anoxic/aerobic-membrane aerated biofilm reactor (A2/O-MABR) system was constructed to enhance carbon and nitrogen removal. The effects of major operating parameters including the nitrate recycling ratio (R), sludge recycling ratio (r), and aerobic tank dissolved oxygen (DO) concentration on the system performance were investigated. The average removal efficiencies of the chemical oxygen demand (COD), ammonium nitrogen (NH4+-N), and total nitrogen (TN) were 89.0 ± 3.2%, 98.8 ± 1.3%, and 68.5 ± 4.2%, respectively, and their effluent concentrations were averagely 22.6 ± 7.3, 0.32 ± 0.2, and 13.3 ± 1.2 mg L−1. The suspended sludge and biofilm in aerobic tank facilitated the simultaneous nitrification and denitrification (SND) processes. Indeed, unique biofilm layered structure and abundant microbial community in the biofilm on MABR would enhance nitrogen removal. Compared with the A2/O system, the A2/O-MABR system exhibited higher nitrifying bacteria oxygen uptake rate (OUR) of 58.1 and 54.5 mgO2 per gMLSS per h in suspended sludge and biofilm, respectively, and the lower mixed liquor suspended solid (MLSS) concentration of 1800 mg L−1. Moreover, high-throughput sequencing indicated that putative nitrogen removal bacteria such as Thauera and Paracoccus could be effectively enriched in the biofilm. Since the volume proportions of the anaerobic, anoxic, aerobic and settling tank in the existing A2/O system of the WWTP was not changed, the A2/O-MABR system was simple and practical for the upgrading of A2/O system.

Systematic research on rheological behavior for flocculant-conditioned sludge suspension

Systematic research on rheological behavior for flocculant-conditioned sludge suspension

Effects of in-sewer dosing of iron-rich drinking water sludge on wastewater collection and treatment systems

The use of coagulants and flocculants in the water and wastewater industry is predicted to increase further in the coming years. Alum is the most widely used coagulant, however, the use of ferric chloride (FeCl3) is gaining popularity. Drinking water production that uses FeCl3 as coagulant produces waste sludge rich in iron. We hypothesised that the iron-rich drinking water sludge (DWS) can potentially be used in the urban wastewater system to reduce dissolved sulfide in sewer systems, aid phosphate removal in wastewater treatment and reduce hydrogen sulfide in the anaerobic digester biogas. This hypothesis was investigated using two laboratory-scale urban wastewater systems, one as an experimental system and the other as a control, each comprising sewer reactors, a sequencing batch reactor (SBR) for wastewater treatment, sludge thickeners and anaerobic digestion reactors. Both were fed with domestic wastewater. The experimental system received in-sewer DWS-dosing at 10 mgFe L−1 while the control had none. The sulfide concentration in the experimental sewer effluent decreased by 3.5 ± 0.2 mgS L−1 as compared with the control, while the phosphate concentration decreased by 3.6 ± 0.3 mgP L−1 after biological wastewater treatment in the experimental SBR. The dissolved sulfide concentration in the experimental anaerobic digester also decreased by 15.9 ± 0.9 mgS L−1 following the DWS-dosing to the sewer reactors. The DWS-doing also enhanced the settleability of the mixed liquor suspended sludge (MLSS) (SVI decreased from 193.2 ± 22.2 to 108.0 ± 7.7 ml g−1), and the dewaterability of the anaerobically digested sludge (the cake solids concentration increased from 15.7 ± 0.3% to 19.1 ± 1.8%). The introduction of DWS into the experimental system significantly increased the COD and TSS concentrations in the wastewater, and consequently the MLSS concentration in the SBR, however, this did not affect normal operation. The results demonstrated that iron-rich waste sludge from drinking water production can be used in the urban wastewater system achieving multiple benefits. Therefore, an integrated approach to urban water and wastewater management should be considered to maximise the benefits of iron use in the system.

Effect of Dissolved Oxygen on Partial Nitrification of Suspended and Attached Growth Systems

Dissolved oxygen (DO) is an important factor in controlling the partial nitrification process, and it has different effects on different biological treatment systems. The effect of different DO on performances of the partial nitrification process in suspended and attached growth systems, and the changes of microbial community structure by high-throughput sequencing technology were all investigated. The results showed that for a suspended sludge system, the ammonia oxidation rate (AOR) increased from 18.08 mg·(L·h)-1 to 30.27 mg·(L·h)-1 when the DO increased from 0.25 mg·L-1 to 0.50 mg·L-1. The ammonia nitrogen (NH4+-N) in influent was completely changed into nitrate-nitrogen (NO3--N) after a 14-day operation; when the DO was kept at 3.00 mg·L-1, it needed 77 days to restore the short-cut nitrification effect by reducing DO. In the attached growth system, the AOR was maintained within a narrow range of 11.50-13.50 mg·(L·h)-1 when DO increased from 2.50 mg·L-1 to 3.00 mg·L-1. When DO was at 3.00 mg·L-1, the ratio of NH4+-N to nitrite nitrogen (NO2--N) in the effluent was maintained within 1:1.2 to 1:1.7 through investigating the results from an 80 day operation, and the ratio could meet the influent requirement of the anaerobic ammonium oxidation (ANAMMOX) process. Microbial community structure analysis indicated that the abundance of the Nitrosomonas genus belonging to ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) increased from 10.07% to 18.64% when the DO increased from 0.25 mg·L-1 to 3.00 mg·L-1 in a suspended sludge system; the abundance of the Nitrosomonas genus in the biofilm system was 20.43% and that of the Candidatus_Kuenenia genus was 0.78% when DO was 3.00 mg·L-1. Conclusively, the biofilm system could be used as a pretreatment unit for the ANAMMOX process, because the partial nitrification process was less affected by DO and the partial nitrification rate was more stable.

RNA-based spatial community analysis revealed intra-reactor variation and expanded collection of direct interspecies electron transfer microorganisms in anaerobic digestion

Granular activated carbon (GAC) has been shown to mediate direct interspecies electron transfer (DIET) in anaerobic digestion. Adding GAC to up-flow anaerobic sludge bed reactor increased the total biomass slightly from 20.0 to 26.6 gVSS/reactor, and maximum organic removal capacity remarkably from 285 to 1660 mgCOD/L/d. Since GAC occupied 7% of reactor volume (denser than suspended sludge, settled to the reactor bottom), we used a spatial sampling strategy (sludge bed top/mid/bottom layers, and tightly attached GAC-biofilm) and DNA- and RNA-based community analyses. RNA-based analysis demonstrated significant community differences between the non-GAC and GAC-amended reactors (p < 0.05) based on ANOSIM statistical analysis. In comparison, DNA-based analysis showed little community difference between these reactors (p > 0.05). RNA-based analysis revealed active enrichments in GAC-biofilm, including bacteria Geobacter, Syntrophus, Desulfovibrio and Blvii28, and archaea Methanosaeta and Methanospirillum. These are potential electro-active syntrophic microorganisms related with DIET, which expand the previously defined list of DIET microorganisms.

Effects of biomass and environmental factors on nitrogen removal performance and community structure of an anammox immobilized filler

In order to reduce the loss of anaerobic ammonia oxidation (anammox) sludge and stabilize the reaction microenvironment, polyvinyl alcohol - polypropylene (PVA-PP) was used to encapsulate anammox bacteria on a filler. The influence of different inoculation amounts (2, 4, 6 and 8%) on the overall nitrogen removal process was first compared and then the anammox characteristics of the immobilized filler under the influence of different environmental factors were evaluated through batch experiments. The results show that the biomass only affected the growth rate of the activity during the logarithmic phase, while the total nitrogen removal rate (NRR) tended to be similar after 99 d of culture. The NRR reached 1.83 kg·(m3·d)-1 on day 140, which was 9.4 times that of suspended sludge before encapsulation, and the structure of embedding filler was complete without shedding. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) showed that the internal porous network structure formed channels and a large number of anammox bacteria were observed around. Microbial community analysis of the 16S rDNA gene showed that the diversity was maintained in the entrapped carrier. Furthermore, the effective enrichment of the anammox functional bacteria Candidatus Kuenenia (AF375995.1) increarsed from 11.06% to 32.55%. The PVA-PP immobilized filler fit well with the biological nitrogen removal kinetic model and could also achieve coupling of anammox and denitrification. The inhibition effect of the organic carbon source interference and starvation on anammox bacteria was significantly weakened.

A simple way to improve a conventional A/O-MBR for high simultaneous carbon and nutrient removal from synthetic municipal wastewater.

In this study, two anoxic-oxic membrane bioreactor (A/O-MBR) systems, i.e. conventional and biofilm anoxic-oxic-membrane bioreactors (C-A/O-MBR and BF-A/O-MBR, respectively), were operated in parallel under conditions of complete sludge retention for the purposes of comparing system performance and microbial community composition. Moreover, with the microbial communities, comparisons were made between the adhesive stage and the suspended stage. High average removal of COD, NH4+-N and TN was achieved in both systems. However, TP removal efficiency was remarkably higher in BF-A/O-MBR when compared with C-A/O-MBR. TP mass balance analysis suggested that under complete sludge retention, polyurethane sponges that were added into the anoxic tank played a key role in both phosphorus release and accumulation. The qPCR analysis showed that sponge biomass could maintain a higher level of abundance of total bacteria than the suspended sludge. Meanwhile, AOB and denitrifiers were enriched in the suspended sludge but not in the sponge biomass. Results of illumina sequencing reveal that the compacted sponge in BF-A/O-MBR could promote the growth of bacteria involved in nutrient removal and reduce the amount of filamentous and bacterial growth that is related to membrane fouling in the suspended sludge.

Four typical personal care products in a municipal wastewater treatment plant in China: Occurrence, removal efficiency, mass loading and emission

The occurrence, removal efficiency, mass loading and environmental emission of four categories (benzotriazoles; parabens; antimicrobials; benzophenones) of personal care products were simultaneously determined along the whole process line through an integrated approach (involving both dissolved and adsorbed phase) at a typical wastewater treatment plant in Hunan Province, Southern China. The results showed the prevalence of 13 and 11 target compounds in wastewater and suspended particulate matter, respectively. Twelve substances were detected in the sludge with the mean concentrations ranging from 0.12 to 591.23 ng/g dry weight. Benzotriazoles were the dominant compounds existing in water and antimicrobials were readily being absorbed onto suspended particulate matter and sludge. The overall removal efficiencies of compounds in the total treatment were −84.06%–98.53%. Mass balance results revealed that 85.17%–98.73% of the parabens and benzophenones were removed by degradation, while antimicrobials were removed by being adsorbed onto sludge. However, benzotriazoles could not be efficiently removed and the mass loss was lower than 61.03%. Although ultraviolet radiation played a limited role in removing most target compounds, it still had an impact on removing antimicrobials, 5,6-dimethyl-1H-benzotriazole and 2-hydroxy-4-methoxybenzophenone. The total mass loading and emission of personal care products were 506.35 mg/d/1000 people and 357.56 mg/d/1000 people, respectively. This work would help understand the removal approaches and real pollution of personal care products in the water environment.

The influence of wind in secondary settling tanks for wastewater treatment-A computational fluid dynamics study. Part I: Circular secondary settling tanks.

Computational fluid dynamics model is used to understand the impact of wind on the performance of a secondary settling tank (SST) in a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP). Unlike most of the previous modeling studies which evaluated the wind effect on the settling tank in a water treatment plant, this study evaluates a circular SST in a WWTP at different current velocities and flow conditions. Performance indicators, such as effluent suspended solids and sludge blanket height, and three-dimensional hydrodynamics profiles are compared among different windy conditions and the calm condition and under different wind directions and flow conditions. The simulation results show that the existence of wind has strong negative impacts on the overall performance of the circular SST. The prediction of ESS is doubled in the circular SST under the mild wind condition. Moreover, the circular SST is more sensitive to the wind along the inlet port direction. PRACTITIONER POINTS: This is the first comparison of wind effects on a circular secondary settling tank Detailed computational fluid dynamics solution procedures to simulate a secondary settling tank Wind effects are investigated under multiple flow conditions, current velocities, and wind directions The performance of a circular secondary settling tank is very sensitive to the wind Wind along the inlet port direction has stronger negative impacts than it along 45° to the inlet direction.

Comparative evaluation of methanogenesis suppression methods in microbial fuel cell during rice mill wastewater treatment

Abstract A major constraint to attaining higher power output from microbial fuel cell (MFC) is the loss of substrate due to methanogenesis. Controlling methanogenesis is imperative to enhance the coulombic efficiency (CE). This study compares the influence of three inoculum treatment methods i.e., heat-treatment (MFC1), ultrasonication (MFC2) and air exposure (MFC3), on suppressing methanogenesis while treating rice mill wastewater. MFC2 and MFC3 exhibited a maximum volumetric power density of 525.62 mW/m3 and 656.10 mW/m3, respectively, which were 1.7 and 2.1 times higher than that of MFC1. Similarly, CE of 9.27%, 14.14% and 17.21% was observed in MFC1, MFC2 and MFC3, respectively. MFC1 shown higher COD removal efficiency (85.22 ± 2.12%) than MFC2 (76.18 ± 1.36%), and MFC3 (71.88 ± 1.71%). Linear sweep voltammetry demonstrated enhanced electrochemical activity in MFC3 (peak current: 15.92 mA) compared to MFC2 (8.40 mA) and MFC1 (3.61 mA). An internal resistance of 294 Ω was observed in MFC3, which was lower than MFC2 (320 Ω ) and MFC1 (415 Ω ). Intermittent air exposure of the inoculum was found to be more effective for power generation in the MFC. The contribution of planktonic archaeal community towards power generation was studied by removing the suspended inoculum from the anode chamber of all the MFCs. The maximum power density obtained in sludge deprived condition in MFC1, MFC2 and MFC3 was 1.2, 1.4 and 1.2 times less than that obtained when MFCs were operated with suspended inoculum. The study concludes that suspended anaerobic sludge should be used after proper pre-treatment for improved electricity harvesting and efficient wastewater treatment.

Improvements on activated sludge settling and flocculation using biomass-based fly ash as activator

Biomass-based fly ash and wastewater are undesired products of the pulping industry. Recently, the use of biomass-based fly ash as an adsorbent (i.e., a valued material) for constituents of wastewater effluents was reported. In this work, the settling performance and properties of activated sludge were studied in the presence of fly ash. Upon mixing, fly ash increased the zeta potential of the sludge from −31 mV to −28 mV, which was due to the release of cationic ions from fly ash in the sludge suspension. The sludge settling and its flocculation affinity were improved through the complexation of flocs and released cation ions from fly ash. The relationships between the protein/polysaccharide (PN/PS) ratio and the content of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) as well as the ratio and the properties of the sludge flocs were determined. A correlation between the total loosely bound-EPS (LB-EPS) content and the effluent suspended solids (ESS) (Pearson’s coefficient, rp = 0.83) was observed. The performance of sludge flocculation and settling were much more closely correlated with LB-EPS than with tightly bound EPS (TB-EPS). Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis of sludge flocs before and after EPS extraction showed that the sludge flocs contained a large number of microorganisms, mainly Bacillus and Cocci. The amount of LB-EPS had an adverse influence on bioflocculation, effluent clarification and sludge settling affinity. The sludge properties had a moderate relationship with the PN/PS ratio of LB-EPS. Also, no correlation could be established between the ratio and the TB-EPS content.

Biological transformation of fexofenadine and sitagliptin by carrier-attached biomass and suspended sludge from a hybrid moving bed biofilm reactor

Laboratory-scale experiments were conducted to investigate the (bio)transformation of the antidiabetic sitagliptin (STG) and the antihistamine fexofenadine (FXF) during wastewater treatment. As inoculum either attached-growth on carriers or suspended sludge from a hybrid moving bed biofilm reactor (HMBBR) was used. Both target compounds were incubated in degradation experiments and quantified via LC-MS/MS for degradation kinetics. Furthermore transformation products (TPs) were analyzed via high resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS). Structural elucidation of the TPs was based on the high resolution molecular ion mass to propose a molecular formula and on MS2 fragmentation to elucidate the chemical structure of the TPs. In total, 22 TPs (9 TPs for STG and 13 TPs for FXF) were detected in the experiments with STG and FXF. For all TPs, chemical structures could be proposed. STG was mainly transformed via amide hydrolysis and conjugation of the primary amine moiety. In contrast, FXF was predominantly transformed by oxidative reactions such as oxidation (dehydrogenation) and hydroxylation. Furthermore, FXF was removed significantly faster in contact with carriers compared to suspended sludge, whereas STG was degraded slightly faster in contact with suspended sludge. Moreover, the primary TP of FXF was also degraded faster in contact with carriers leading to higher proportions of secondary TPs. Thus, the microbial community of both carriers and suspended sludge catalyzed the same primary transformation reactions but the transformation kinetics of FXF and the formation/degradation of FXF TPs were considerably higher in contact with carrier-attached biomass. The primary degradation of both target compounds in pilot- and full-scale conventional activated sludge (CAS) and MBBR reactors reached 42 and 61% for FXF and STG, respectively. Up to three of the identified TPs of FXF and 8 TPs of STG were detected in the effluents of pilot- and full-scale CAS and MBBR.

Cationic starch-grafted-cationic polyacrylamide based graphene oxide ternary composite flocculant for the enhanced flocculation of oil sludge suspension

In this study, a novel, highly efficient and environmentally friendly ternary composites flocculant, namely, cationic starch-grafted-cationic polyacrylamide/graphene oxide (CS-g-CPAM/GO), was synthesized by ammonium persulfate initiation polymerization and condensation reaction. First, CS-g-CPAM was polymerized with cationic starch (CS), acrylamide (AM) and diallyl dimethyl ammonium chloride (DMDAAC), and CS-g-CPAM/GO was then synthesized by condensation reaction. The influence factors of graft polymerization were investigated, including total monomer concentration, initiator dosage, monomer mass ratio of mAM: mCS: mDMDAAC, post-polymerization temperature and post-polymerization time. The chemical structures and morphologies of the samples were characterized by Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermo-gravimetric and differential scanning calorimetry (TG-DSC), and scanning electron microscope (SEM). The CS-g-CPAM/GO was used to flocculate the oil sludge suspension, the effects of CS-g-CPAM/GO dosage, temperature and pH value on the flocculation performance were investigated, and the flocculation mechanism of CS-g-CPAM/GO was also analyzed. The results show that CS-g-CPAM/GO has outstanding flocculation effect, and CS-g-CPAM/GO flocculates oil sludge particles by adsorption bridging and charge neutralization in acidic and alkaline conditions.

Simultaneous removal of sulfur and nitrogen compounds with methane production from concentrated latex wastewater in two bioreactor zones of micro‐oxygen hybrid reactor

AbstractBACKGROUNDA micro‐oxygen hybrid reactor (MOHR), a two‐zone reactor with suspended sludge zone (SZ) and attached biofilm zone (AZ) at its lower and upper parts respectively, was applied to simultaneously remove sulfur and nitrogen compounds with methane production from concentrated latex wastewater with high concentrations of sulfate (1200 mg L−1) and ammonium (235 mg L−1). Microbial community structures coupled with microbial activities were analyzed and discussed for clarifying relationships of microorganisms in both zones of the MOHR.RESULTSThe operating dissolved oxygen in the MOHR was controlled at 0.10–0.15 and 0.05 mg L−1 in the SZ and AZ respectively at various loading rates (LRs) and hydraulic retention times (HRTs). The average optimal overall performances of the MOHR for sulfate (SO42−), total Kjeldahl nitrogen (TKN) and chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal efficiencies were 90.3, 67.8 and 93.0% respectively at HRT 10 days. Elemental sulfur and nitrogen gas were evaluated as major end‐products at 90.2 and 67.9% respectively, with 0.27 L CH4 g−1 CODremoved of methane selectivity. The genera Desulfobulbus and Dongia as well as Thiobacillus denitrificans served as dominant microorganisms in biological sulfate removal. The largest abundance belonged to denitrifying microorganisms with nitrous oxide reductase (nosZ) as target gene.CONCLUSIONThe MOHR achieved high performance in simultaneous removal of sulfur and nitrogen compounds along with methane production at HRT 10 days. Microorganisms involved in sulfur and nitrogen compound removal processes were more prevalent in the SZ than in the AZ, whereas methanogenic activity was higher in the AZ than in the SZ. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry

Direct current triggering enhanced anaerobic treatment of acetyl pyrimidine-containing wastewater in up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket coupled with bioelectrocatalytic system

In this study, the novel up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket coupled with bioelectrocatalytic system (UASB-BEC) was developed with the attempt to enhance treatment of acetyl pyrimidine-containing wastewater. The results revealed that higher current applied had a positive effect on acetyl pyrimidine (AP) degradation but a negative impact could be followed by the overhigh current (>1.26 A m−3). Removal efficiencies of AP and total organic carbon (TOC) were as high as 96.3 ± 2.6% and 92.9 ± 3.2% while methane production reached up to 0.70 ± 0.03 NL-CH4 L−1-reactor d−1 at applied current of 1.26 A m−3, which were significantly higher those in control system. Moreover, high-throughput 16S rRNA gene pyrosequencing further indicated that Desulfovibrio and Methanimicrococcus species were specially enriched in suspended sludge and cathodic biofilm with current involvement. It could be reasonably speculated that enrichment of Desulfovibrio and Methanimicrococcus species could promote biotransformation of AP and final H2-depended methylotrophic methanogenesis. This study could shed light on better understanding of AP transformation in bioelectrocatalytic system and provide a valuable reference to practical application of anaerobic AP-containing wastewater treatment.

Performance of microbial fuel cells based on the operational parameters of biocathode during simultaneous Congo red decolorization and electricity generation

A biocathode microbial fuel cell was constructed to investigate Congo red decolorization and power generation under different cathode operational parameters. The results showed that the suspended sludge in the cathode could improve the performance of the microbial fuel cell for electricity generation but had a negligible effect on the Congo red decolorization. The maximum voltage increased as the aeration rate was increased up to 100 mL/min. At aeration rates of 150 and 200 mL/min, the maximum voltage was lower than that at 100 mL/min. In the meantime, the Congo red decolorization efficiency decreased with increasing cathode aeration rate. These results showed that excessive aeration is not favorable in a bio-cathode microbial fuel cell used for simultaneous Congo red decolorization and electricity generation. The addition of Mn2+ to the biocathode resulted in a 74.5% increase in maximum power density but had no effect on Congo red decolorization. SEM and 16S rRNA sequencing analysis confirmed that Mn2+ was involved in the electrochemical reaction of the biocathode as an electron mediator, and it could induce a difference in the biocathode-attached populations.

Simultaneous removal of COD, nitrogen and phosphorus and the tridimensional microbial response in a sequencing batch biofilm reactor: with varying C/N/P ratios

Two lab-scale sequencing batch biofilm reactors with no salt (N-SBBR) and 10.0 g/L salt (S-SBBR) were operated to explore the simultaneous COD, nitrogen, phosphorus removal behavior and the microbial diversity as well as tridimensional (suspended sludge, exterior biofilm and interior biofilm) key functional microbial groups responses to varying C/N/P ratios from 125:8.3:1 to 33.3:8.3:1. The simultaneous nitrification and denitrification process and denitrifying phosphorus removal process were observed in this SBBR system. The N-SBBR showed better adaptation to low C/N/P (33.3:8.3:1), compared with the performance in S-SBBR, removal efficiency of ammonia nitrogen and phosphorus in N-SBBR showed 15% and 30% enhancement. The sludge samples from N-SBBR collected at the C/N/P ratio of 70.0:7.0:1 had the highest bacterial richness and diversity. The abundance of bacterial in suspended sludge, exterior biofilm and interior biofilm were different, the interior biofilm tends to favour the growth of denitrifying phosphorus bacteria (Pseudorhodobacter) indicating the complicated nitrogen and phosphorus removal processes.

Long-Term Storage and Use of Artificially Immobilized Anaerobic Sludge as a Powerful Biocatalyst for Conversion of Various Wastes Including Those Containing Xenobiotics to Biogas

The aim of this paper is to demonstrate the possibilities of anaerobic sludge cells immobilized into poly(vinyl alcohol) cryogel for the methanogenic conversion of various lignocellulosic waste and other media containing antibiotics (ampicillin, kanamycin, benzylpenicillin) or pesticides (chlorpyrifos or methiocarb and its derivatives). It was established that the immobilized cells of the anaerobic consortium can be stored frozen for at least three years while preserving a high level of metabolic activity. The cells after the long-term storage in an immobilized and frozen state were applied for the methanogenesis of a wide number of wastes, and an increase in both methane yield and methane portion in the produced biogas as compared to the conventionally used suspended anaerobic sludge cells, was ensured. It was shown that the “additional” introduction of bacterial Clostridium acetobutylicum, Pseudomonas sp., Enterococcus faecalis cells (also immobilized using same support) improves characteristics of methanogenesis catalyzed by immobilized anaerobic sludge.

Electro-fermentation of iron-enhanced primary sedimentation sludge in a two-chamber bioreactor for product separation and resource recovery

Iron (Fe)-based chemically enhanced primary sedimentation (CEPS) is an effective process used to remove organic and phosphorus (P) pollutants from wastewater into sludge. In this study, electro-fermentation (EF) technology was developed to treat the organic- and P-rich Fe-sludge for the purposes of sludge reduction and resource recovery. Using a two-chamber bioreactor with a cation exchange membrane and an exterior voltage (0.5–1.0 V) for sludge treatment, the EF system enabled product accumulation and separation during the fermentation process. Compared with the conventional fermentation in a single-chamber reactor, the EF treatment of Fe-sludge significantly improved the efficiency of P dissolution from the sludge from 8% to 56% after 4 d. Meanwhile, about 70% of released ammonium ions and 50% of Fe in the sludge were driven by the current from the sludge suspension into the cathode chamber for potential recovery. With a similar yield of volatile fatty acids (VFAs) but less ammonium remaining, the CODVFA/NNH4 of the sludge supernatant from the EF reactor could reach 67.7, much higher than that from the single-chamber fermenter at 13.0. The protease activity was effectively promoted by the EF treatment, suggesting that both electrochemical and biological hydrolysis effects contributed to the increased P release from the sludge. Microbial community analysis showed that the electrical stimulation increased the relative abundance of Firmicutes and facilitated the growth of Acidobacteria. Overall, electro-fermentation was developed as an effective biotechnology for processing Fe-based CEPS sludge with the benefits of recovering organics, phosphorus, ammonium and iron resources.

Pre-coagulation coupled with sponge-membrane filtration for organic matter removal and membrane fouling control during drinking water treatment

A new hybrid system was developed in this study for the treatment of drinking water consisting of pre-coagulation using polyaluminium chloride (PACl) and membrane filtration (MF) with sponge cubes acting as biomass carriers (P-SMF). When compared to a conventional MF (CMF) and a MF after coagulation by utilizing PACl (P-MF), better removal of nutrients, UV254 and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) (>65%) was obtained from the P-SMF. The accumulation of biopolymers (including polysaccharides and proteins), humic substances, hydrophilic organics, and other small molecular weight (MW) organic matter in the CMF led to the most severe membrane fouling coupled with the highest pore blocking and cake resistance. Pre-coagulation was ineffective in eliminating small MW and hydrophilic organic matter. Conversely, the larger MW organics (i.e. biopolymers and humic substances), small MW organics and hydrophilic organic compounds could be removed in significantly larger quantities in the P-SMF by PACl coagulation. This was achieved via adsorption and the biodegradation by attached biomass on these sponges and by the suspended sludge. Further analyses of the microbial community indicated that the combined addition of PACl and sponges generated a high enrichment of Zoolgloea, Amaricoccus and Reyranella leading to the reduction of biopolymers, and Flexibacter and Sphingobium were linked to the degradation of humic substances. Moreover, some members of Alphaproteobacteria in the P-SMF may be responsible for the removal of low MW organics. These results suggest that the pre-coagulation process coupled with adding sponge in the MF system is a promising technology for mitigating membrane fouling.