Removal of Ampicillin with Nitrifying Cultures in a SBR Reactor.

The presence of antibiotics in wastewater discharges significantly affects the environment, mainly due to the generation of bacterial populations with multiple antibiotic resistances. The cometabolic capacity of nitrifying sludge to simultaneously remove ammonium (NH) and emerging organic contaminants (EOCs), including antibiotics, has been reported. In the present study, the removal capacity of 50 mg ampicillin (AMP)/L by nitrifying cultures associated with biosorption and biotransformation processes was evaluated in a sequencing batch reactor (SBR) system.

Long-term post-storage reactivation of a nitrifying sludge in a sequential batch reactor: physiological and kinetic evaluation.

Production, preservation and recovery of sludge with stabilized nitrifying activity over long time can be difficult. Information on the ability of nitrifying sludge to regain its nitrifying activity after long-term storage is still scarce. In this work, the physiological and kinetic changes during the reactivation and stabilization of a nitrifying sludge previously exposed to ampicillin (AMP) were evaluated in a sequential batch reactor (SBR) after its long-term storage (1 year) at 4 °C.