Optimization of biochemical sulfide potential (BSP) assay for anaerobic biodegradability assessment.

The anaerobic biodegradability assessment (biodegradation extent and kinetics) of organic wastes is critical for optimum design and evaluating treatment efficiencies for anaerobic treatment technologies. The biochemical sulfide potential (BSP) assay has previously demonstrated the advantages of its time efficiency and measurement accuracy for biologically assessing substrate degradability, while its application is limited by undefined operational parameters. In this study, the BSP assay was further optimized through a systematic investigation of a critical parameter, inoculum-to-substrate ratio (ISR), and the applicable kinetic model to unravel the potential use of BSP assays for anaerobic waste treatment.

Identifying the mechanisms of sludge reduction in the sulfidogenic oxic-settling anaerobic (SOSA) process: Side-stream sulfidogenesis-intensified sludge decay and mainstream extended aeration.

An energy-/cost-efficient and environment-friendly in-situ sludge reduction process, called the sulfidogenic oxic-settling anaerobic (SOSA) was developed recently. However, the underpinning mechanism of sludge reduction by the SOSA process remains elusive. This paper investigated the possible mechanisms of sludge reduction through biomass cultivation in three lab-scale experimental systems: one anoxic-oxic CAS process with a long sludge retention time (SRT) and extended aeration (EAO) process, and two EAO-based in-situ sludge reduction processes, i.

Integrated food waste management with wastewater treatment in Hong Kong: Transformation, energy balance and economic analysis.

Diversion of food waste (FW) away from the solid waste stream into the wastewater stream is proved viable through the use of food waste disposers (FWDs). However, this may cause unwanted influences on the wastewater treatment system. In this context, this study has comprehensively evaluated integrated food waste and wastewater management on a city scale for the first time.

Potential for co-disposal and treatment of food waste with sewage: A plant-wide steady-state model evaluation.

The water, food and energy nexus is a vital subject to achieve sustainable development goals worldwide. Wastewater (WW) and food waste (FW) from municipal sources are the primary contributors of organic waste from cities. Along with the loss of these valuable natural resources, their treatment systems also consume a considerable amount of abiotic energy and resource input and make a perceptible contribution to global warming.

A novel approach for rapidly measuring volatile fatty acids in anaerobic process.

Volatile fatty acids (VFAs), the intermediate of the anaerobic process, are considered to be the critical, high-sensitive and reliable indicators of the process stability. Close monitoring and control of VFAs are paramount for the efficient operation of the anaerobic reactors. In this study, a buffer intensity-based mathematical model was developed, and the least square method was integrated into the model to solve the issue of non-linear fitting of the titration curve.

Ground food waste discharge to sewer enhances methane gas emission: A lab-scale investigation.

Emission of sulfide and methane from sewerage system has been a major concern for a long time. Sewers are now facing emerging challenges, such as receiving food waste (FW) to relieve the burdens on solid waste treatment. However, the knowledge of the direct impact of FW addition on sulfide and methane production in and emission from sewers is still lacking.

Modelling hydrolysis: Simultaneous versus sequential biodegradation of the hydrolysable fractions.

Hydrolysis is considered the limiting step during solid waste anaerobic digestion (including co-digestion of sludge and biosolids). Mechanisms of hydrolysis are mechanistically not well understood with detrimental impact on model predictive capability. The common approach to multiple substrates is to consider simultaneous degradation of the substrates.

Coupling of sulfur(thiosulfate)-driven denitratation and anammox process to treat nitrate and ammonium contained wastewater.

This study investigated the feasibility of a new biological nitrogen removal process that integrates sulfur-driven autotrophic denitratation (NO→NO) and anaerobic ammonium oxidation (Anammox) for simultaneous removal of nitrate and ammonium from industrial wastewater. The proposed sulfur(thiosulfate)-driven denitratation and Anammox process was developed in two phases: First, the thiosulfate-driven denitratation was established in the UASB inoculated with activated sludge and fed with ammonium, nitrate and thiosulfate for 52 days until the nitrite level in the effluent reached 32.1 mg N/L.

Elucidating the biofilm properties and biokinetics of a sulfur-oxidizing moving-bed biofilm for mainstream nitrogen removal.

The sulfide-oxidizing autotrophic denitrification (SOAD) process offers a feasible alternative to mainstream heterotrophic denitrification in treating domestic sewage with insufficient organics. Previously SOAD has been successfully applied in a moving-bed biofilm reactor (MBBR). However, the biofilm properties and biokinetics are still not thoroughly understood.

A new sulfidogenic oxic-settling anaerobic (SOSA) process: The effects of sulfur-cycle bioaugmentation on the operational performance, sludge properties and microbial communities.

In-situ sludge reduction can be achieved by inserting an anaerobic side-stream reactor in the sludge return line of the conventional activated sludge (CAS) process. This modified oxic-settling-anaerobic (OSA) process can reduce sludge production by 30-50% through feast-fast alternating conditions. This paper proposes a new bioprocess called the sulfidogenic oxic-settling anaerobic (SOSA) process with OSA configuration and the addition of sulfate in side-stream reactor.

Achieving methane production enhancement from waste activated sludge with sulfite pretreatment: Feasibility, kinetics and mechanism study.

Sulfite has been widely employed as a key agent in many industrial processes, leading to a large amount of sulfite-laden wastes generated. Given its antimicrobial function and destructive ability on cell walls, detailed mechanisms for impacts of sulfite on waste activated sludge (WAS) and outcomes of methane production after the sulfite-pretreatment have not been clear so far. In this study, the feasibility of methane production from sulfite pretreated WAS was verified and investigated.

Advances in sulfur conversion-associated enhanced biological phosphorus removal in sulfate-rich wastewater treatment: A review.

Recently an innovative sulfur conversion-associated enhanced biological phosphorus removal (S-EBPR) process has been developed for treating sulfate-rich wastewater. This process has successfully integrated sulfur (S), carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and P cycles for simultaneous metabolism or removal of C, N and P; moreover this new process relies on the synergy among the slow-growing sulfate-reducing bacteria and sulfur-oxidizing bacteria, hence generating little excess sludge. To elucidate this new process, researchers have investigated the microorganisms proliferated in the system, identified the biochemical pathways and assessed the impact of operational and environmental factors on process performance as well as trials on process optimization.

Investigation of multiple polymers in a denitrifying sulfur conversion-EBPR system: The structural dynamics and storage states.

Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs), polyphosphate (poly-P) and polysulfide or elemental sulfur (poly-S) are the key functionally relevant polymers involved in the recently reported Denitrifying Sulfur conversion-associated Enhanced Biological Phosphorus Removal (DS-EBPR) process. However, little is known about the structural dynamics and storage states of these polymers. In particular, investigating the poly-S generated in this process is quite a superior challenge.

Elucidating the effects of starvation and reactivation on anaerobic sulfidogenic granular sludge: Reactor performance and granular sludge transformation.

In biological wastewater treatment, the bacteria starvation always challenges the stability of system operation. Yet, the effects of starvation and possibility of reactivation are less understood for anaerobic sulfidogenic system. Sulfidogenic systems use sulfate as electron acceptor for organic chemical oxygen demand (COD) degradation, so it will encounter two kind of starvations: (i) complete stoppage of wastewater flow (named complete food starvation) and (ii) remaining organic COD but with very low level sulfate in the influent (named sulfate starvation).

Integrated fixed-film activated sludge membrane bioreactors versus membrane bioreactors for nutrient removal: A comprehensive comparison.

This research elucidates the pollutants (nutrients and carbon) removal performance and nitrous oxide (NO) emissions of two pilot plants. Specifically, a University of Cape Town (UCT) Membrane Bioreactor (MBR) plant and an Integrated Fixed Film Activated Sludge (IFAS)-UCT-MBR plant were investigated. The plants were fed with real wastewater augmented with acetate and glycerol in order to control the influent carbon nitrogen ratio (C/N).

Mathematical modelling of greenhouse gas emissions from membrane bioreactors: A comprehensive comparison of two mathematical models.

This paper compares two mathematical models (Model I and Model II) to predict greenhouse gases emission from a University Cape Town (UCT) - membrane bioreactor (MBR) plant. Model I considers NO production only during denitrification. Model II takes into account the ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) formation pathways for NO.

Denitrifying sulfur conversion-associated EBPR: Effects of temperature and carbon source on anaerobic metabolism and performance.

The recently developed Denitrifying Sulfur conversion-associated Enhanced Biological Phosphorus Removal (DS-EBPR) process has demonstrated simultaneous removal of organics, nitrogen and phosphorus with minimal sludge production in the treatment of saline/brackish wastewater. Its performance, however, is sensitive to operating and environmental conditions. In this study, the effects of temperature (20, 25, 30 and 35 °C) and the ratio of influent acetate to propionate (100-0, 75-25, 50-50, 25-75 and 0-100%) on anaerobic metabolism were investigated, and their optimal values/controls for performance optimization were identified.

Quantitative characterization and analysis of granule transformations: Role of intermittent gas sparging in a super high-rate anaerobic system.

Knowledge of leveraging biomass characteristics is essential for achieving a microbial community with a desired structure to optimize anaerobic bioreactor performance. This study investigates the successive granule transformations in a high-rate anaerobic system with intermittent gas sparging and sequential increases in organic loading rates (OLRs), by establishing the correlations between the granule microstructures and reactor operating parameters. Over the course of a 196-day lab-scale trial, the granules were visualized in various stages using scanning electron microscopy, and digital image processing was applied for further quantifying their surface properties.

Characterization of a new continuous gas-mixing sulfidogenic anaerobic bioreactor: Hydrodynamics and sludge granulation.

Continuous gas recirculation (CGR) was demonstrated in this study to be an effective method to mitigate the persistent problem of sludge flotation in high-rate sulfate-reducing upflow sludge bed (SRUSB) reactors that do not produce much gas. The effects of hydraulic- and CGR-mixing on the mixing regime of the SRUSB reactors were investigated over a period of 45 d at the average shear rates of 0.9, 1.

Development of biochemical sulfide potential (BSP) test for sulfidogenic biotechnology application.

The determination of organics biodegradability and corresponding biodegradation kinetics provides valuable information on the optimal design and operation of anaerobic biotechnology especially for sulfidogenesis. This study proposes a deterministic method, i.e.

Optimizing mixing mode and intensity to prevent sludge flotation in sulfidogenic anaerobic sludge bed reactors.

Sludge flotation is a notorious problem in anaerobic wastewater treatment that can occur under various operational conditions and even cause the anaerobic process to completely fail. Despite having been documented for over three decades, its causes and remedies remain elusive, particularly for low-gas-production anaerobic processes such as sulfidogenic and anammox processes. This paper systematically studies sludge flotation in an anaerobic sulfidogenic process for saline domestic sewage treatment.

Greenhouse gases from membrane bioreactors: Mathematical modelling, sensitivity and uncertainty analysis.

In this study a new mathematical model to quantify greenhouse gas emissions (namely, carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide) from membrane bioreactors (MBRs) is presented. The model has been adopted to predict the key processes of a pilot plant with pre-denitrification MBR scheme, filled with domestic and saline wastewater. The model was calibrated by adopting an advanced protocol based on an extensive dataset.

Bacterial community structure and removal performances in IFAS-MBRs: A pilot plant case study.

The paper reports the results of an experimental campaign carried out on a University of Cape Town (UCT) integrated fixed-film activated sludge (IFAS) membrane bioreactor (MBR) pilot plant. The pilot plant was analysed in terms of chemical oxygen demand (COD) and nutrients removal, kinetic/stoichiometric parameters, membrane fouling and sludge dewaterability. Moreover, the cultivable bacterial community structure was also analysed.

Large-scale demonstration of the sulfate reduction autotrophic denitrification nitrification integrated (SANI(®)) process in saline sewage treatment.

Recently, the Sulfate reduction Autotrophic denitrification Nitrification Integrated (SANI(®)) process was developed for the removal of organics and nitrogen with sludge minimization in the treatment of saline sewage (with a Sulfate-to-COD ratio > 0.5 mg SO4(2-)-S/mg COD) generated from seawater used for toilet flushing or salt water intrusion. Previously investigated in lab- and pilot-scale, this process has now been scaled up to a 800-1000 m(3)/d full-scale demonstration plant.

Greenhouse gases from wastewater treatment - A review of modelling tools.

Nitrous oxide, carbon dioxide and methane are greenhouse gases (GHG) emitted from wastewater treatment that contribute to its carbon footprint. As a result of the increasing awareness of GHG emissions from wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), new modelling, design, and operational tools have been developed to address and reduce GHG emissions at the plant-wide scale and beyond. This paper reviews the state-of-the-art and the recently developed tools used to understand and manage GHG emissions from WWTPs, and discusses open problems and research gaps.