A comprehensive investigation to the fate of phosphorus in full-scale wastewater treatment plants using aluminum salts for enhanced phosphorus removal.

This study investigated the fate of phosphorus (P) in 8 full-scale municipal wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in Shanghai, China, in which both biological nutrient removal and aluminum-based chemical phosphorus removal were used. The results showed that 83.8-98.9 % P was transferred to the sludge in the 8 WWTPs by both chemical and biological reactions. P speciation analysis indicated that chemical P precipitates accounted for 84.3 % in the activated sludge, of which crystalline AlPO and amorphous iron‑phosphorus compounds (FePs) were the main components. Sludge with more water-soluble and weakly adsorbed P was generated in the anaerobic-anoxic-oxic (A/A/O) process than in other processes. Among the 8 WWTPs, the one with the largest flow rate and relatively short sludge retention time (SRT) had the best potential to release P from all types of sludge. The recovery potential of P from thickened sludge can be improved by separately thickening the sludge produced in the high-efficiency sedimentation tank or feeding it into the dewatering process directly. Different P removal chemicals and dosing points changed the amount of chemical precipitate formed but had little effect on the composition of P accumulating organisms (PAOs) at the genus level. Although aluminum-based coagulants were applied in the investigated WWTPs, Fe in wastewater had the most positive effect on the proliferation of PAOs. The synthesis of polyphosphate was also related to the metabolism of PAOs as it affected transmembrane inorganic phosphate (Pi) transport and polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) synthesis. The in-depth understanding of the fate of P is beneficial to improve P recovery efficiency in WWTPs.