Modeling the biotransformation of trimethoprim in biological nutrient removal system

2018 ◽  
Vol 2017 (1) ◽  
pp. 144-155
Author(s):  
Olumuyiwa O. Ogunlaja ◽  
Wayne J. Parker

Abstract A pilot scale biological nutrient removal (BNR) process, batch experiments and modeling exercises were employed to investigate the removal and biotransformation of trimethoprim (TMP) in a BNR activated sludge process. The concentrations of the active microbial groups – ammonia oxidizing bacteria (AOB), ordinary heterotrophic organisms (OHOs) and polyphosphate accumulating organisms (PAOs) – in the BNR bioreactor were quantified through modeling of the pilot bioreactor. The overall TMP removal efficiency for the pilot BNR process was 64 ± 14% while the TMP biotransformation efficiencies in the anaerobic, anoxic and aerobic zones were 22 ± 20%, 27 ± 8% and 36 ± 5% respectively. Batch tests with and without nitrification inhibition showed that AOB played a role in the biotransformation of TMP in BNR activated sludge. A pseudo first order model which incorporated the contributions of PAOs, OHOs and AOB to the overall biodegradation of TMP was found to describe the biodegradation of TMP in batch tests with and without nitrification inhibition. This model showed that PAOs, OHOs and AOB contributed towards the biotransformation of TMP in aerobic BNR activated sludge with the biotransformation rate constants following the trend of kAOB > kOHOs > kPAOs.

1997 ◽  
Vol 35 (10) ◽  
pp. 87-94 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Sorm ◽  
J. Wanner ◽  
R. Saltarelli ◽  
G. Bortone ◽  
A. Tilche

The phenomenon of anoxic phosphate uptake with simultaneous denitrification was studied. For this purpose kinetic batch tests have been carried out by using the activated sludge samples from three modifications of nutrient removal activated sludge systems: two based on an anaerobic-anoxic-oxic (A2/O) system and a third on an anaerobic-oxic (A/O) system. The results showed significant differences in anoxic phosphate uptake rate between activated sludge which was alternatively exposed to anoxic conditions and activated sludge from the A/O arrangement. These differences were also accompanied by different denitrification rates. Simultaneously with batch experiments the microscopic observation of activated sludge samples was carried out. Neisser and Gram stained samples showed clear differences in shape, size and distribution of polyphosphate accumulating bacteria between A2/O and A/O Processes. Moreover, experiments performed using genetic probes confirmed the differences in microbiological composition of activated sludge samples from different nutrient removal system arrangements.


1996 ◽  
Vol 34 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 275-282 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. B. Saayman ◽  
C. F. Schutte ◽  
J. van Leeuwen

The use of chemicals for sludge bulking control has a direct effect on the biological nutrient removal processes in activated sludge systems designed for this purpose. Chlorine has been used on full scale but information on the use of ozone and hydrogen peroxide is limited to pilot scale tests. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of chlorine, ozone and hydrogen peroxide on nutrient removal processes when used on a continuous basis for bulking control in a full scale biological nutrient removal activated sludge plant. The full scale studies were conducted over a period of 39 months at the Daspoort sewage works of the City Council of Pretoria. The results indicate that at low dosages the oxidants have limited effects on the nutrient removal processes but at higher levels chlorine had a detrimental effect resulting in the phosphate limit of 1 mg P.1−1 being exceeded. It is concluded that chlorine is the most effective of the three oxidants for bulking control, but that it should be used with caution in order not to upset the biological phosphate removal processes. Ozone at low levels had a small but consistent positive effect on bulking control as well as on nutrient removal. The effects of hydrogen peroxide were very small except at high dosages.


Author(s):  
Lin Li ◽  
Yaqi You ◽  
Krishna Pagilla

Mechanistic understanding of how activated sludge (AS) solids density influences wastewater treatment processing is limited. Because microbial groups often generate and store intracellular inclusions during certain metabolic processes, it is hypothesized that some microorganisms, like polyphosphate-accumulating organisms (PAOs), would have higher biomass densities. The present study developed a density-based separation approach and applied it to suspended growth AS in two full-scale domestic water resource recovery facilities (WRRFs). Incorporating quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) analyses, the research demonstrated the effectiveness of density-based separation in enriching key microbial functional groups, including ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB), nitrite-oxidizing bacteria (NOB) and PAOs, by up to 90-fold in target biomass fractions. It was observed that WRRF process functionalities have significant influence on density-based enrichment, such that maximum enrichments were achieved in the sludge fraction denser than 1.036 g/cm3 for the enhanced biological phosphorus removal (EBPR) facility and in the sludge fraction lighter than 1.030 g/cm3 for the non-EBPR facility. Our results provide important information on the relationship between biomass density and enrichment of microbial functional groups in AS, contributing to future designs of enhanced biological treatment processes for improved AS settleability and performance.


2002 ◽  
Vol 46 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 129-138 ◽  
Author(s):  
Z.-R. Hu ◽  
M.C. Wentzel ◽  
G.A. Ekama

In this paper the advantages and disadvantages of denitrifying PAOs (polyphosphat accumulating organisms) in conventional BNRAS (biological nutrient removal activated sludge) and external nitrification BNRAS (ENBNRAS) systems are evaluated, with experimental data exhibiting a range of anoxic P uptake from low (<10%) to very high (>60%). The results indicate that the specific denitrification rate of the PAOs on internally stored PHB COD is about 1/5th of that of the “ordinary” heterotrophic organisms on SBCOD, and the PAOs contribute little (maximum 20%) to the denitrification in BNRAS systems even when the anoxic P uptake is high (60% of the total P uptake). Considering the unpredictable nature of anoxic P uptake and the reduction in BEPR it causes compared with aerobic P uptake BEPR, it is concluded that anoxic P uptake does not add a significant advantage to the BNR system.


2007 ◽  
Vol 56 (6) ◽  
pp. 125-134 ◽  
Author(s):  
V. Parco ◽  
G. du Toit ◽  
M. Wentzel ◽  
G. Ekama

The impact of including membranes for solid liquid separation on the kinetics of nitrogen and phosphorus removal was investigated. To achieve this, a membrane bioreactor (MBR) biological nutrient removal (BNR) activated sludge system was operated. From batch tests on mixed liquor drawn from the MBR BNR system, denitrification and phosphorus removal rates were delineated. Additionally the influence of the high total suspended solids concentrations present in the MBR BNR system and of the limitation of substrate concentrations on the kinetics was investigated. Moreover the ability of activated sludge in this kind of system to denitrify under anoxic conditions with simultaneous phosphate uptake was verified and quantified. The denitrification rates obtained for different mixed liquor (ML) concentrations indicate no effect of ML concentration on the specific denitrification rate. The denitrification took place at a single specific rate (K2) with respect to the ordinary heterotrophic organisms (OHOs, i.e. non-PAOs) active mass. Similarly, results have been obtained for the P removal process kinetics: no differences in specific rates were observed for different ML or substrate concentrations. From the P removal batch tests results it seems that the biological phosphorus removal population (PAO) consists of 2 different sets of organisms denitrifying PAO and aerobic PAO.


2001 ◽  
Vol 43 (1) ◽  
pp. 251-260 ◽  
Author(s):  
Z.-R. Hu ◽  
M. C. Wentzel ◽  
G. A. Ekama

A biological nutrient removal (BNR) activated sludge (AS) scheme incorporating external nitrification in a fixed media system is evaluated. A laboratory scale investigation of the scheme indicates that it holds considerable potential for BNRAS system intensification through major reduction in sludge age and oxygen demand and significant improvement in sludge settleability. Because the BNRAS system is not required to nitrify, its anoxic mass fraction can be considerably enlarged at the expense of the aerobic mass fraction creating conditions that (i) allow it to achieve high N removals with domestic wastewaters with high TKN/COD ratios and (ii) promote anoxic P uptake polyphosphate accumulating organisms (PAO) to develop in the system. From this, and earlier investigations with conventional BNR systems, it appears that anoxic P uptake biological excess P removal (BEPR) is only about two thirds of aerobic P uptake BEPR. Inclusion of anoxic P uptake PAOs in, and exclusion of nitrifiers from, the BNRAS system are not essential for the scheme. However, conditions that promote aerobic P uptake to maximize BEPR, are also conducive to nitrifier growth, which, if supported in the BNRAS system, would require virtual complete nitrification in the fixed media system to avoid nitrate interference with BEPR. Before the scheme can be implemented at large scale, an engineering and economic evaluation is required to quantify its potential benefits and savings.


1992 ◽  
Vol 26 (9-11) ◽  
pp. 2195-2198 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. A. McClintock ◽  
V. M. Pattarkine ◽  
C. W. Randall

Two pilot-scale activated sludge reactors, one VIP (named after Virginia Initiative Plant) biological nutrient removal (BNR) process and one conventional, fully aerobic process, were operated over a range of solids retention times (SRT's) and under the same conditions so that growth yields and specific decay rates could be evaluated and compared. True growth yields (Y's) for the BNR and the conventional processes were equal and were 0.41 gVSS/gCOD. The specific decay rate, b, for the BNR process, 0.063 d, was lower than in the fully aerobic process, 0.110 d-1, indicating that decay occurs at a much lower rate in the anoxic and anaerobic zones of the BNR process.


2015 ◽  
Vol 71 (7) ◽  
pp. 1056-1064 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Coma ◽  
S. Rovira ◽  
J. Canals ◽  
J. Colprim

Integrated processes to reduce in situ the sludge production in wastewater treatment plants are gaining attention in order to facilitate excess sludge management. In contrast to post-treatments, such as anaerobic digestion which is placed between the activated sludge system and dewatering processes, integrated technologies are placed in the sludge return line. This study evaluates the application of an anoxic side-stream reactor (SSR) which creates a physiological shock and uncouples the biomass metabolism and diverts the activity from assimilation for biosynthesis to non-growth activities. The effect of this system in biological nutrient removal for both nitrogen and phosphorus was evaluated for the anaerobic, anoxic and aerobic reactors. The RedOx potential within the SSR was maintained at −150 mV while the sludge loading rate was modified by increasing the percentage of recycled activated sludge feed to the SSR (0 and 40% at laboratory scale and 0, 10, 50 and 100% at pilot scale). The use of the SSR presented a slight reduction of phosphorus removal but maintained the effluent quality to the required discharge values. Nitrogen removal efficiency increased from 75 to 86% while reducing the sludge production rate by 18.3%.


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