Removal and transformation of organic matters in domestic wastewater during lab-scale chemically enhanced primary treatment and a trickling filter treatment

To find a simple and economical way for treating the domestic wastewater in small counties and towns, a process combining chemically enhanced primary treatment and a trickling filter (CEPT-TF, representing the physical and biological effects) was constructed and operated in laboratory conditions. The characteristic behaviors of dissolved organic matter in raw wastewater and effluents were examined during steady-state operation. Experimental results showed that the process of CEPT and TF in series was beneficial for the removal of hydrophobic and hydrophilic organics. Specially, the hydrophobic and aromatic materials could be preferentially removed in the CEPT unit, and the hydrophilic fraction in the TF. Structural changes of the organic fractions during the operation of the different units were also characterized via spectrum analysis.     

AOX contamination status and genotoxicity of AOX-bearing pharmaceutical wastewater

Adsorbable organic halogens(AOX) are a general indicator for the total amount of compounds containing organically bonded halogens. AOX concentrations and components were investigated along the wastewater treatment process in four large-scale pharmaceutical factories of China, and genotoxicity based on the SOS/umu test was also evaluated. The results showed that AOX concentrations in wastewater of four factories ranged from 4.6 to 619.4 mg/L, which were high but greatly different owing to differences in the raw materials and products. The wastewater treatment process removed 50.0%–89.9% of AOX, leaving 1.3–302.5 mg/L AOX in the effluents. Genotoxicity levels ranged between 2.1 and 68.0 μg 4-NQO/L in the raw wastewater and decreased to 1.2–41.2 μg 4-NQO/L in the effluents of the wastewater treatment plants(WWTPs). One of the main products of factory I, ciprofloxacin, was identified as the predominant contributor to its genotoxicity. However, for the other three factories, no significant relationship was observed between genotoxicity and detected AOX compounds.     

Biodegradation and ecotoxicological assessment of pectin production wastewater

The chemical composition of pectin production wastewater and its toxicity during biological treatment were investigated. Samples of wastewater from di erent steps of a pectin production wastewater biological treatment plant were investigated including the influent of the treatment (1), after denitrification tank (2), after anaerobic treatment (3) and final e uent (4). The conventional physicochemical characteristics of samples did not indicate wastewater toxicity. However, toxicity assessments carried out on Vibrio fischeri and Scenedesmus subspicatus indicated low EC50 values. The fractionation of the samples using an XAD resin showed that the toxicity was associated with the organic matter. Wastewater apparent molecular mass distributions were 14.3, 25.0, 24.4 and 29.6 kDa for samples 1–4, respectively. Finally, characteristics of the sample by pyrolisis-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (Py-CG-MS) demonstrated its polyphenolic nature and a 23% increase in the levels of such compounds after the first biological treatment step.     

Impact of different organic matters on the occurrence of antibiotic resistance genes in activated sludge

The occurrence of antibiotic resistance genes(ARGs) in various environments has drawn worldwide attention due to their potential risks. Previous studies have reported that a variety of substances can enhance the occurrence and dissemination of ARGs. However, few studies have compared the response of ARGs under the stress of different organic matters in biological wastewater treatment systems. In this study, seven organic pollutants were added into wastewater treatment bioreactors to investigate ...     

Carbonaceous and nitrogenous disinfection byproduct precursor variation during the reversed anaerobic–anoxic–oxic process of a sewage treatment plant

Disinfection byproduct(DBP)precursors in wastewater during the reversed anaerobic–anoxic–oxic(A~2/O)process,as well as their molecular weight(MW)and polarity-based fractions,were characterized with UV scanning,fluorescence excitation emission matrix,Fourier transform infrared and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy.Their DBP formation potentials(DBPFPs)after chlorination were further tested.Results indicated that the reversed A~2/O process could not only effectively remove the dissolved organic carbon(DOC)and dissolved total nitrogen in the wastewater,but also affect the MW distribution and hydrophilic–hydrophobic properties of dissolved organic matter(DOM).The accumulation of low MW and hydrophobic(HPO)DOM was possibly due to the formation of soluble microbial product-like(SMP-like)matters in the reversed A~2/O treatment,especially in the anoxic and aerobic processes.Moreover,DOM in the wastewater displayed a high carbonaceous disinfection byproduct formation potential(C-DBPFP)in the fractions of MW100 k Da and MW5 k Da,and revealed an increasing tendency of nitrogenous disinfection byproduct formation potential(N-DBPFP)with decrease of MW.For polarity-based fractions,the HPO fraction of wastewater showed significantly higher C-DBPFP and N-DBPFP than hydrophilic and transphilic fractions.Therefore,although the reversed A~2/O process could remove most DBP precursors by DOC reduction,it led to the enhancement of DBPFP with the formation and accumulation of low MW and HPO DOM.In addition,strong correlations between C-DBPFPs and SUVA,and between N-DBPFPs and DON/DOC,were observed in the wastewater,which might be helpful for DBPFP prediction in wastewater and reclaimed water chlorination.     

Identification of visible colored dissolved organic matter in biological and tertiary municipal effluents using multiple approaches including PARAFAC analysis

This study provided insights into the persistent yellowish color in biological and tertiary effluents of municipal wastewater through a multi-characterization approach and fluorescence excitation-emission matrix-parallel factor (EEM-PARAFAC) analysis. The characterization was performed on three to five full-scale municipal wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), including differential log-transformed absorbance (DLnA) spectroscopy, resin fractionation, size-exclusion chromatography for apparent molecular weight analysis (SEC-AMW), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis. Hydrophobic acids (HPOA) were abundant in visible colored dissolved organic matter (DOM). The SEC-AMW result showed that the molecular weight of the colored substances in the secondary effluents is mainly distributed in the range of 2–3 kDa. Through XPS analysis, C-O/C-N and pyrrolic/pyridonic (N-5) were found to be positively correlated with chroma. PARAFAC component models were built on biological (two components) and tertiary effluent (three components) and the correlation analysis revealed that PARAFAC component 2 in biological effluent (BE-C2) and component 1 in tertiary effluent (TE-C1), which were ascribed to Hydrophobic acids and Humic acid-like, were the responsible visible colored DOM components cause yellowish color. In addition, component similarity testing found that the identified visible colored DOM PARAFAC BE-C2, and PARAFAC TE-C1 were identical (0.96) in physicochemical properties, with 4% removal efficacy on average, compared with 11% for invisible colored DOM. This implied that tertiary effluents containing colorants (TE-C1) were resistant to degradation/removal using different disinfection and filtration processes in advanced treatments. This sheds light on many physicochemical aspects of PARAFAC-identified visible colored DOM components and provides spectral data to build an online monitoring system.     

Monitoring of 943 organic micropollutants in wastewater from municipal wastewater treatment plants with secondary and advanced treatment processes

To perform a systematic survey on the occurrence and removal of micropollutants during municipal wastewater treatment, 943 semi-volatile organic chemicals in 32 wastewater samples including influents of secondary treatments, secondary effluents and final effluents(effluents of advanced treatments), which were collected from seven full-scale municipal wastewater treatment plants(MWTPs) in China, were examined by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry(GC-MS) coupled with an automated identification and quantification system with a database(AIQS-DB). In total, 196 and 145 chemicals were detected in secondary and final effluents, respectively. The majority of the total concentrations(average removal efficiency, 87.0%±5.9%) of the micropollutants were removed during secondary treatments. However, advanced treatments achieved different micropollutant removal extents from secondary effluents depending on the different treatment processes employed. Highly variable removal efficiencies of total concentrations(32.7%–99.3%) were observed among the different advanced processes. Among them,ozonation-based processes could remove 70.0%–80.9% of the total concentrations of studied micropollutants. The potentially harmful micropollutants, based on their detection frequency and concentration in secondary and final effluents, were polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons(PAHs)(2-methylnaphthalene, fluoranthene, pyrene, naphthalene and phenanthrene), phosphorus flame retardants(tributyl phosphate(TBP), tris(2-chloroethyl)phosphate(TCEP) and tris(1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate(TDCP)), phthalates(bis(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate(DEHP)), benzothiazoles(benzothiazole,2-(methylthio)-benzothiazol, and 2(3H)-benzothiazolone) and phenol. This study indicated that the presence of considerable amounts of micropollutants in secondary effluent creates the need for suitable advanced treatment before their reuse.     

Removal of refractory organics and heavy metals in landfill leachate concentrate by peroxi-coagulation process

Landfill leachate is a complex effluent and it is difficult to deal with. Electrochemical methods have been considered as a promising alternative technology for treatment of landfill leachate with refractory organic contaminants and heavy metals. Peroxi-coagulation (PC) process with iron anode and modified graphite felt cathode was developed for efficient landfill leachate concentrate treatment. Compared to electro-Fenton (EF) and electrocoagulation (EC) processes, the PC process was more cost-effective due to the combined action of ^•OH oxidation and iron hydroxides coagulation. A maximal TOC removal of 77.2% ± 1.4% was obtained after 360 min at initial pH = 5.0 and current density of 10 mA/cm². After the PC process, concentrations of all seven heavy metals in the final effluents were below the allowable emission limits given by the present regulatory standards. The method preference for heavy metal removal was PC > EC > EF. Based on the three-dimensional fluorescence spectroscopy coupled with regional integration analysis during the PC treatment, the florescence peaks of both humic acids and fulvic acids disappeared after treatment for 360 min. Decreasing trends were observed in the fluorescent regional standard volumes for aromatic protein I (31.4%), aromatic protein II (63.7%), fulvic acid-like (69.5%), soluble microbial by-product-like (75%) and humic acid-like regions (76.3%). The results indicate that comparing to the EF and EC process, the PC process provide a promising and more cost-effective alternative for the treatment of landfill leachate concentrate.     

Treatment of tunnel wash waters-experiments with organic sorbent materials.PartⅠ:Removal of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and nonpolar oil

Tunnel wash waters characterize all waters that run off after washing procedures of tunnels are performed.These waters represent a wide spectrum of organic and inorganic pollutants,such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons(PAHs)and toxic metals.Removal of such contaminants from water runoff was investigated using laboratory tests after washing procedure was performed on two road tunnels in eastern Norway(Hanekleiv and Bragernes).Due to diverse character of both,treatment media and treated wash waters, the...     

A field study of advanced municipal wastewater treatment technology for artificial groundwater recharge

Field studies were conducted to investigate the advanced treatment of the municipal secondary effluent and a subsequent artificial groundwater recharge at Gaobeidian Wastewater Treatment Plant, Beijing. To improve the secondary effluent quality, the combined process of powdered activated carbon adsorption, flocculation and rapid sand filtration was applied, which could remove about 400 dissolved organic carbon （DOC） and 70% adsorbable organic halogens. The results of liquid size exclusion chromatography indicate that in the adsorption unit the removed organic fraction was mainly low molecular weight compounds. The fractions removed by the flocculation unit were polysaccharides and high molecular weight compounds. The retention of water in summer in the open recharge basins resulted in a growth of algae. Consequently, DOC increased in the polysaccharide and high molecular weight humic substances fraction. The majority of the DOC removal during soil passage took place in the unsaturated area. A limited reduction of DOC was observed in the aquifer zone.