Anaerobic treatment of wastewater containing methanol in upflow anaerobic sludge bed (UASB) reactor

The direct conversion of methanol into methane is the main process in anaerobic treatment of methanol containing wastewater. However, acetic acid can also be produced from methanol theoretically, which may probably result in an abrupt pH drop and deteriorate the anaerobic process. Therefore, it is interesting to know what would really happen in an anaerobic reactor treating methanol wastewater. In this study, an up-flow anaerobic sludge bed (UASB) reactor treating methanol wastewater was operated. The chemical oxygen demand (COD), acetic acid and pH of the effluent were monitored at different loadings and influent alkalinity. The results showed that the anaerobic reactor could be operated steadily at as low as 119 mg/L of influent alkalinity and high organic loading rate with no obvious pH drops. Volatile fatty acids accumulation was not observed even at strong shock loadings. The microorganisms in the sludge at the end of the test became homogeneous in morphology, which were mainly spherical or spheroidal in shape.     

Microbial community dynamics at high organic loading rates revealed by pyrosequencing during sugar refinery wastewater treatment in a UASB reactor

High strength sugar refinery wastewater was treated in a mesophilic UASB. Pyrosequencing reveals microbial community succession with OLR increase. Diversity of microbial communities in OLR12 is much higher than those in OLR36 and OLR54.0 kgCOD/(kg VSS·d). Fermentative bacteria could deal with increasing OLR through the increase of microbial diversity and quantity. Hydrogen-producing acotogens and methanogens mainly coped with high OLR shocks by increasing the quantity of community The performance and microbial community structure in an upflow anaerobic sludge blanket reactor (UASB) treating sugar refinery wastewater were investigated. The chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal reached above 92.0% at organic loading rates (OLRs) of 12.0–54.0 kgCOD/(m³·d). The volatile fatty acids (VFAs) in effluent were increased to 451.1 mg/L from 147.9 mg/L and the specific methane production rate improved by 1.2–2.2-fold as the OLR increased. The evolution of microbial communities in anaerobic sludge at three different OLRs was investigated using pyrosequencing. Operational taxonomic units (OTUs) at a 3% distance were 353, 337 and 233 for OLR12, OLR36 and OLR54, respectively. When the OLR was increased to 54.0 kgCOD /(m³·d) from 12.0 kgCOD/(m³·d) by stepwise, the microbial community structure were changed significantly. Five genera (Bacteroides, Trichococcus, Chryseobacterium, Longilinea and Aerococcus) were the dominant fermentative bacteria at the OLR 12.0 kgCOD/(m³·d). However, the sample of OLR36 was dominated by Lactococcus, Trichococcus, Anaeroarcus and Veillonella. At the last stage (OLR= 54.0 kgCOD/(m³·d)), the diversity and percentage of fermentative bacteria were markedly increased. Apart from fermentative bacteria, an obvious shift was observed in hydrogen-producing acetogens and non-acetotrophic methanogens as OLR increased. Syntrophobacter, Geobacter and Methanomethylovorans were the dominant hydrogen-producing acetogens and methylotrophic methanogens in the samples of OLR12 and OLR36. When the OLR was increased to 54.0 kgCOD/(m³·d), the main hydrogen-producing acetogens and hydrogenotrophic methanogens were substituted with Desulfovibrio and Methanospirillum. However, the composition of acetotrophic methanogens (Methanosaeta) was relatively stable during the whole operation period of the UASB reactor.     

Feasibility assessment of up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket treatment of sulfamethoxazole pharmaceutical wastewater

The UASB system successfully treated sulfamethoxazole pharmaceutical wastewater. High concentration sulfate of this wastewater was the main refractory factor. UASB recovery performance after a few days of inflow arrest was studied. The optimal UASB operating conditions for practical application were determined. Treatment of sulfamethoxazole pharmaceutical wastewater is a big challenge. In this study, a series of anaerobic evaluation tests on pharmaceutical wastewater from different operating units was conducted to evaluate the feasibility of using anaerobic digestion, and the results indicated that the key refractory factor for anaerobic treatment of this wastewater was the high sulfate concentration. A laboratory-scale up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactor was operated for 195 days to investigate the effects of the influent chemical oxygen demand (COD), organic loading rate (OLR), and COD/SO₄^2? ratio on the biodegradation of sulfamethoxazole in pharmaceutical wastewater and the process performance. The electron flow indicated that methanogenesis was still the dominant reaction although sulfidogenesis was enhanced with a stepwise decrease in the influent COD/SO₄^2? ratio. For the treated sulfamethoxazole pharmaceutical wastewater, a COD of 4983 mg/L (diluted by 50%), OLR of 2.5 kg COD/(m³·d), and COD/SO₄^2? ratio of more than 5 were suitable for practical applications. The recovery performance indicated that the system could resume operation quickly even if production was halted for a few days.     

Anaerobic degradation of coconut husk leachate using UASB-reactor

Reffing of coconut husk, the majorprocess in quality coir fibre extraction, causes serious pollution with brackish water lagoons of Kerala. An attempt is made to treat the coconut husk leachate by using a laboratory scale UASB-reactor The experiment was conducted with loading of leachate from 1 kg of fresh coconut husk. The anaerobic treatment was done continuously The parameters like VFA, pH, COD and polyphenols were analysed regularly during the evaluation of the reactor performance. The polyphenol, VFA and COD were diminished gradually with time. The pH of the reactor during the study was found to be in the range of 6-8. The biogas production was increased with loading and about 82% of the total COD/kg husk could be converted to biogas. The maximum polyphenol loading in the reactor was reached to about 298.51 mg/l of husk.     

Fermentative hydrogen production from beet sugar factory wastewater treatment in a continuous stirred tank reactor using anaerobic mixed consortia

A low pH, ethanol-type fermentation process was evaluated for wastewater treatment and bio-hydrogen production from acidic beet sugar factory wastewater in a continuous stirred tank reactor (CSTR) with an effective volume of 9.6 L by anaerobic mixed cultures in this present study. After inoculating with aerobic activated sludge and operating at organic loading rate (OLR) of 12 kgCOD?m^-3·d^-1, HRT of 8h, and temperature of 35°C for 28 days, the CSTR achieved stable ethanol-type fermentation. When OLR was further increased to 18 kgCOD?m^-3·d^-1 on the 53rd day, ethanol-type fermentation dominant microflora was enhanced. The liquid fermentation products, including volatile fatty acids (VFAs) and ethanol, stabilized at 1493 mg·L^-1 in the bioreactor. Effluent pH, oxidation-reduction potential (ORP), and alkalinity ranged at 4.1–4.5, -250–(-290) mV, and 230–260 mgCaCO₃?L^-1. The specific hydrogen production rate of anaerobic activated sludge was 0.1 L?gMLVSS^-1·d^-1 and the COD removal efficiency was 45%. The experimental results showed that the CSTR system had good operation stability and microbial activity, which led to high substrate conversion rate and hydrogen production ability.     

Optimization of thermophilic anaerobic-aerobic treatment system for Palm Oil Mill Effluent (POME)

Optimization of an integrated anaerobic-aerobic bioreactor (IAAB) treatment system for the reduction of organic matter (Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD), Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) and Total Suspended Solids (TSS) concentrations) in Palm Oil Mill Effluent (POME) to legal standards with high methane yield was performed for the first time under thermophilic condition (50°C–55°C) by using response surface methodology (RSM). The experiments were conducted based on a central composite rotatable design (CCRD) with three independent operating variables, organic loading rates in anaerobic compartment (OLR_an) and mixed liquor volatile suspended solids (MLVSS) concentration in anaerobic (MLVSS_an) and aerobic compartments (MLVSS_a). The optimum conditions for the POME treatment were determined as OLR_an of 15.6 g COD·L^-1·d^-1, MLVSS_an of 43100 mg·L^-1, and MLVSS_a of 18600 mg·L^-1, where high aerobic COD, BOD and TSS removal efficiencies of 96.3%, 97.9%, and 98.5% were achieved with treated BOD of 56 mg·L^-1 and TSS of 28 mg·L^-1 meeting the discharge standard. This optimization study successfully achieved a reduction of 42% in the BOD concentrations of the final treated effluent at a 48% higher OLR_an as compared to the previous works. Besides, thermophilic IAAB system scores better feasibility and higher effectiveness as compared to the optimized mesophilic system. This is due to its higher ability to handle high OLR with higher overall treatment efficiencies (more than 99.6%), methane yield (0.31 L CH₄·g^-1 COD_removed) and purity of methane (67.5%). Hence, these advantages ascertain the applicability of thermophilic IAAB in the POME treatment or even in other high-strength wastewaters treatment.     

Sludge reduction during brewery wastewater treatment by hydrolyzation-food chain reactor system

During brewery wastewater treatment by a hydrolyzation-food chain reactor (FCR) system, sludge was recycled to the anaerobic segment. With the function of hydrolyzation acidification in the anaerobic segment and the processes of aerobic oxidation and antagonism, predation, interaction and symbiosis among microbes in multilevel oxidation segment, residual sludge could be reduced effectively. The 6-month dynamic experiments show that the average chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal ratio was 92.6% and average sludge production of the aerobic segment was 8.14%, with the COD of the influent at 960–1720 mg/L and hydraulic retention time (HRT) of 12 h. Since the produced sludge could be recycled and hydrolyzed in the anaerobic segment, no excess sludge was produced during the steady running for this system.     

Enhanced methane production during long-term UASB operation at high organic loads as enabled by the immobilized Fungi

• Fungi enable the constant UASB operation even at OLR of 25.0 kg/(m³×d). • The COD removal of 85.9% and methane production of 5.6 m³/(m³×d) are achieved. • Fungi inhibit VFAs accumulation and favor EPS generation and sludge granulation. • Fungi enrich methanogenic archaea and promote methanogenic pathways. Anaerobic digestion is widely applied in organic wastewater treatment coupled with bioenergy production, and how to stabilize its work at the high organic loading rate (OLR) remains a challenge. Herein, we proposed a new strategy to address this issue via involving the synergetic role of the Aspergillus sydowii 8L-9-F02 immobilized beads (AEBs). A long-term (210-day) continuous-mode operation indicated that the upflow anaerobic sludge bed (UASB) reactor (R1, with AEBs added) could achieve the OLR as high as 25.0 kg/(m³×d), whereas the control reactor (R0, with AEBs free) could only tolerate the maximum OLR of 13.3 kg/(m³×d). Remarkably, much higher COD removal (85.9% vs 23.9%) and methane production (5.4 m³/(m³×d) vs 2.2 m³/(m³×d)) were achieved in R1 than R0 at the OLR of 25.0 kg/(m³×d). Such favorable effect results from the facts that fungi inhibit VFAs accumulation, favor the pH stabilization, promote the generation of more extracellular polymeric substance, and enhance the sludge granulation and settleability. Moreover, fungi may enhance the secretion of acetyl-coenzyme A, a key compound in converting organic matters to CO₂. In addition, fungi are favorable to enrich methanogenic archaea even at high OLR, improving the activity of acetate kinase and coenzyme F₄₂₀ for more efficient methanogenic pathway. This work may shed new light on how to achieve higher OLR and methane production in anaerobic digestion of wastewater.     

COD对颗粒污泥厌氧氨氧化反应性能的影响

研究了COD对颗粒污泥厌氧氨氧化反应的影响,并对颗粒污泥的厌氧氨氧化脱氮性能进行了分析.厌氧颗粒污泥取自实验室长期运行的EGSB生物脱氮反应器,实验用水为人工配水,以葡萄糖为有机碳源;主要考察了COD对NH4 -N、NO2--N、NO3--N和TN去除的影响.结果表明:当进水不含COD时,反应器对NH4 -N、NO2--N和NO3--N和TN的去除率分别为12.5%、29.1%、16.1%和16.3%;当COD浓度分别为200mg/L、350mg/L和550mg/L时,反应器对NH4 -N的去除率分别为14.2%、14.2%和23.7%,对NO2--N的去除率均接近100%,对NO3--N的去除率分别为94.5%、86.6%和84.2%,对TN的去除率分别为50.7%、46.9%和50.4%,COD去除率分别为85%、66%和60%.分析发现,在反应初期,氨氮的去除主要通过厌氧氨氧化过程实现,随着反应的进行,反硝化菌活性逐渐提高,传统的反硝化过程占优势.同时还观察到,在反应初期COD对氨氮去除的抑制作用非常明显.图2参21     

Solid state biomethanation of fruit wastes.

Overtones of fruit wastes accumulate daily in the city of Chennai, India and there is an urgent need to develop, assess and use ecofriendly methods to dispose them. Presently an attempt has been made to study solid state biomethanation of fruit wastes using a laboratory scale anaerobic digester Fruit wastes containing 3%, 4% and 5% solids were used for experimentation. Daily and cumulative production of biogas produced during the study was recorded. Increase in nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium content in the feed was observed during the digestion. During the study the biogas generation increased with increase in total solids. While the gas generation was 0.006 m3/day/m3 of the reactor volume when the solid content was 3% the corresponding values for 4% and 5% solids were 0.27and 0.35 m3 respectively Varying TS 3% to 4% has no effect on fermentation stability and pH remained between 6.8 and 7.4, but an inhibition of methanogenic bacteria was observed for TS 5%. The overall performance of the reactor was depressed by changing feed concentration from 3% to 5%. Experiments with 4% initial solid contend was ideal for solid-state biomethanation.     

Aggravation of membrane fouling and methane leakage by a three-phase separator in an external anaerobic ceramic membrane bioreactor

The existence of three-phase separator did not affect COD removal in the EAnCMBR. The existence of three-phase separator aggravated methane leakage of EAnCMBR. The existence of three-phase separator aggravated membrane fouling rate of EAnCMBR. Start-up of EAnCMBR equipped three-phase separator was slightly delayed. The three-phase separator is a critical component of high-rate anaerobic bioreactors due to its significant contribution in separation of biomass, wastewater, and biogas. However, its role in an anaerobic membrane bioreactor is still not clear. In this study, the distinction between an external anaerobic ceramic membrane bioreactor (EAnCMBR) unequipped (R1) and equipped (R2) with a three-phase separator was investigated in terms of treatment performance, membrane fouling, extracellular polymers of sludge, and microbial community structure. The results indicate that the COD removal efficiencies of R1 and R2 were 98.2%±0.4% and 98.1%±0.4%, respectively, but the start-up period of R2 was slightly delayed. Moreover, the membrane fouling rate of R2 (0.4 kPa/d) was higher than that of R1 (0.2 kPa/d). Interestingly, the methane leakage from R2 (0.1 L/d) was 20 times higher than that from R1 (0.005 L/d). The results demonstrate that the three-phase separator aggravated the membrane fouling rate and methane leakage in the EAnCMBR. Therefore, this study provides a novel perspective on the effects of a three-phase separator in an EAnCMBR.     

Characterization of value-added chemicals derived from the thermal hydrolysis and wet oxidation of sewage sludge

• Hydrothermal treatment can greatly improve resource recovery from sewage sludge. • tCOD removal during WO was ~55% compared with ~23% after TH. • TOC solubilization during hydrothermal treatment followed first-order kinetics. • Solids and carbon balance confirmed loss of organics during thermal hydrolysis. • Reaction pathways for thermal hydrolysis and wet oxidation are proposed. We evaluated the effect of hydrothermal pretreatments, i.e., thermal hydrolysis (TH) and wet oxidation (WO) on sewage sludge to promote resource recovery. The hydrothermal processes were performed under mild temperature conditions (140°C–180°C) in a high pressure reactor. The reaction in acidic environment (pH= 3.3) suppressed the formation of the color imparting undesirable Maillard’s compounds. The oxidative conditions resulted in higher volatile suspended solids (VSS) reduction (~90%) and chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal (~55%) whereas TH caused VSS and COD removals of ~65% and ~27%, respectively at a temperature of 180°C. During TH, the concentrations of carbohydrates and proteins in treated sludge were 400–1000 mg/L and 1500–2500 mg/L, respectively. Whereas, WO resulted in solids solubilization followed by oxidative degradation of organics into smaller molecular weight carboxylic acids such as acetic acid (~400–500 mg/L). Based on sludge transformation products generated during the hydrothermal pretreatments, simplified reaction pathways are predicted. Finally, the application of macromolecules (such as proteins), VFAs and nutrients present in the treated sludge are also discussed. The future study should focus on the development of economic recovery methods for various value-added compounds.     

Concept and application of anaerobic suspended granular sludge bed （SGSB） reactor for wastewater treatment

Bed expansion serves an important function in the design and operation of an upflow anaerobic reactor. An analysis of the flow pattern of expanded granular sludge bed （EGSB） reactors shows that most EGSB reactors do not behave as expanded bed reactors, as is widely perceived. Rather, these reactors behave as fluidized bed reactors based on the classic chemical reactor theory. In this paper, four bed expansion modes, divided as static bed, expanded bed, suspended bed, and fluidized bed, for bioreactors are proposed. A high-rate anaerobic suspended granular sludge bed （SGSB） reactor was then developed. The SGSB reactor is an upflow anaerobic reactor, and its expansion degree can be easily controlled within a range to maintain the suspended status of the sludge bed by controlling upfiow velocity. The results of the full-scale reactor confirmed that the use of SGSB reactors is advantageous. The full-scale SGSB reactor runs stably and achieves high COD removal efficiency （about 90%） at high loading rates （average 40 kg-COD·m^-3·d^-1, maximum to 52 kg·COD·m^-3 ·d^-1） based on the SGSB theory, and its expansion degree is between 22% and 37%.     

Performance of a hybrid anaerobic-contact oxidation biofilm baffled reactor for the treatment of decentralized molasses wastewater

A novel hybrid anaerobic-contact oxidation biofilm baffled reactor （HAOBR） was developed to simultaneously remove nitrogenous and carbonaceous organic pollutants from decentralized molasses wastewater in the study. The study was based on the inoculation of anaerobic granule sludge in anaerobic compartments and the installation of combination filler in aerobic compartments. The performance of reactor system was studied regarding the hydraulic retention time （HRT）, microbial characteristics and the gas water ratio （GWR）. When the HRT was 24h and the GWR was 20：1, total ammonia and chemical oxygen demand （COD） of the effluent were reduced by 99% and 91.8%, respectively. The reactor performed stably for treating decentralized molasses wastewater. The good performance of the reactor can be attributed to the high resistance of COD and hydraulic shock loads. In addition, the high solid retention time of contact oxidation biofilm contributed to stable performance of the reactor.     

Microbial decolorization and bioremediation of melanoidin containing molasses spent wash

Molasses spent wash from cane-molasses based distilleries contains a brown coloured recalcitrantpolymer melanoidin, which if disposed untreated poses a great threat to environment. Microbial decolorization and chemical oxygen demand (COD) reduction was found to be dependent on specific carbon and nitrogen source. Under optimal condition of pH, carbon and nitrogen concentration for each treatment, it was found that Bacillus sp isolated from soil was capable of removing COD (85. 35%) and colour (81.10%) from distillery waste to the maximum extent after 9 days atpH 7 in the medium containing 0.5% peptone, 2% glucose and 10% (v/v), followed by Phanerochaete chrysosporium and lowest reduction was obtained by using native microbial consortium.     

Anaerobic treatment of fresh leachate from a municipal solid waste incinerator by upflow blanket filter reactor

This paper describes the feasibility of fresh leachate treatment by an upflow blanket filter (UBF). Through dilution and partial effluent recycling, the organic loading rates increased from 0.51 to 14.56 kg COD/(m³·d), meanwhile the corresponding hydraulic retention time decreased from 9.0 to 3.6 d. The reactor was able to achieve steady-state within 80 d. Based on the distribution of COD fluxes in the process, it was concluded that anabolism was the main pathway of COD removal in the initial phase (1–33 d), accounting for 57%–85% of total COD removed. As the anaerobic consortium of bacteria reached steady-state (after 70–86 d), the majority of COD removed was transformed into methane, because the specific methane yield was close to the theoretical value (0.36 L CH₄/(g COD_deg)).     

Rapid start-up of mesophilic dry anaerobic digestion of kitchen waste in a continuous stirred tank reactor (CSTR)

Under mesophilic conditions (37 °C), a bench-scale experiment of dry fermentation start-up using kitchen waste was conducted in a fed-batch single phase reactor over a period of 40 days. The results showed that (1) comparing biogas production, efficiencies, and methane concentrations, three apparent different stages emerged: adaption, growth, and stability; (2) in adaption and growth stages, daily biogas production was 0–0.2 L/day and 0.2–0.4 L/day, respectively, and the concentration of methane in the biogas was 22.91% and 48.79%, respectively, with a biodegradation rate of approximately 34.72% in the adaption phase and 27.60% during the growth phase; (3) in the stability stage, the biogas production efficiency attained the maximal level and stabilized at approximately 0.6–0.4 L/day and the concentration of methane was 54.32%. Furthermore, the pH fell to 4.15, and the concentration of chemical oxygen demand increased from 51.139 to 119.295 mg/ml.     

水华蓝藻厌氧发酵工艺技术研究

以太湖水华蓝藻为底物,用改进的CSTR(continuous stirred tank reactor)工艺,研究了不同有机负荷条件下蓝藻厌氧发酵相关参数与蓝藻藻毒素的去除效果.结果表明:在(35±1) ℃条件下,逐步提高有机负荷,系统运行稳定,有机负荷最高可达3.53 kg·m-3·d-1,此时最大容积产气率达0.89 m3·m-3·d-1,COD去除率在70%左右,甲烷体积分数达60%以上.不同负荷条件下,出料中藻毒素(MC-RR、MC-LR)检测均为阴性,已达无害化处理要求,表明该工艺可以有效处置水华蓝藻,实现能量回收与无害化处理的目标.     

厌氧好氧一体化生物反应器处理发酵废水的研究

采用新型厌氧好氧一体化生物反应器对发酵废水进行了中试处理研究.试验结果表明,系统总有机负荷最高可达到8.88kg(COD)m-3d-1,系统去除率稳定在88.10%~96.88%,说明反应器处理效率高,抗冲击能力强.反应器结构合理,利于保持丰富、高活性的微生物,反应器厌氧区颗粒污泥TS高达83.9gL-1,VS/TS为56.9%~57.4%,比产甲烷活性为280~350mL(CH4)gvss-1d-1;好氧区固定化微生物TS高达64.03gL-1载体,VS/TS为94.02%~94.30%.反应器各功能区对废水的降解过程分析,说明反应器厌氧区和好氧区一体化结构合理,可将废水逐级降解,从而保证整个系统的处理效果.图8表4参11     

猪场废水厌氧消化过程中的除磷效果

采用序批式半连续厌氧消化试验方法,研究猪场废水厌氧消化过程中磷的去除情况。结果表明,水力停留时间（HRT）为1、3、6和9 d的厌氧反应器平均除磷率分别为65.0%、81.1%、82.7%和83.0%,而COD平均去除率分别为54.5%、82.3%、87.0%和85.9%。厌氧反应器除磷能力随沼气产量的增加而增加,说明厌氧反应器中磷的去除与产甲烷过程密切相关。对厌氧消化前后的污泥进行浸提后发现,厌氧消化过程中,化学反应生成磷酸盐沉淀的除磷作用十分显著,污泥中正磷酸盐,与铁结合的磷化合物（Fe-RP）,还原可溶性磷,与钙、镁离子结合的磷化合物（Ca-RP、Mg-RP）以及无机或有机聚合磷增加量分别为0.027 8～0.101 5、0.013 5～0.081 0、0.2165～0.430 5、23.4～54.8和7.2～21.5 mg.g-1;且总体而言,HRT越长,污泥中与不同金属结合的磷增加量就越大。从HRT、磷和有机物的去除效果以及沼气产气速率3个方面综合考虑,猪场废水厌氧消化反应器的HRT控制在3 d为宜。