DNA Heat Treatment for Improving qPCR Analysis of Human Adenovirus in Wastewater

PCR inhibitory substances in complex sample matrices can cause false negatives or under-estimation of target concentration. This study assessed DNA heat treatment for reducing inhibition during qPCR analysis of human adenovirus (HAdV) in wastewater samples. Inhibition was reduced by heat treating DNA, where mean HAdV concentration was increased by 0.71 log₁₀ GC/L (and up to 3.04 log₁₀ GC/L in one case), and replicate variability and false negatives were reduced. DNA heat treatment should be further investigated for improving reliability of HAdV concentration estimates in water, which can support more accurate assessment of health risks associated with viral pathogen exposure.     

Assessment and Evaluation of an Integrated Hybrid Anaerobic–Aerobic Sewage Treatment System for the Removal of Enteric Viruses

The capability of a cost-effective and a small size decentralized pilot wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) to remove enteric viruses such as rotavirus, norovirus genogroup I (GGI), norovirus genogroup II (GGII), Hepatitis E virus (HEV), and adenovirus was studied. This pilot plant is an integrated hybrid anaerobic/aerobic setup which consisted of anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB), biological aerated filter (BAF), and inclined plate settler (IPS). Both the UASB and BAF are packed with a non-woven polyester fabric (NWPF). Results indicated that the overall log₁₀ reductions of enteric viruses’ genome copies through the whole system were 3.1 ± 1, 3.3 ± 0.5, and 2.6 ± 0.9 log₁₀ for rotavirus, norovirus GGI, and adenovirus, respectively. Reduction efficiency for both norovirus GGII and HEV after the different treatment steps could not be calculated because there were no significant numbers of positive samples for both viruses. The overall reduction of rotavirus infectious units through the whole system was 2.2 ± 0.8 log₁₀ reduction which is very close to the overall log₁₀ reduction of adenovirus infectious units through the whole system which was 2.1 ± 0.8 log₁₀ reduction. There was no considerable difference in the removal efficiency for different rotavirus G and P types. Adenovirus 41 was the only type detected in the all positive samples. Although the pilot WWTP investigated is cost effective, has a small footprint, does not need a long distance network pipes, and easy to operate, its efficiency to remove enteric viruses is comparable with the conventional centralized WWTPs.     

生物陶粒反应器的氢自养反硝化研究

利用氢自养反硝化生物陶粒反应器处理硝酸盐废水,探讨了生物陶粒反应器中氢自养反硝化生物脱氮的实现过程.考察了水力停留时间、进水硝氮负荷、进水pH值、温度、供氢量等因素对反应器脱氮效果的影响.结果表明,当水力停留时间为24 h和48 h时,反应器对硝酸氮的平均去除率分别达到94.54%和97.47%.在水力停留时间为5~16 h时,NO-3-N去除率随水力停留时间的缩短而降低;进水NO-3-N浓度较低时,NO-3-N的降解速率随其浓度的升高而增大,当NO-3-N浓度大于110mg·L-1时,氢自养反硝化反应受到抑制;中偏碱性环境较酸性或碱性环境更利于反应器对硝酸盐的去除;反应器有较宽的温度适应范围,最适温度为25~30℃;当反应器供氢不足时,脱氮效果明显降低,表明了氢自养反硝化菌对氢气利用的专一性.在整个运行阶段,出水中亚硝酸氮浓度一直保持在较低水平.     

水环境中典型纳米颗粒对菲的吸附特征

以典型三环多环芳烃菲为代表,选取11种典型纳米颗粒对水中不同浓度的菲进行吸附实验,探究水体中的纳米颗粒对菲的吸附特征.结果表明,Freundlich模型对所有样品的拟合结果最好.logKFr值显示,有机膨润土及3种炭黑对菲的吸附作用最强,且远远大于其他纳米颗粒.有机膨润土对菲的吸附表现为线性吸附(n=1.08),而3种炭黑均表现出显著的非线性特征(n＜0.5),且非线性特征随吸附能力的增强而增强,其他几种纳米颗粒均表现出非线性吸附特征(n＜0.9).水中所有的纳米颗粒在与菲作用的过程中,吸附的强弱与颗粒表面电位、粒径及比表面积均无显著相关性,即对于所有纳米颗粒来说,这几种性质并不是决定吸附作用的最主要因素,而吸附剂的化学组成及结构特性可能是引起吸附作用差异的主要原因.     

汽油在西北黄土上吸附特性的研究

通过动力学和热力学吸附实验,研究了汽油在西北地区黄土上的吸附行为,同时研究了提取的天然腐植酸对汽油在黄土上吸附行为的影响.结果表明,汽油在黄土上的吸附在6h内达到平衡.无论是否加入腐植酸,汽油在黄土上的吸附动力学过程均符合Elovich方程,其热力学吸附符合Freundlich方程.腐植酸的存在使汽油在黄土上的吸附能力减小.反应温度从25℃升高到45 C,汽油在土壤上的饱和吸附量从6.300mg·g-1减小到1.365 mg·g-1,表明汽油在黄土上的吸附属于放热反应.溶液pH和土壤粒径的增大,均不利于汽油在黄土上的吸附,溶液pH和土壤粒径越大,其在黄土上的吸附量越小.另外,在室温下对吸附了汽油的土壤样品和纯汽油挥发行为的研究表明,吸附了汽油的土壤样品的汽油挥发比纯汽油慢,其挥发率与时间成对数关系.     

聚磷污泥去除高浓度铅的影响因素研究

利用聚磷活性污泥去除废水中的铅[ρ(Pb2+)=150.0 mg·L-1],研究了反应体系内不同溶解氧状况和初始pH值对污泥除铅的效率和稳定性的影响.结果表明,厌氧条件下,pH 6时,铅的去除率随时间增长呈上升趋势,32 d后铅去除率达99.8%,其中有机物及硫化物结合态铅、残渣态分别占41.8%和52.6%,污泥中铅的稳定性良好.好氧条件下,在相对较短时间内铅的去除率随pH上升而增加,反应2 h时,pH 6、pH 4和pH 2对应的铅的去除率分别为99.9%、96.9%和30.3%;而好氧32 d后pH 6、pH 4和pH 2的污泥中残渣态铅含量分别为3 072.3、4 726.8和2 359.1 mg·kg-1,分别占污泥中总铅的41.8%、65.8%和88.8%.综合考虑除铅率和除铅后污泥稳定性,好氧且pH 4理论上是聚磷污泥除铅的最佳条件.     

Investigation of low-molecular weight organic acids and their spatiotemporal variation characteristics in Hongfeng Lake, China

The identities and concentrations of low-molecular-weight organic acids (LMWOAs) were determined by ion chromatography throughout a 20-m water column in Hongfeng Lake, China. The spatiotemporal variations of LMWOAs and their contributions to dissolved organic matter (DOM) in a research period of 24 hr were also investigated. The results demonstrated that five LMWOAs (lactic, acetic, pyruvic, sorbic, oxalic acid) were detected, and their total concentration and proportion in DOC were 6.55 μmol/L and 7.47%. Their average levels were 2.50, 0.65, 2.35, 0.96 and 0.09 μmol/L, respectively. LMWOAs were higher during daytime (10:00-18:00 on Jun 13, 2008) than nighttime (21:00-6:00 the next morning), in particular 4.99 μmol/L high in the epilimnion ( 1 m water depth), reflecting the fact that direct import from terrigenous sources and photochemical production from humic materials were dominant during LMWOAs’ origin and accumulation. The same factors caused LMWOAs to be 0.63 μmol/L in the epilimnion higher than in the hypolimnion. The rapid decrease of total organic acid (TOA) up until 18:00 mainly resulted from bio-uptake and mineralization in the hypolimnion (>1 m water depth). Pyruvic acid increased with time in the epilimnion and decreased in the hypolimnion, largely related to the two contrary processes of continuous degradation and synthesis of macromolecular organic matter during life materials’ cycle mediated by organisms. Simultaneously, plankton behavior and thermal stratification played a pivotal role in LMWOAs’ behavior in the water column, causing decreasing and increasing profiles. The distribution of LMWOAs represents an interesting resource for biogeochemical research of DOM in aquatic ecosystems.     

Cost-performance analysis of nutrient removal in a full-scale oxidation ditch process based on kinetic modeling

A full-scale oxidation ditch process for treating sewage was simulated with the ASM2d model and optimized for minimal cost with acceptable performance in terms of ammonium and phosphorus removal. A unified index was introduced by integrating operational costs (aeration energy and sludge production) with effluent violations for performance evaluation. Scenario analysis showed that,in comparison with the baseline (all of the 9 aerators activated), the strategy of activating 5 aerators could save aeration energy significantly with an ammonium violation below 10%. Sludge discharge scenario analysis showed that a sludge discharge flow of 250–300 m3/day (solid retention time (SRT), 13–15 days) was appropriate for the enhancement of phosphorus removal without excessive sludge production. The proposed optimal control strategy was: activating 5 rotating disks operated with a mode of "111100100" ( "1"represents activation and "0" represents inactivation) for aeration and sludge discharge flow of 200 m3/day (SRT, 19 days). Compared with the baseline, this strategy could achieve ammonium violation below 10% and TP violation below 30% with substantial reduction of aeration energy cost (46%) and minimal increment of sludge production (< 2%). This study provides a useful approach for the optimization of process operation and control.