Coagulant recovery from water treatment plant sludge and reuse in post-treatment of UASB reactor effluent treating municipal wastewater

In the present study, feasibility of recovering the coagulant from water treatment plant sludge with sulphuric acid and reusing it in post-treatment of upflow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactor effluent treating municipal wastewater were studied. The optimum conditions for coagulant recovery from water treatment plant sludge were investigated using response surface methodology (RSM). Sludge obtained from plants that use polyaluminium chloride (PACl) and alum coagulant was utilised for the study. Effect of three variables, pH, solid content and mixing time was studied using a Box–Behnken statistical experimental design. RSM model was developed based on the experimental aluminium recovery, and the response plots were developed. Results of the study showed significant effects of all the three variables and their interactions in the recovery process. The optimum aluminium recovery of 73.26 and 62.73 % from PACl sludge and alum sludge, respectively, was obtained at pH of 2.0, solid content of 0.5 % and mixing time of 30 min. The recovered coagulant solution had elevated concentrations of certain metals and chemical oxygen demand (COD) which raised concern about its reuse potential in water treatment. Hence, the coagulant recovered from PACl sludge was reused as coagulant for post-treatment of UASB reactor effluent treating municipal wastewater. The recovered coagulant gave 71 % COD, 80 % turbidity, 89 % phosphate, 77 % suspended solids and 99.5 % total coliform removal at 25 mg Al/L. Fresh PACl also gave similar performance but at higher dose of 40 mg Al/L. The results suggest that coagulant can be recovered from water treatment plant sludge and can be used to treat UASB reactor effluent treating municipal wastewater which can reduce the consumption of fresh coagulant in wastewater treatment.     

A new bioseed for determination of wastewater biodegradability: analysis of the experimental procedure

A new bioassay proposed in the patent P201300029 was applied to a pre-treated wastewater containing a mixture of commercial pesticides to simulate a recalcitrant industrial wastewater in order to determine its biodegradability. The test uses a mixture of standardized inoculum of the lyophilized bacteria Pseudomonas putida with the proper proportion of salts and minerals. The results highlight that biodegradation efficiency can be calculated using a gross parameter (chemical oxygen demand (COD)) which facilitates the biodegradability determination for routine water biodegradability analysis. The same trend was observed throughout the assay with the dehydrated and fresh inoculums, and only a difference of 5 % in biodegradation efficiency (E _f) was observed. The obtained results showed that the P. putida biodegradability assay can be used as a commercial test with a lyophilized inoculum in order to monitor the ready biodegradability of an organic pollutant or a WWTP influent. Moreover, a combination of the BOD₅/COD ratio and the P. putida biodegradability test is an attractive alternative in order to evaluate the biodegradability enhancement in water pre-treated with advanced oxidation processes (AOPs).     

Chitosan/Hydrophilic Plasticizer-Based Films: Preparation,Physicochemical and Antimicrobial Properties

The addition of plasticizers to biopolymer films is a good method for improving their physicochemical properties. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of chitosan (CHI) blended with two hydrophilic plasticizers glycerol (GLY) and sorbitol (SOR), at two concentrations (20 and 40 wt%) on their mechanical, thermal, barrier, structural, morphological and antimicrobial properties. The chitosan was prepared through the alkaline deacetylation of chitin obtained from fermented lactic from shrimp heads. The obtained chitosan had a degree of deacetylation (DA) of 84 ± 2.7 and a molecular weight of 136 kDa, which indicated that a good film had formed. The films composed of CHI and GLY (20 wt%) exhibited the best mechanical properties compared to the neat chitosan film. The percentage of elongation at break increase to over 700 % in the films that contained 40 % GLY, and these films also exhibited the highest values for the water vapor transmission rate (WVTR) of 79.6 ± 1.9 g m² h^?1 and a yellow color (b _o  = 17.9 ± 2.0) compared to the neat chitosan films (b _o  = 8.8 ± 0.8). For the structural properties, the Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray diffraction analyses revealed an interaction in the acetamide group and changes in the crystallinity of plasticized films. The scanning electron micrographs revealed that all formulations of the chitosan films were smooth, and that they did not contain aggregations, pores or microphase separation. The thermal analysis using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) revealed a glass transition temperature (Tg) of 130 °C for neat chitosan film, but the addition of SOR or GLY elicited a decrease in the temperature of the peak (120 °C). In addition, the antimicrobial activity of the chitosan films was evaluated against Listeria monocytogenes, and reached a reduction of 2 log after 24 h. The plasticizer concentration of 20 % GLY is sufficient for obtaining flexible chitosan films with good mechanical properties, and it could serve as an alternative as a packaging material to reduce environmental problems associated with synthetic packaging films.     

Space-time analysis of the Air Quality Model Evaluation International Initiative (AQMEII) Phase 1 air quality simulations

This study presents an evaluation of summertime ozone concentrations over North America (NA) and Europe (EU) using the database generated from Phase 1 of the Air Quality Model Evaluation International Initiative (AQMEII). The analysis focuses on identifying temporal and spatial features that can be used to stratify operational model evaluation metrics and to test the extent to which the various modeling systems can replicate the features seen in the observations. Using a synoptic map typing approach, it is demonstrated that model performance varies with meteorological conditions associated with specific synoptic-scale flow patterns over both eastern NA and EU. For example, the root mean square error of simulated daily maximum 8-hr ozone was twice as high when cloud fractions were high compared with when cloud fractions were low over eastern NA. Furthermore, results show that over both NA and EU the regional models participating in AQMEII were able to better reproduce the observed variance in ambient ozone levels than the global model used to specify chemical boundary conditions, although the variance simulated by almost all regional models is still less that the observed variance on all spatiotemporal scales. In addition, all modeling systems showed poor correlations with observed fluctuations on the intraday time scale over both NA and EU. Furthermore, a methodology is introduced to distinguish between locally influenced and regionally representative sites for the purpose of model evaluation. Results reveal that all models have worse model performance at locally influenced sites. Overall, the analyses presented in this paper show how observed temporal and spatial information can be used to stratify operational model performance statistics and to test the modeling systems’ ability to replicate observed temporal and spatial features, especially at scales the modeling systems are designed to capture.

Implications: The analyses presented in this paper demonstrate how observed temporal and spatial information can be used to stratify operational model performance and to test the modeling systems’ ability to replicate observed temporal and spatial features. Decisions for the improvement of regional air quality models should be based on the information derived from only regionally representative sites.     

Evaluation of heavy metal content in digestate from batch anaerobic co-digestion of sunflower hulls and poultry manure

In this experimental study, the biogas digestate from mesophilic batch anaerobic co-digestion of poultry manure and an agricultural residue, sunflower hulls, was characterized, particularly in terms of heavy metal content, in order to evaluate whether the biogas digestate was suitable for land applications. Ni, Zn, Cu, Pb, Cr, Cd, and Hg were detected in the biogas digestate in each trial, however, their concentrations were always lower than the limit values stated in Turkish regulations. The main source of heavy metals in the biogas digestate seemed to be the poultry manure, not the agricultural residue. The commercial feedstuffs that are frequently supplemented with various essential elements to promote optimum nutrient supply and optimum growth rates may have contributed to heavy metals presence in the biogas digestate. The results indicated that the biogas digestate from anaerobic co-digestion of manure and agricultural residue could be utilized as fertilizer in agricultural applications.     

Physical Properties, Photo- and Bio-degradation of Baked Foams Based on Cassava Starch, Sugarcane Bagasse Fibers and Montmorillonite

The objectives of this work were to develop biodegradable trays from cassava starch, sugarcane fibers and Na-montmorillonite (Na-MMT) using a baking process and to study the effects of these components on the physical properties, photo- and bio-degradation of the trays. The sample F20 (produced with 20 g fiber/100 g formulation) showed the maximum yield production (100 %). All formulations resulted in well-shaped trays with densities between 0.1941 and 0.2966 g/cm³. The addition of fibers and Na-MMT resulted in less dense and less rigid trays compared to control samples (only starch). The studied processing conditions resulted in good nanoclay dispersion, leading to the formation of an exfoliated structure. The evaluation of the photo-degradation stability of the trays under UV exposure for 336 h showed that a sample produced with a specific combination of fiber and nanoclay (20 g fiber and 5 g nanoclay/100 g formulation) had the highest loss in stress at break (91 %). Biodegradation assays showed that Control trays (starch) and F20 (20 g fiber/100 g formulation) lost a greater percentage of their weight after 90 days of incubation in soil, with losses of up to 85.50 and 82.70 %, respectively.     

Preparation and Characterization of Three Different Derivatized Potato Starches

The use of native starch as a thermoplastic polymer is limited by its fragility and high water absorption. Due to the presence of several hydroxyl groups in its structure, water acts as a natural plasticizer of starch, modifying its properties. It is necessary to chemically modify starch molecules by replacing hydroxyl groups with other functional groups to reduce water absorption. Chemical modification of starch granules also alters its swelling and gelatinization behavior. In this contribution we describe the chemical modification of starch and its influence on its hydrophilicity and heat resistance. Acetic acid, maleic anhydride and octanoyl chloride were used as derivatizing reagents. The effectiveness of the treatments was evaluated by means of infrared spectroscopy. Different tests were conducted in order to evaluate the influence of the different chemical modifications on starch structure and properties. Results showed that the treatments effectively reduced starch moisture susceptibility, while substantially altering other properties such as amylose content, swelling power, solubility, and heat resistance. Finally, films were prepared from native and derivatized starch and their surface polarity was evaluated.     

The characteristics of nitrate removal by the psychrotolerant denitrifying bacterium Acinetobacter johnonii DBP-3, isolated from a low-temperature eutrophic body of water

A psychrotolerant denitrifying bacterial strain, DBP-3, was isolated from a eutrophic body of water by low-temperature-oriented acclimation culture. Based on its morphologicalandbiochemicalcharacteristics and 16S rDNA gene sequence, the bacterium was identified as belonging to the genus Acinetobacter and closely related to A. johnonii. The satisfactory growth of DBP-3 was observed at 10–30°C and pH 7–9. Strain DBP-3 was able to utilize three types of carbon sources (sodium acetate > sodium citrate > glucose) to support growth and denitrification. DBP-3 grew faster, but with lower nitrate removal efficiency and higher nitrite accumulation, under aerobic conditions than under anoxic conditions. DBP-3 was extremely susceptible to tetracycline and rifampicine and less sensitive to ampicillin and penicillin. The growth of DBP-3 was significantly affected by Hg (II), Cr (VI), Pb (II), Cd (II), and As (III) at 0.32, 0.63, 1.25, 2.5, and 25.0 mg L^?1, respectively. Interestingly, chromium (VI) significantly promoted DBP-3 growth at concentrations lower than 0.32 mg L^?1. These data may be helpful to support the use of strain DBP-3 in the purification of eutrophic water bodies at low temperatures.     

Characterization of distribution of pesticide residues in crop units

The characteristic features of distribution of pesticide residues in crop units and single sample increments were studied based on more than 19,000 residue concentrations measured in root vegetables, leafy vegetables, small-, medium- and large-size fruits representing 20 different crops and 46 pesticides. Log-normal, gamma and Weibull distributions were found to provide the best fit for the relative frequency distributions of individual residue data sets. The overall best fit was provided by lognormal distribution. The relative standard deviation of residues (CV) in various crops ranged from 15–170%. The 100–120 residue values being in one data set was too small to identify potential effects of various factors such as the chemical and physical properties of pesticides and the nature of crops. Therefore, the average of CV values, obtained from individual data sets, were calculated and considered to be the best estimate for the likely variability of unit crop residues for treated field (CV = 0.8) and market samples (CV = 1.1), respectively. The larger variation of residues in market samples was attributed to the potential mixing of lots and varying proportion of non-detects. The expectable average variability of residues in composited samples can be calculated from the typical values taking into account the sample size.     

Effects of the organic matter from swine wastewater on the adsorption and desorption of alachlor in soil

The application of swine wastewater to the soil for agricultural purposes results in the addition of total and dissolved organic matter to the soil, which may interfere with the dynamics of pesticides in the soil. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of the application of total and dissolved organic matter from a biodigester and a treatment lagoon of swine wastewater in the adsorption and desorption of alachlor [2-chloro-2,6-diethyl-N(methoxymethyl acetamide)]. The assay was performed by the batch equilibrium method, and the results were fitted to the Freundlich model. The curve comparison test revealed a greater adsorption of alachlor in the soil treated with swine wastewater from the biodigester. The adsorption and desorption of alachlor increased in the soils where swine wastewater was added, and hysteresis was observed in all of the treatments.