Dairy washwater treatment using a horizontal flow biofilm system

In Ireland, dairy farmyard washwater commonly comprises farmyard run-off and dairy parlour washings. Land-spreading is the most widely used method for treating this wastewater. However, this method can be labour intensive and can cause, in some cases, the degradation of surface and ground waters, mainly due to nitrogen contamination. In this study, a horizontal flow biofilm reactor (HFBR) with step-feed was constructed and tested in the laboratory, to remove organic carbon and nitrogen from a agricultural strength synthetic washwater (SWW). The HFBR had an average top plan surface area (TPSA) of 0.1002 m(2) and consisted of a stack of 45 polystyrene horizontal sheets--15 sheets embedded with 25 mm deep frustums above 30 sheets with 10 mm deep frustums. The frustums acted as miniature reservoirs. The sheets were alternately offset to allow the wastewater to flow horizontally along each sheet and vertically from sheet to sheet down through the reactor. Biofilms developed on the sheets and treated the wastewater. During the 212-d study, the total hydraulic loading rate based on the TPSA of the sheets was 35 l m(-2) d(-1). SWW was pumped for 10 min each hour, in a step feed arrangement at a rate of 23.33 l m(-2) d(-1) on to the top sheet during Phases 1 and 2, and 11.67 l m(-2) d(-1) onto Sheet 16 during Phase 1 (days 1-92) and onto Sheet 30 during Phase 2 (days 93-212). The substrate loading rate during Phases 1 and 2 was 94.8 g total chemical oxygen demand (COD) m(-2) d(-1) and 10.5 g total nitrogen (TN) m(-2) d(-1), based on the TPSA. At steady state in Phase 2, the unit achieved excellent carbon removal of 99.7% 5-day biochemical oxygen demand (BOD(5)) and 96.7% total COD, equivalent to TPSA removal rates of 67.5 g BOD(5)m(-2)d(-1) and 91.7 g COD m(-2) d(-1). The nitrogen removal percentages were 98.3% total ammonium-nitrogen (NH(4)-N(t)) and 72.8% TN, which equated to TPSA removal rates of 4.8 g NH(4)-N(t) m(-2) d(-1) and 7.6g TN m(-2) d(-1). No sloughing of solids or clogging of media occurred during the study. The unit was simple to construct and operate, with little maintenance.     

SHORT TERM BENTHIC COLONIZATION DYNAMICS IN AN AGRICULTURAL STREAM RECOVERING FROM SLAUGHTERHOUSE EFFLUENTS1

ABSTRACT: The purpose of this study was to assess short term, macroinvertebrate colonization dynamics and biofilm accumulation in two agricultural streams, one of which had been recently exposed to chronic, intermittent organic effluents from a slaughterhouse. During the winter and summer, macroinvertebrates and biofilm were collected from brick substrates from four or three sites in the streams on a geometric time schedule (1, 2, 4, 8, 16, and 32 days of exposure). Invertebrate total densities stabilized quickly, but the mass of biofilm increased throughout the study periods. Invertebrate community indices (diversity, evenness, dominance, richness) differed between the unaffected, “agricultural reference” sites and the affected sites, below the point source. All sites were dominated by Baetis bicaudatus (mayfly), Hydrobia sp. (gastropod), and Dugesia tigrina (Turbellaria). Response of these taxa differed between seasons and exposure to organic effluents. Stream invertebrate colonization processes showed evidence of the perturbation after the inflow of organic effluents had stopped from the slaughterhouse. Chronic organic enrichment reduced the species richness in the potential pool of colonists. Three months after the organic inputs had stopped, colonization timing and community structure was not yet at levels evident in reference and upstream sites.     

电活性生物膜阳极构建及其对2，4，6-三氯酚同步降解和产电

为实现氯酚（CPs）的高效降解和资源化利用,探究微生物燃料电池（MFC）体系优势功能菌,揭示生物降解路径.接种、驯化长春市南郊污水处理厂的厌氧活性污泥,获得生物膜阳极以构筑MFC-2,4,6-TCP体系,基于扫描电子电镜（SEM）、16S rRNA分析测序方法,考察生物膜阳极微生物的附着情况和优势菌种,基于电化学阻抗（EIS）、循环伏安（CV）和线性扫描伏安（LSV）等电化学分析手段,表征生物阳极的电化学性能和氧化还原能力.结果表明,生物膜阳极微生物种类丰富,其中Geobacter和Acinetobacter分别为MFC-2,4,6-TCP体系产电和降解驯化期的优势功能菌,体系最大输出电压可达0.55 V,最大功率密度为428.65 mW·m-2,对2,4,6-TCP的降解和矿化率可达97.5%和85.4%.随着MFC循环次数的增加,微生物代谢途径多样化,产电菌逐渐演替为协同菌,且优势功能菌对2,4,6-TCP降解的中间产物（环己醇）,其毒性远低于氯酚或苯酚,更利于被微生物利用.该结果可为氯酚废水的实际处理提供新策略和技术参考.     

3种填料A.ferrooxidans挂膜效果及对模拟酸性矿山废水中Fe2+生物矿化能力比较

氧化亚铁硫杆菌（A.ferrooxidans）介导的生物矿化方法可促使酸性矿山废水（Acid Mine Drainage,AMD）中Fe离子向次生铁矿物转变. 采用固定化的方式来提高A.ferrooxidans密度有助于强化Fe²⁺的生物矿化能力.选取流化床19孔填料、弹性填料、悬浮球填料作为挂膜对象, 通过多批次的连续培养来考察3种填料的A.ferrooxidans挂膜能力及稳定挂膜所需周期,继而比较3种挂膜填料对模拟AMD中Fe²⁺的生物矿化能力,并估算A.ferrooxidans有效生物量.结果表明,3种填料（5.00 g）的A.ferrooxidans挂膜能力依次为弹性填料（1.76 g）＞流化床19孔填料（0.90 g）＞悬浮球填料（0.78 g）（干重）,且挂膜启动至稳定状态至少需要4批次.X射线衍射分析（X-ray diffraction,XRD）表明,3种填料表面 含矿生物膜均为施氏矿物和黄钾铁矾的混合物.以游离态A.ferrooxidans的Fe²⁺氧化速率作为参比,估算出流化床19孔填料、弹性填料、悬浮球填料生物膜中A.ferrooxidans有效生物量依次为1.67×10⁸、8.52×10⁸、1.92×10⁸ cells·g^-1 （干基）.研究还发现,等同Fe²⁺生物氧化速率下, A.ferrooxidans挂膜填料比游离态A.ferrooxidans具有更强的AMD矿化驱动能力.     

Enhanced metronidazole removal by binary-species photoelectrogenic biofilm of microaglae and anoxygenic phototrophic bacteria

High efficient removal of antibiotics during nutriments recovery for biomass production poses a major technical challenge for photosynthetic microbial biofilm-based wastewater treatment since antibiotics are always co-exist with nutriments in wastewater and resist biodegradation due to their strong biotoxicity and recalcitrance. In this study, we make a first attempt to enhance metronidazole (MNZ) removal from wastewater using electrochemistry-activated binary-species photosynthetic biofilm of Rhodopseudomonas Palustris (R. Palustris) and Chlorella vulgaris (C. vulgaris) by cultivating them under different applied potentials. The results showed that application of external potentials of -0.3, 0 and 0.2 V led to 11, 33 and 26-fold acceleration in MNZ removal, respectively, as compared to that of potential free. The extent of enhancement in MNZ removal was positively correlated to the intensities of photosynthetic current produced under different externally applied potentials. The binary-species photoelectrogenic biofilm exhibited 18 and 6-fold higher MNZ removal rate than that of single-species of C. vulgaris and R. Palustris, respectively, due to the enhanced metabolic interaction between them. Application of an external potential of 0V significantly promoted the accumulation of tryptophan and tyrosine-like compounds as well as humic acid in extracellular polymeric substance, whose concentrations were 7.4, 7.1 and 2.0-fold higher than those produced at potential free, contributing to accelerated adsorption and reductive and photosensitive degradation of MNZ.     

Biofilm-overproducing Bacillus subtilis B12ΔYwcc decreases Cd uptake in Chinese cabbage through increasing Cd-immobilizing related gene abundance and root surface colonization

Biofilm-producing bacteria can decrease Cd uptake in vegetables, but mechanisms underlying this effect are poorly characterized. In this study, two mutant strains B12ΔYwcc and B12ΔSlrR were constructed from a biofilm-producing Bacillus subtilis strain B12. Then, the impacts of strain B12 and its high biofilm-producing mutant strain B12ΔYwcc and low biofilm-producing mutant strain B12ΔSlrR on Cd availability and uptake in Chinese cabbage and the related mechanisms were investigated in the Cd-polluted soil. Strain B12 and its mutants B12ΔYwcc and B12ΔSlrR increased the dry biomasses of edible tissues by 54%–130% compared with the controls. Strain B12 and its mutant B12ΔYwcc reduced the soil available Cd content by 36%–50% and root and edible tissue Cd contents by 23%–50% compared with the controls. Furthermore, the mutant strain B12ΔYwcc reduced the edible tissue Cd content by 40% and increased the polysaccharide content by 23%, invertase activity by 139%, and gene copies of the cumA by 4.5-fold, epsA by 7.1-fold, and cadA by 4.3-fold, which were involved in Cd adsorption in the rhizosphere soils, respectively, compared with strain B12. The polysaccharide content and cumA, epsA, and cadA gene copy numbers showed significantly reverse correlations with the available Cd content. Notably, the mutant strain B12ΔYwcc showed better ability to colonize the vegetable root surface than strain B12. These findings demonstrated that the biofilm-overproducing mutant strain B12ΔYwcc increased the polysaccharide production and Cd-immobilizing related cumA, epsA, and cadA gene copies, resulting in lower Cd availability and accumulation in Chinese cabbage in the Cd-polluted soil.     

长江原水臭氧-生物活性炭挂膜中试研究

为了探究面向长江水源的臭氧-生物活性炭深度处理工艺的挂膜技术,进行了长江原水常州段的臭氧-生物活性炭挂膜中试研究.结果表明,在挂膜前期,由于炭柱的物理吸附作用逐渐饱和,炭柱对DOC(溶解性有机碳)、UV_(254)和COD_(Mn)(高锰酸盐指数)的去除率逐渐降低,对氨氮几乎没有去除,在挂膜中后期,由于活性炭上生物膜逐渐成熟,生物降解起主导作用,有机物和氨氮去除率升高并趋于稳定.90 d后,炭柱对DOC、UV_(254)和COD_(Mn)这3个有机物指标的去除率分别稳定在30.64%、57.50%和30.00%以上,氨氮去除率稳定在88.93%左右,认为挂膜成功.扫描电镜图显示活性炭表面出现丰富的菌胶团,同时高通量测序也验证了活性炭中丰富多样的微生物群落结构.     

给水管网多相界面中微生物表面疏水性研究

采用疾病控制中心（CDC）生物膜反应器模拟给水管网系统,选取聚氯乙烯（PVC）和聚碳酸酯（PC）2种材质的挂片,通过微生物粘附碳氢化合物（MATH）实验和Illumina高通量测序相结合的方法,对反应器水相、生物膜相和颗粒物相中微生物的疏水性进行了研究.结果显示,PVC材质挂片反应器中优势菌为厚壁菌门,相对丰度为68.31%~81.00%,PC材质挂片反应器中优势菌为变形菌门,相对丰度为24.39%~64.40%.PVC材质挂片反应器中优势菌包含3类致病菌,PC材质挂片反应器中包含8类致病菌.PC材质挂片生物膜相较于PVC材质疏水性更高,利于微生物吸附形成生物膜,而PVC材质不易形成生物膜,对控制输送过程中的二次污染具有积极作用,但在管网实际应用中还应考虑其他工程因素的影响.     

温度和DO对MBBR系统硝化和反硝化的影响

在缺氧/好氧/好氧串联运行的移动床生物膜反应器（MBBR）系统中考察了温度和好氧反应器中溶解氧（DO）水平对生物膜硝化和反硝化过程氮素去除的影响,并通过高通量测序技术探究温度和DO的变化造成的MBBR系统中脱氮功能菌群结构的差异,从而在微观水平解释硝化和反硝化受温度和DO影响的生物学机理.结果表明,系统温度的升高可以同时强化生物膜硝化和反硝化过程,且好氧反应器中DO水平的提高对硝化过程有利,从而提高系统的脱氮效果.本研究中,在系统连续运行阶段,当系统温度和好氧O₁反应器的DO浓度为本研究范围内的最高水平时（即温度=20~22℃、DO=5~8mg O₂/L）,比硝化负荷可达1.60g NH₄⁺-N/（m²·d）以上,而相同温度范围内比反硝化负荷可高达2.84g NO₃^--N/（m²·d）,从而使MBBR系统在该工况条件下获得了最佳的NH₄⁺-N和TN去除率（分别达到了98.7%和85.7%）.温度和DO影响硝化和反硝化的根本原因是温度和DO变化引起了脱氮功能菌群数量和群落结构的改变：当好氧反应器的DO水平下降时,硝化功能细菌的OTUs比例显著降低,尤其是异养硝化细菌的生长受到了严重的抑制;而温度的变化对反硝化细菌的影响主要体现在群落结构的变化.     

聚苯乙烯微塑料对铜绿假单胞菌生物膜形成和结构变化的影响

微塑料在水环境中的污染情况日益严重,对水生生物的生长发育造成严重影响,而目前有关微塑料对生物膜形成影响机制的研究十分有限.为探究聚苯乙烯微塑料（PS-MPs）对铜绿假单胞菌生物膜形成发育的影响,选用不同浓度和粒径PS-MPs进行暴露试验,研究其对生物膜内生物量、氧化应激水平、生物膜结构和群体感应系统的影响.结果表明,PS-MPs诱导严重氧化应激反应并抑制生物膜形成和发育,粒径越小,产生的抑制作用越强烈,抑制效果表现为0.1 μm>0.5 μm≈1 μm>5 μm.PS-MPs通过与细胞接触造成严重物理损伤,形成的生物膜厚度显著减小且结构稳定性遭到破坏,膜内细菌通过分泌胞外聚合物来抵御PS-MPs的胁迫作用.PS-MPs进一步通过干扰铜绿假单胞菌群体感应系统,下调关键基因lasI、lasR、rhlI和rhlR的表达水平,抑制信号分子和相关毒力因子的合成与分泌,降低细菌对毒性作用的防御功能,最终影响生物膜形成和结构稳定性.