Banu Örmeci

Development of an improved synthetic sludge: a possible surrogate for studying activated sludge dewatering characteristics

Abstract Activated sludge is a complex mixture of inert suspended solids, various microorganisms, and extracellular material. Research on the physical characteristics of activated sludge is complicated because the living microorganisms continuously change sludge characteristics, making it almost impossible to carry out controlled experiments or reproduce test results. Therefore, in dewatering, settling and conditioning studies of activated sludge, there is a clear need for an activated sludge surrogate that is chemically well defined, stable, and successfully represents activated sludge properties. One such chemical surrogate, named “synthetic sludge”, suggested by Sanin and Vesilind [Sanin, F. D. and Vesilind, P. A. (1996) Synthetic sludge: a physical/chemical model in understanding bioflocculation. Water Environ. Res. 68 (2), 927–933] is composed of polystyrene latex particles, alginate, and calcium ions. In this sludge the polystyrene latex particles simulate individual bacteria, and alginate simulates extracellular material tied into a matrix with the calcium. However, one important component, something to simulate the filamentous microorganisms, is missing. The lack of filaments in the synthetic sludge causes the flocs to be weaker and smaller than activated sludge flocs. In this study synthetic sludge is improved by adding cellulose fibers to simulate the filamentous microorganisms found in activated sludge. The addition of cellulose results in the formation of strong flocs, improving the dewaterability and settleability of synthetic sludge.

Laboratory study of NO flux from agricultural soil: Effects of soil moisture, pH, and temperature

Unique laboratory test chambers with attendant procedures are described, and the results of a comprehensive test protocol are discussed in terms of the mechanical, chemical and biological factors contributing to NO flux from agricultural soil to the lower levels of the troposphere. Soil moisture content, pH, and temperature are investigated to determine the effects of these important variables on NO flux. The flux is seen to increase with temperature and is greatest at pH 8 for the ranges studied. Further, NO flux is seen to decrease as soil moisture content is 45% water filled pore space. Mechanical, chemical, and biological factors in the soil which contribute to these observed fluxes are addressed.

Application of molecularly imprinted and non-imprinted polymers for removal of emerging contaminants in water and wastewater treatment: a review.

Over the past decade, several studies have reported trace levels of endocrine disrupting compounds, pharmaceuticals, and personal care products in surface waters, drinking water, and wastewater effluents. There has also been an increased concern about the ecological and human health impact of these contaminants, and their removal from water and wastewater has become a priority. Traditional treatment processes are limited in their ability to remove emerging contaminants from water, and there is a need for new technologies that are effective and feasible. This paper presents a review on recent research results on molecularly imprinted (MIP) and non-imprinted (NIP) polymers and evaluates their potential as a treatment method for the removal of emerging contaminants from water and wastewater. It also discusses the relative benefits and limitations of using MIP or NIP for water and wastewater treatment. MIP, and in particular NIP, offer promising applications for wastewater treatment, but their toxicity and possible health effects should be carefully studied before they are considered for drinking water treatment. More research is also required to determine how best to incorporate MIP and NIP in treatment plants.

Freeze-thaw treatment of RBC sludge from a remote mining exploration facility in subarctic Canada.

Freeze-thaw conditioning of RBC (Rotating Biological Contactor) sludge was tested using a pilot-scale freezing bed placed in a mobile freezer operated at -10°C. Sludge samples from a remote mining exploration facility were flown in every 2 weeks, and added to the freezing bed in 8 layers of 10 cm thick. Approximately 4 months after the first layer of sludge was added, the pilot unit was removed from the freezer and thawed at ambient temperatures. After one day of thawing, the solids concentration increased from 2.6% to 16.2%. The final cake solids concentration was 21%. Melt water had increasing turbidity, COD, TSS, VSS, nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations during the thawing period. Freeze-thaw conditioning also decreased the initial densities of fecal coliforms and Salmonella in sludge. The results of this study showed that freeze-thaw technology successfully dewatered RBC sludge without the need for mechanical equipment, and is a sustainable option for sludge dewatering in cold and remote regions.

Field study of moving bed biofilm reactor technology for post-treatment of wastewater lagoon effluent at 1°C

The goal of this study was to investigate the potential use of moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR) systems as ammonia removal post-treatment units for wastewater (WW) treatment lagoons that demonstrate large temperature changes throughout their operational year (1−20°C). The study was carried out over a six-month period using laboratory-scale MBBR reactors fed with incoming effluent from a full-scale lagoon. The study shows that significant average ammonia removal rates of 0.26 and 0.11 kg N/m3·d were achieved at 20°C and 1°C. The increase in the ammonia removal rates with increasing temperature from 1°C to 20°C showed a strong correlation to an applied temperature correction coefficient model. No significant accumulation of effluent nitrite was observed at 1°C or after being fed with synthetic wastewater (SWW); indicating that cold temperatures and transitions from real WW to SWW did not stress the nitrifiers. Furthermore, the study demonstrates that changes in temperature or changes from real WW to SWW do not affect the mass of biofilm attached per MBBR carrier. Hence, based on the results of this study, it is concluded that MBBR is a promising technology for post-treatment ammonia removal of WW lagoon effluent.

Effect of enzymes on anaerobic digestion of primary sludge and septic tank performance

Enzyme additives are believed to improve septic tank performance by increasing the hydrolysis and digestion rates and maintaining a healthy microbial population. Previous studies reported mixed results on the effectiveness of enzymes on mesophilic and thermophilic digestion, and it is not clear whether enzymes would be effective under septic tank conditions where there is no heating or mixing, quantities of enzymes added are small, and they can be washed out quickly. In this study, batch reactors and continuous-flow reactors designed and operated as septic tanks were used to evaluate whether enzymatic treatment would increase the hydrolysis and digestion rates in primary sludge. Total solids, volatile solids, total suspended solids, total and soluble chemical oxygen demand, concentrations of protein, carbohydrate, ammonia and volatile acids in sludge and effluent samples were measured to determine the differences in digestion rates in the presence and absence of enzymes. Overall, no significant improvement was observed in enzyme-treated reactors compared with the control reactors.

Measurement of additional shear during sludge conditioning and dewatering.

Optimum polymer dose is influenced both by the polymer demand of the sludge and the shear applied during conditioning. Sludge exposed to additional shear following conditioning will experience a decrease in cake solids concentration for the same polymer dose. Therefore, it is necessary to measure or quantify the additional shear in order to optimize the conditioning and dewatering. There is currently no direct or indirect method to achieve this. The main objective of this study was to develop a method based on torque rheology to measure the amount of shear that a sludge network experiences during conditioning and dewatering. Anaerobically digested sludge samples were exposed to increasing levels of mixing intensities and times, and rheological characteristics of samples were measured using a torque rheometer. Several rheological parameters were evaluated including the peak torque and totalized torque (area under the rheograms). The results of this study show that at the optimum polymer dose, a linear relationship exists between the applied shear and the area under the rheograms, and this relationship can be used to estimate an unknown amount of shear that the sludge was exposed to. The method is useful as a research tool to study the effect of shear on dewatering but also as an optimization tool in a dewatering automation system based on torque rheology.

UV-induced self-aggregation of E. coli after low and medium pressure ultraviolet irradiation.

Presence of aggregated bacteria has been shown to decrease the efficacy of ultraviolet (UV) disinfection and there is some indication that UV irradiation may promote aggregation of bacteria among themselves. This study aims to provide an in-depth understanding of the effect of UV light on inducing self-aggregation of Escherichia coli bacteria by using microscopy and particle counter analysis techniques. The bacteria were observed and quantified before and after UV irradiation by employing size and concentration parameters. Four doses of low-pressure (LP) UV irradiation, 20, 40, 60 and 80 mJ/cm(2), and two doses of medium-pressure (MP) UV irradiation, 40 and 80 mJ/cm(2), were tested. At all LP UV doses tested, a significant increase in particle size was observed following UV exposure, indicating UV-induced self-aggregation. However, the magnitude of UV dose did not seem to have an impact. In the MP UV experiments, only a dose of 80 mJ/cm(2) had a significant impact on the formation of aggregates upon UV exposure. Changing the light intensity and exposure time to deliver the same LP UV dose resulted in different levels of aggregation. The results indicated that UV light intensity and wavelength may play a role in aggregation of bacteria.

Development of a sensitive and false-positive free PMA-qPCR viability assay to quantify VBNC Escherichia coli and evaluate disinfection performance in wastewater effluent

The detection and quantification of viable Escherichia coli cells in wastewater treatment plant effluent is very important as it is the main disinfection efficacy parameter for assessing its public health risk and environmental impact. The aim of this study was to develop a sensitive and false-positive free propidium monoazide-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PMA-qPCR) assay to quantify the viable but non-culturable (VBNC) E. coli present in secondary wastewater effluent after chlorine disinfection. The qPCR target was the E. coli uidA gene, and native Taq was used to eliminate false positives caused by the presence of contaminant E. coli DNA in recombinant Taq polymerase reagents. Due to issues with qPCR inhibitors in wastewater, this study explored several pre-DNA extraction treatment methods for qPCR inhibitor removal. PMA-qPCR validation was done using salmon testes DNA (Sketa DNA) as an exogenous control added directly to the wastewater samples and amplified using a separate qPCR assay. After disinfection of secondary effluent with 2ppm chlorine at the plant, the mean Log10 CFU reduction in E. coli was 2.85 from a mean CFU of 3.48/10mL compared to 0.21 Log10 CCE mean reduction of the uidA gene from a mean CCE of 3.16/10mL. The VBNC cell concentrations were calculated as 2.32 Log10/10mL by subtracting the colony forming units (CFU) obtained from membrane filtration from the calculated CFU equivalent (CCE) values obtained from PMA-qPCR. These results demonstrate the effective use of a PMA-qPCR method for the quantification of the E. coli uidA gene and indicate there are high numbers (2.01×103CCE/100mL) of VBNC E. coli cells leaving the wastewater treatment plant in the final effluent after chlorine treatment. VBNC bacterial cells are of concern as they have the potential to resuscitate and grow, regain virulence, affect natural microbiome in the discharge sites, and pass on antimicrobial resistant genes to other microorganisms.

A Review of Challenges and Recent Progress in Supercritical Water Oxidation of Wastewater

Supercritical water oxidation (SCWO) is a promising wastewater treatment technology. It has high destruction efficiency for a broad range of organic wastes and only produces harmless end products. However, corrosion, salt deposition and plugging, and high energy consumption and operating costs have, to a great extent, restricted the successful commercialization of SCWO process. This paper first reviews the main challenges in SCWO technology, along with their comprehensive solutions. Then, the recent research progress and applications of the most common and effective methods for solving SCWO problems are examined, with the focus put on reactor material modification, advanced reactor design, energy/product recovery, and catalysis.