Mustafa Evren Ersahin

A review on dynamic membrane filtration: Materials, applications and future perspectives

This paper presents a comprehensive evaluation of the current status of dynamic membrane (DM) technology as an alternative to membrane bioreactor (MBR) systems. DM filtration makes use of a physical barrier (e.g. cloth or mesh) on which a cake layer is formed. It is already used in traditional filtration systems, but applications in biological wastewater treatment are still at its infancy. Dynamic filtration of sludge has lower risk of fouling and requires less energy and lower capital costs compared to MBR. A review of the state-of-art in both DM materials and configurations is presented. Factors affecting DM performance are discussed in order to determine the optimum and critical approaches for membrane operation. Future perspectives to enhance the applicability and functionality of the technology regarding the treatment and membrane performance are presented.

Potentials of anaerobic membrane bioreactors to overcome treatment limitations induced by industrial wastewaters

This review presents a comprehensive summary on applications of anaerobic membrane bioreactor (AnMBR) technology for industrial wastewaters in view of different aspects including treatability and filterability. AnMBRs present an attractive option for the treatment of industrial wastewaters at extreme conditions, such as high salinity, high temperature, high suspended solids concentrations, and toxicity that hamper granulation and retention of biomass or reduce the biological activity. So far, most of the research has been conducted at laboratory scale; however, also a number of full-scale AnMBR systems is currently being operated worldwide. Membrane fouling, a multivariable process, is still a research quest that requires further investigation. In fact, membrane fouling and flux decline present the most important reasons that hamper the wide-spread application of full-scale reactors. This paper addresses a detailed assessment and discussion on treatability and filterability of industrial wastewaters in both lab- and full-scale AnMBR applications, the encountered problems and future opportunities.

Applicability of dynamic membrane technology in anaerobic membrane bioreactors

This study investigated the applicability of dynamic membrane technology in anaerobic membrane bioreactors for the treatment of high strength wastewaters. A monofilament woven fabric was used as support material for dynamic membrane formation. An anaerobic dynamic membrane bioreactor (AnDMBR) was operated under a variety of operational conditions, including different sludge retention times (SRTs) of 20 and 40 days in order to determine the effect of SRT on both biological performance and dynamic membrane filtration characteristics. High COD removal efficiencies exceeding 99% were achieved during the operation at both SRTs. Higher filtration resistances were measured during the operation at SRT of 40 days in comparison to SRT of 20 days, applying a stable flux of 2.6 L/m(2) h. The higher filtration resistances coincided with lower extracellular polymeric substances concentration in the bulk sludge at SRT of 40 days, likely resulting in a decreased particle flocculation. Results showed that dynamic membrane technology achieved a stable and high quality permeate and AnDMBRs can be used as a reliable and satisfactory technology for treatment of high strength wastewaters.

Impact of temperature on feed-flow characteristics and filtration performance of an upflow anaerobic sludge blanket coupled ultrafiltration membrane treating municipal wastewater.

The objective of this study was to assess the operational feasibility of an anaerobic membrane bioreactor (AnMBR), consisting of an upflow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactor coupled to an ultrafiltration membrane unit, at two operational temperatures (25°C and 15°C) for the treatment of municipal wastewater. The results showed that membrane fouling at 15°C was more severe than that at 25°C. Higher chemical oxygen demand (COD) and soluble microbial products (SMP) concentrations, lower mean particle diameter, and higher turbidity in the UASB effluent at lower temperature aggravated membrane fouling compared to the 25°C operation. However, the overall AnMBR treatment performance was not significantly affected by temperature, which was attributed to the physical membrane barrier. Cake resistance was found responsible for over 40% of the total fouling in both cases. However, an increase was observed in the contribution of pore blocking resistance at 15°C related to the larger amount of fine particles in the UASB effluent compared to 25°C. Based on the overall results, it is concluded that an AnMBR, consisting of a UASB coupled membrane unit, is not found technically feasible for the treatment of municipal wastewater at 15°C, considering the rapid deterioration of the filtration performance.

Anaerobic Treatment of Industrial Effluents: An Overview of Applications

Anaerobic treatment is an energy generating process, in contrast to aerobic systems that generally demand a high energy input for aeration purposes. It is a technically simple and relatively inexpensive technology which consumes less energy, space and produces less excess sludge in comparison to the conventional aerobic treatment technologies. Net energy production from biogas makes the anaerobic treatment technology an attractive option over other treatment methods. Increasing industrialization trend in the worldwide has resulted in the generation of industrial effluents in large quantities with high organic content, which if treated appropriately, can result in a significant source of energy. Anaerobic digestion seems to be the most suitable option for the treatment of high strength organic effluents. Anaerobic technology has improved significantly in the last few decades with the applications of differently configured high rate treatment processes, especially for the treatment of industrial wastewaters. High organic loading rates can be achieved at smaller footprints by using high rate anaerobic reactors for the treatment of industrial effluents. This chapter intends to bring together the knowledge obtained from different applications of the anaerobic technology for treatment of various types of industrial wastewaters. The first part of the chapter covers brief essential information on the fundamentals of anaerobic technology. The remainder of this chapter focuses on various anaerobic reactor configurations and operating conditions used for the treatment applications of different industrial wastewaters. Examples of applications that reflect the state-of-the-art in the treatment of industrial effluents by high rate anaerobic reactors are also provided.

Co-digestion of the organic fraction of municipal solid waste with primary sludge at a municipal wastewater treatment plant in Turkey.

Co-digestion of the organic fraction of municipal solid waste (OFMSW) and sewage sludge may be an attractive alternative for sustainable management of two separate waste streams produced in large amounts in all countries. This study evaluates calculation-based results of an anaerobic co-digestion process for primary sludge (PS) together with the OFMSW. The calculations were carried out for the anaerobic digester of Kayseri municipal wastewater treatment plant (in Turkey) presently digesting only PS. Two alternatives were proposed using different solid waste contents in co-digesters. For achieving the optimal solids content, some treated wastewater should be recycled to the inlet of the digesters. The municipal solid waste collection method characterized as mechanically sorted (MS-OFMSW; Option 1) is evaluated as well as a source sorted (SS-OFMSW) alternative (Option 2). Utilizing the energy produced by the existing sludge digester, only 30% of the internal energy demand at the wastewater treatment plant can be covered. The aim of this study is to evaluate how energy production would be increased by co-digestion of OFMSW and PS. The best operational condition considering organic loading rate, hydraulic retention time and energy generation could be attained at 10% digester solids content for both options. According to Option 1, almost 77% of the energy demand could be covered by co-digestion of MS-OFMSW and PS. Results indicated that almost 100% energy coverage can be obtained when co-digestion (Option 2) was performed according to SS-OFMSW and PS.

Characteristics and Role of Dynamic Membrane Layer in Anaerobic Membrane Bioreactors

A submerged anaerobic dynamic membrane bioreactor (AnDMBR) was operated for treatment of concentrated wastewater. The dynamic membrane (DM) or cake layer was characterized on its physicochemical and biological composition and the role of the DM layer in treatment and filtration performances was assessed. The results showed that the DM layer had an important role in organic matter removal. Both organic and inorganic materials, such as sludge particles, soluble microbial products (SMP), extracellular polymeric substances (EPS), and Ca, N, P, Mg precipitations contributed to the DM layer formation. Thus, effective retention of very small particles by the DM layer was achieved. The DM layer had higher microbial diversity and different microbial population composition in comparison to the bulk sludge. Overall, this study provided a better understanding about the DM layer structure in AnDMBRs, which might lead to increased applicability of this promising technology for the treatment of concentrated wastewaters. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2016;113: 761–771.

Effect of Support Material Properties on Dynamic Membrane Filtration Performance

A dynamic membrane is defined as a cake layer which forms on a support material, for example, filter cloth or mesh when the liquid to be filtered includes suspended particles. Formation of an effective dynamic cake layer is highly related with the retention of particles on the support material surface. Therefore, support material properties are considered to be of prime importance in the performance of dynamic membrane treatment systems. This study investigates the effect of support material properties including pore size and structure of the material on dynamic membrane formation and performance. In this concept, a comparative evaluation was made between support materials which have different yarn types. The results showed that high total suspended solids removal efficiency (>98%) could be achieved by using dynamic membrane filtration technology. Mono-monofilament and staple filter cloths were determined as the most appropriate materials in terms of the critical fluxes which were 9.2 L/m2 · h and 17–19 L/m2 · h for mono-mono filament and staple materials, respectively. However, considering the results of more long-term experiments, mono-monofilament filter cloth was found more suitable for cake layer accumulation. Therefore, we postulate that mono-monofilament cloth can be used in dynamic membrane filtration systems as an alternative to traditional membranes in anaerobic membrane bioreactors.

Long-term anaerobic treatability studies on opium alkaloids industry effluents

In this study, the anaerobic treatability of high strength opium alkaloids processing industry wastewaters was investigated. The wastewater was fed to a lab-scale anaerobic upflow sludge blanket reactor (UASBR) operating at mesophilic conditions. The UASB reactor (11.5 L) was operated for 825 days at different hydraulic retention times ranging from 0.85 to 1.62 days and at organic loading rates ranging from 3.40 to 12.25 kg COD/m3.day. Anaerobic treatability studies indicated that 300 L CH4 can be produced per kg COD removed. At the 445th day of the study an extreme irreversible inhibition caused by N,N-dimethylaniline was experienced. This paper demonstrated that opium alkaloid industry wastewater can be efficiently treated by UASB type reactors with more than 80% COD removal efficiency at high organic loading rates.

Effect of upflow velocity on the effluent membrane fouling potential in membrane coupled upflow anaerobic sludge blanket reactors.

This study investigated the effect of upflow velocity (Vup) on biological removal efficiency and effluent filterability in a laboratory scale upflow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactor. Upflow velocities of 1.2, 0.6 and 1.2m/h were applied in three successive stages over a total operation period of 116 days. Filterability tests were carried out during each stage in order to assess the effect of Vup on subsequent membrane performance. Results indicated a significant impact of Vup on both biological performance and physicochemical effluent characteristics. The observed differences in protein/carbohydrate ratio and particle size distribution (PSD), which play important roles in membrane fouling, lead to the hypothesis that Vup is a critical parameter for effluent filterability in membrane coupled UASB reactors. Results showed that filterability of the effluent during the operation at 0.6m/h was better than that during the operation at 1.2m/h.