Comparative performance evaluation of physicochemical treatment processes for simulated dairy wastewater

In the present study, the effectiveness of physicochemical treatment processes (coagulation and Fenton’s oxidation) was investigated for simulated dairy wastewater (pH = 7.3, chemical oxygen demand (COD) = 3600 mg/l, 5-day biochemical oxygen demand (BOD₅) = 1950 mg/l, total Kjeldahl nitrogen (TKN) = 87 mg/l, and total phosphorous (TP) = 14 mg/l). Plain and ballasted coagulation runs were carried out in a jar apparatus, while Fenton’s oxidation was performed in a three-neck glass reactor. Ballasted coagulation caused an enhancement in the settling rate of sludge though no significant enhancement in the removal of organics was observed. Individually, coagulation and Fenton’s oxidation processes resulted in ~67 and 80 % COD removals, respectively, from the wastewater. The sequential treatment exploring coagulation followed by Fenton’s oxidation showed overall COD, BOD₅, TKN, and TP reductions of ~93, 97, 84, and 70 %, respectively, from the wastewater. However, a biological post-treatment would be required to achieve the effluent discharge standards. The removal of proteins, fats, and amino acids from wastewater was confirmed from Fourier transform infrared analysis of the settled sludge (obtained after coagulation process). Preliminary cost analysis suggested coagulation and the sequential treatment (i.e. coagulation followed by Fenton’s oxidation) as the preferred options.     

PAC与PFS混凝处理污水的对比实验研究

采用PAC(聚合氯化铝)与PFS(聚合硫酸铁)混凝剂处理污水，并进行了对比实验。结果表明。在污水COD浓度为920mg／L，PFS折算为Fe2O3的投加量为300mg／L，pH为9．0时，出水COD为406mg／L，COD去除率为55．8％，而PAC折算为Al2O3的投加量为120mg／L时，出水COD为369．8mg／L，COD去除率为59．8％。PAC较PFS对COD的去除率高约4％。     

吗啉废水的生化处理工艺

以含有吗啉、甲基吗啉的高浓度有机废水为研究对象,提出了曝气吹脱-吸附-生物处理的联合工艺,并在室内进行了小试实验。结果表明：原废水经过2次曝气吹脱后,ρ(NH₃-N)从62 500 mg/L降为431 mg/L,ρ(COD)从50 840 mg/L降为26 051 mg/L。通过吸附实验,ρ(COD)从26 051 mg/L降为2 769 mg/L,ρ(NH₃-N)从412 mg/L降为134 mg/L。在生物处理室内小试实验中,采用了活性污泥反应器与曝气生物滤池相结合的处理工艺。在活性污泥反应系统中,当废水pH为7.5、ρ(DO)为4.3 mg/L、水力停留时间为30 h时,COD的去除率最高,可以达到83.1%。在曝气生物滤池中,当ρ(DO)为3.3 mg/L时,COD去除率最高,达到55.8%。在生物处理的最佳参数条件下进行连续监测,当进水ρ(COD)为2 769 mg/L、出水ρ(COD)平均值为387 mg/L时,COD去除率可达到85.9%。吗啉废水经过此联合工艺的处理,ρ(COD)从50 840 mg/L降为387 mg/L。     

Physicochemical and biological treatability studies of urban solid waste leachate

In this research, physical, chemical and biological treatability of Tehran solid waste leachate was studied. Results indicate that the amount of COD for the fresh raw leachate of Tehran is equal to 66,608 mg/l. The leachate is transferred to an equalization tank for storage and pH control process. After neutralization, leachate is introduced to an up flow and down flow anaerobic reactor. The effluent of anaerobic reactor is conducted to a sequencing batch reactor. Sequence batch reactor (SBR) effluent was pumped in to sand and activated carbon filters, after chemical coagulation and clarification. Results showed that anaerobic reactor with detention time of 3 days had a 35% COD removal and increasing the detention time to 4.5 days would improve the COD removal to 45%. Nutrient adjustment with phosphorus and nitrogen increased the initial 23% efficiency of sequence batch reactor to 44%. The effluent COD of SBR reactor was 21,309 mg/l. Recycling of aerobic reactor effluent with incoming feed to anaerobic reactor reduced the anaerobic reactor influent COD to 20,000 mg/l and this caused 53% and 57% COD removal in the anaerobic and aerobic effluent, respectively. The total systems COD performance increased to 80% and SBR effluent COD eventually reduced to 4,000 mg/l. Coagulation, flocculation and sedimentation processes were practiced to make the 4,000 mg/l effluent COD comply with environmental standards of Iran. The optimum coagulant found to be ferric chloride with the dosage of 50 mg/l at pH of 12, which reduced 10% of COD to an amount of 3,676 mg/l. The effluent was stored in a tank and then pumped in to pressure sand filter and afterwards to activated carbon filter. The COD removal was three and 90% for sand and activated carbon filters, respectively. The total process reduced the remaining COD to 36 mg/l, which is in compliance with environmental standards of Iran.     

钨矿选矿废水处理新技术

采用混凝沉淀技术处理钨矿选矿废水,通过试验确定HNJY新型高效复合絮凝剂作为混凝剂最为合适,投加量为120mg/L,经处理后废水出水水质符合国家污水排放标准并能回用,废水SS约11500mg/L,处理后的出水要求为SS<10mg/L。技术经济分析,投资总费用为67.5万元,处理成本为0.60元/m3,设计工艺可靠且经济合理。本工程既防止了废水对环境的潜在污染,又解决了枯水期选矿用水不足的问题。     

Hybrid coagulation/ozonation treatment of pharmaceutical wastewater using ferric chloride,polyaluminum chloride and ozone

In recent years, concerns about the occurrence and fate of active pharmaceutical ingredients, solvents, intermediates and raw materials that could be present in pharmaceutical industry effluents have gained increasing attention. Conventional treatment methods, such as activated sludge, are not sufficient enough to remove active pharmaceutical ingredients completely. As a result, complementary treatment methods like coagulation and flocculation are often used and play a critical role in industrial and municipal wastewater treatment. The primary goal of these methods is to destabilize and remove colloidal particles along with other organic/inorganic contaminants. Recently empirical works have considered ozone as the most promising oxidant for the removal of micro-pollutants. The current study examined the effectiveness of coagulation/flocculation process using ferric chloride, polyaluminum chloride, and aluminum sulfate as a reasonable approach to tackle the issue of treating pharmaceutical wastewater. In addition, the results were compared with the process using only ferric chloride that was the coagulant of an actual treatment plant. Then, improvement of the process performance was investigated using ozone as an oxidant. In conclusion, it was found out that polyaluminum chloride presented better performance among two other coagulants and also adding 200 mg/L of polyaluminum chloride can lead to 97–98 % turbidity removal efficiency. Moreover, polyaluminum chloride was capable of reducing most of the environmental parameters such as chemical oxygen demand and total dissolved solid with the removal efficiency of 70 and 68 %, respectively. Additionally, ozonation improved the coagulation process, especially iron ion removal, and dramatically decreased the concentration from 5.68 to 0.19 mg/L.     

Mechanism of efficient nutrient removal and microbial analysis of a combined anaerobic baffled reactor–membrane bioreactor process

A combined ABR–MBR process consisting of an anaerobic baffled reactor (ABR) combined with an aerobic membrane bioreactor (MBR) treating municipal wastewater was investigated at controlled pH range 6.5–8.5 and at constant temperature 25 ± 1 °C. Total nitrogen (TN), ammonia (NH₄ ⁺–N), total phosphorus (TP), and chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal performances were evaluated by analyzing the mechanism for efficient nutrient removal. The results showed that the average removal rates of COD, NH₄ ⁺–N, TN, and TP reached 93, 99, 79, and 92 %, respectively, corresponding with the COD, NH₄ ⁺–N, TN, and TP effluent of 24 (18–31), 0.4 (0–0.8), 10.6 (8.8–12.9), and 0.31 (0.1–0.5) mg/L under the operational condition of hydraulic retention time (HRT) 7.5 h, recycle ratio 200 %, and dissolved oxygen 3 mg/L. The MBR enhanced NH₄ ⁺–N, TN, and TP removal rates of 13, 10, and 18 %, respectively, and the membrane retention reduced TP 0.17 mg/L. The process was able to maintain a stable performance with high-quality effluent. Analysis of the results by fluorescence in situ hybridization showed that the abundance of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria, nitrite-oxidizing bacteria, and phosphorus accumulating organisms as percentages of all bacteria in each compartment was stable. The enriched microorganisms in the system appear to be the main drivers of the process efficient for nutrient removal.     

Removal of dyes by adsorption on magnetically modified activated sludge

The ability of magnetically modified activated sludge affected by thermal treatment to remove water-soluble organic dyes was examined. Twelve different dyes were tested. Based on the results of the initial sorption study, four dyes (namely aniline blue, Nile blue, Bismarck brown Y and safranin O) were chosen for further experiments due to their promising binding onto magnetic activated sludge. Significant factors influencing adsorption efficiency such as dependence of contact time, initial pH or temperature were studied in detail. The adsorption process was very fast; more than 88 % of dye content (55 mg/L) was adsorbed within 15 min under experimental conditions used. The equilibrium adsorption data were analyzed by Freundlich, Langmuir and Sips adsorption isotherm models, and the fitting of each isotherm model to experimental data was assessed on the basis of error functions. The maximum adsorption capacities of magnetic activated sludge were 768.2, 246.9, 515.1 and 326.8 mg/g for aniline blue, Bismarck brown Y, Nile blue and safranin O, respectively. The kinetic studies indicated that adsorption of all selected dyes could be well described by the pseudo-second-order kinetic model, and the thermodynamic data suggested the spontaneous and endothermic process.     

Nitrate removal from groundwater using solid-phase denitrification process without inoculating with external microorganisms

Denitrification of groundwater was studied using a laboratory-scale reactor packed with biodegradable snack ware served as both carbon source and biofilm support for microorganisms. The complete removal of 50 mg/L of nitrate-nitrogen was achieved in a 23-day-old reactor with 2.1 h of hydraulic retention time without inoculating with any external microorganisms, which indicates that indigenous microorganisms in groundwater proliferate readily and result in stable biofilm formation onto biodegradable snack ware. Accumulation of nitrite and nitrate residue was detected when hydraulic retention time was lower than 2.1 h. The breakthrough of nitrate-nitrogen up to over 10 mg/L in the effluent water was observed with nitrate removal efficiency reducing to about 75 % when hydraulic retention time was lowered to 1.4 h. The highest rate of denitrification was observed with 1.5 h of hydraulic retention time. Dissolved organic carbon concentration in the effluent water ranged between 10 and 20 mg/L during the stable operation of the reactor, and nitrite-nitrogen concentration was never higher than 0.09 mg/L. Considering its relatively low price and high denitrification rate, biodegradable snack ware can become a good alternative for denitrification process.     

Enhanced bioremoval of refractory compounds from dyeing wastewater using optimized sequential anaerobic/aerobic process

The upflow anaerobic sludge blanket process followed by the biological aerated filter process was employed to improve the removal of color and recalcitrant compounds from real dyeing wastewater. The highest removal efficiency for color was observed in the anaerobic process, at 8-h hydraulic retention time, seeded with the sludge granule. In the subsequent aerobic process packed with the microbe-immobilized polyethylene glycol media, the removal efficiency for chemical oxygen demand increased significantly to 75 %, regardless of the empty bed contact time. The average influent non-biodegradable soluble chemical oxygen demand was 517 mg/L, and the average concentration in effluent from the anaerobic reactor was 363 mg/L, suggesting the removal of some recalcitrant matters together with the degradable ones. The average non-biodegradable soluble chemical oxygen demand in effluent from the aerobic reactor was 87, 93, and 118 mg/L, with the removal efficiency of 76, 74, and 67 %, at 24-, 12-, and 8-h empty bed contact time, respectively. The combined anaerobic sludge blanket and aerobic cell-entrapped process was effective to remove the refractory compounds from real dyeing wastewater as well as in reducing organic loading to meet the effluent discharge limits. This integrated process is considered an effective and economical treatment technology for dyeing wastewater.     

Treatment of an ECF bleaching effluent with white-rot fungi in an air-lift bioreactor

Pulp and paper mills utilise huge amount of natural resources, inorganic and organic materials along with large volume of water in different stages of paper manufacturing, resulting in a significant volume of effluents. The aim of this work was to investigate the treatment of a bleaching effluent [effluent chlorine free (ECF)] from the cellulose industry with white-rot fungi in an air-lift bioreactor. This effluent was submitted to the biological treatment with three white-rot fungi, and, every 24 h for 120 h, analytical tests were performed to analyse the quality parameters of treatment (COD, phenols, colour, pH). Before and after treatment, the effluent was analysed as its molecular mass distribution and absorptivity in the UV/VIS. Lentinus edodes, Trametes versicolor and Trametes villosa promoted similarly significant reductions in the following characteristics: (a) effluent colour (40–44 %), (b) total phenol (30–51 %) and (c) COD (37–43 %). The UV/visible spectrometry reading of the effluent after the fungi treatment showed a reduction in the absorbance of all wavelengths between 260 and 500 nm. The size exclusion HPLC profile of the effluent was modified, and the treatment promoted changes in the intensity of the peaks associated with compounds of high and low molecular weight. Phenoloxidases were produced during the treatment. T. versicolor produced the highest levels of laccase, and L. edodes was the only fungus that produced peroxidases.     

预处理／复合水解酸化／复合好氧氧化工艺处理综合制药废水

针对传统水解酸化和好氧氧化处理工艺存在的问题,对水解酸化工艺及好氧氧化处理工艺进行了改进;并针对东北制药集团制药废水水质特征,设计开发了预处理 复合水解酸化 复合好氧氧化的生物处理技术。工程设计规模为30000 m3/d,两年的运行结果表明,此工艺运行稳定,耐冲击负荷能力强。当平均进水浓度COD为3600 mg/L、BOD5为1000 mg/L、SS为450 mg/L时,平均出水浓度COD≤300mg/L、BOD5≤100 mg/L、SS≤50 mg/L,达到了国家城市排水三级标准医药企业污水排放标准(COD300mg/L)。     

Recovery of chlorinated solvent trichloroethylene contaminated groundwater using a hybrid treatment system

In this laboratory pilot-scale study, a hybrid treatment system has been developed to remove chlorinated solvent trichloroethylene and fine particles from chlorinated solvent trichloroethylene-contaminated groundwater before it is applied for further recovery. The two-stage system contained fiber-ball filtration followed by nanofiltration membrane processes. The measured chlorinated solvent trichloroethylene and suspended solids of the tested groundwater were 850 μg/L and 1,052 mg/L, respectively. Up to 97.3 % of chlorinated solvent trichloroethylene and 99.9 % of SS could be removed by the hybrid system with an operational pressure of 4.1 kg/cm². The chlorinated solvent trichloroethylene removal mechanism in the fiber-ball filtration process could be due to adsorption. Approximately 98.2 and 78.6 % of chlorinated solvent trichloroethylene rejection was observed when nanofiltration membrane was used for chlorinated solvent trichloroethylene removal with the recover rate of 80 % and initial chlorinated solvent trichloroethylene concentration of 1 and 10 mg/L. Higher chlorinated solvent trichloroethylene rejection can be obtained when lower chlorinated solvent trichloroethylene concentration (1 mg/L) was applied. High chlorinated solvent trichloroethylene concentration (10 mg/L) would increase the pore size of nanofiltration, which causes the decrease in chlorinated solvent trichloroethylene rejection rate. Approximately 46.6 % of flux drop was observed when nanofiltration membrane was used along compared to the system using FF as the first treatment stage. This indicates that the application of fiber-ball filtration could maintain a higher flux of groundwater treatment. The developed fiber-ball filtration and nanofiltration hybrid membrane system is able to reduce the chlorinated solvent trichloroethylene and solid concentrations to meet the water reuse and groundwater remediation standards.     

Continuous process study on simultaneous nitrification–denitrification of high ammoniacal nitrogen load wastewater in aerobic–anoxic sequencing bioreactors

The study focused on the feasibility of high NH₄ ⁺–N (400–600 mg/L) and COD load at two different hydraulic retention times (HRTs = 36 and 24 h) in two identical aerobic–anoxic sequencing bioreactors which were constructed in series in a single system using a specifically designed single biomass containing autotrophic nitrifying and heterotrophic denitrifying bacteria. Internal recirculation of synthetic wastewater from one tank to other was not carried out like the conventional aerobic–anoxic processes. Cycles of 15 days under sequences of aerated and non-aerated periods of three hour each were repeated during each continuous flow experiment conducted. Sodium bicarbonate and sodium acetate were selected as the appropriate inorganic and organic carbon sources. The results showed that the HRT may not affect the simultaneous nitrification and denitrification processes. Average nitrification ratio was obtained to be above 20 mg/L NH₄ ⁺–N/h daily. Results of 90 days’ operation also showed high removal efficiencies of ammoniacal nitrogen of about 83% daily. The main advantage of this process includes efficient ammoniacal nitrogen removal without separated aerobic and anoxic tanks, decrease operating costs due to the lesser oxygen concentration requirement in the bioreactors.     

On-site treatment of textile yarn dyeing effluents using an integrated biological–chemical oxidation process

This paper reports the results of the treatment of a yarn dyeing effluent using an integrated biological–chemical oxidation process. In particular, the biological unit was based on a sequencing batch biofilter granular sludge reactor (SBBGR), while the chemical treatment consisted of an ozonation step. Biological treatment alone was first performed as a reference for comparison. While biological treatment did not produce an effluent for direct discharge, the integrated process assured good treatment results, with satisfactory removal of chemical oxygen demand (up to 89.8 %), total nitrogen (up to 88.2 %), surfactants (up to 90.7 %) and colour (up to 99 %), with an ozone dose of 110 mg of ozone per litre of wastewater. Biomass characterization by fluorescence in situ hybridization has revealed that filamentous bacteria represented about 20 % of biomass (coherently with high sludge volume index values); thanks to its special design, SBBGR guaranteed, however, stable treatment performances and low effluent suspended solids concentrations, while conventional activated sludge systems suffer from sludge bulking and even treatment failure in such a condition. Furthermore, biomass characterization has evidenced the presence of a shortcut nitrification–denitrification process.     

Simultaneous biological organic matter and nutrient removal in an anaerobic/anoxic/oxic (A<Superscript>2</Superscript>O) moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR) integrated system

In the present study, the performance of three moving bed biofilm reactors (MBBRs) has been evaluated in series with anaerobic/anoxic/oxic (A²O) units for simultaneous removal of organic matter and nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorous) from a synthetic wastewater with characteristics similar to those of a typical municipal wastewater. Response surface methodology based on central composite design was used to investigate the effects of nitrate recycle ratio, hydraulic retention time (HRT), and influent chemical oxygen demand (COD) on the organic and nutrient removal and optimization process. The optimized values of influent COD, HRT, and R were 462 mg/L, 10 h, and 3.52, respectively. The predicted and observed values at optimized conditions were 92.8% and 93 ± 1.3%, 84.3% and 84 ± 1.3%, 71.7% and 68 ± 1.6% for COD, TN, and TP removals and 100 and 97 ± 1.2 mL/g for sludge volume index, respectively. After that, the influent COD, TN, and TP were increased to 550, 48, and 12 mg/L, respectively, to partly simulate the organics and nutrient variations of real wastewater treatment plants. The COD, TN, and TP removals were 91 ± 1.3, 82 ± 1.1, and 71 ± 0.8%, respectively. The influent COD, TN, and TP were increased again to 650, 56, and 14 mg/L, respectively. After this phase, the COD, TN, and TP removals were 90 ± 0.8, 80 ± 1.2, and 70 ± 1.0%, respectively. Obtained results indicated the good stability of the optimized system and the ability of MBBRs to remain stable at influent organics and nutrient variations. The ratio of attached volatile solids to mixed liquor volatile suspended solids was 1.90 ± 0.10, 2.07 ± 0.09, and 2.25 ± 0.14 in phases 1, 2, and 3, respectively. These high ratios indicate that the microorganisms had favored the attached growth to the suspended growth within the whole operation time.     

Modelling of moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR) efficiency on hospital wastewater (HW) treatment: a comprehensive analysis on BOD and COD removal

Performance of moving bed biofilm reactor system for a real hospital wastewater (HW) was experimented, modelled, and optimized using response surface methodology. Prior to conducting laboratory tests, design of the experiments was evaluated to minimize any prediction error. Statistical analyses demonstrated the models’ validity and adequacy for anticipation of the removal of BOD and COD by the process. The models predictions (with desirability of 0.98) were found to be in very good agreement with confirmative experiments results. The results indicated that under convenient operating conditions of the studied variables (packing rate 70%, HRT 24 h, and MLSS 3000 mg/L), the removal efficiencies for BOD and COD were 97.8 and 95.6%, respectively. Moreover, kinetics of the biological process showed that removal of organic matters for the tested wastewater adheres to modified Stover–Kincannon model with a correlation coefficient of 0.998. Ratio of BOD to COD of 0.6 (optimal range for biological treatment normally is >0.5) suggests acceptable efficiency of the reactor for decomposing organic load. A high overall efficiency of the process and fulfilling the related standards make this system an appropriate option for treating HDW.     

The removal of color and COD from wastewater containing water base color by coagulation process

In this study acrylic water base color was removed from synthetic wastewater using coagulation process. Experiments were conducted on the sample containing 100 mg/L and 400 mg/L of acrylic water base color. Destruction of color by means of coagulation/flocculation techniques using ferrous sulfate, alum, lime and polyelectrolyte (cationic, anionic and non ionic). The study was performed in a systematic approach searching optimum values of alum and FeSO₄ concentration, pH and temperature. All the experiments were run in a laboratory scale.The obtained results show that treatment with alum and ferrous sulfate alone proved to be very effective in removing the color (> 99 %) and part of COD (60–70 %) from aqueous solution. Lime alone did not significant change on COD and color removal.     

Use of glycosides extracted from the fique (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Furcraea</Emphasis> sp.) in wastewater treatment for textile industry

The laboratory tests for the use of sapogenic amphiphilic glycosides as a coagulation–flocculation aid are presented in this paper. These amphiphilic glycosides were obtained, through a natural fermentation process, of the juice, of fique (Furcraea sp.) leaves. Decantation allows for the separation of a supernatant denominated “supernatant fique juice” and a decanted fraction denominated “decanted fique juice.” The latter contains most of the sapogenic amphiphilic glycosides and was mixed with the chemical coagulant ferric chloride hexahydrate, at varying doses. Ferric chloride hexahydrate was also used as a control to ascertain the removal efficiency of persistent contaminants from samples of a textile industry effluent. The parameters of interest were typical indicators of water quality such as color, turbidity, chemical oxygen demand, pH and conductivity. The results indicate that the decanted fique juice, when used as a coagulation–flocculation aid, and upon comparison with the chemical coagulant alone, causes an additional color and turbidity reduction of 31 and 17 %, respectively. No significant differences were noted in the chemical oxygen demand values (α = 0.05; P < 0.001). Thus, there is a scope for further research about the commercial feasibility of DFJ as an industrial water treatment agent, which reduces the toxicity of raw fique juice and its detrimental environmental effects.     

Removal of phosphates from aqueous solution by sepiolite-nano zero valent iron composite optimization with response surface methodology

In this study, sepiolite-nano zero valent iron composite was synthesized and applied for its potential adsorption to remove phosphates from aqueous solution. This composite was characterized by different techniques. For optimization of independent parameters (pH = 3–9; initial phosphate concentration = 5–100 mg/L; adsorbent dosage = 0.2–1 g/L; and contact time = 5–100 min), response surface methodology based on central composite design was used. Adsorption isotherms and kinetic models were done under optimum conditions. The results indicated that maximum adsorption efficiency of 99.43 and 92% for synthetic solution and real surface water sample, respectively, were achieved at optimum conditions of pH 4.5, initial phosphate concentration of 25 mg/L, adsorbent dosage of 0.8 g/L, and 46.26 min contact time. The interaction between adsorbent and adsorbate is better described with the Freundlich isotherm (R ² = 0.9537), and the kinetic of adsorption process followed pseudo-second-order model. Electrostatic interaction was the major mechanisms of the removal of phosphates from aqueous solution. The findings of this study showed that there is an effective adsorbent for removal of phosphates from aqueous solutions.