Catalytic oxidation with Al-Ce-Fe-PILC as a post-treatment system for coffee wet processing wastewater

The effluent from the anaerobic biological treatment of coffee wet processing wastewater (CWPW) contains a non-biodegradable compound that must be treated before it is discharged into a water source. In this paper, the wet hydrogen peroxide catalytic oxidation (WHPCO) process using Al-Ce-Fe-PILC catalysts was researched as a post-treatment system for CWPW and tested in a semi-batch reactor at atmospheric pressure and 25 °C. The Al-Ce-Fe-PILC achieved a high conversion rate of total phenolic compounds (70%) and mineralization to CO(2) (50%) after 5 h reaction time. The chemical oxygen demand (COD) of coffee processing wastewater after wet hydrogen peroxide catalytic oxidation was reduced in 66%. The combination of the two treatment methods, biological (developed by Cenicafé) and catalytic oxidation with Al-Ce-Fe-PILC, achieved a 97% reduction of COD in CWPW. Therefore, the WHPCO using Al-Ce-Fe-PILC catalysts is a viable alternative for the post-treatment of coffee processing wastewater.     

Organic and metallic pollutants in water treatment and natural wetlands: a review

A literature review shows that more than 500 compounds occur in wetlands, and also that wetlands are suitable for removing these compounds. There are, however, obvious pitfalls for treatment wetlands, the most important being the maintenance of the hydraulic capacity and the detention time. Treatment wetlands should have an adapted design to target specific compounds. Aquatic plants and soils are suitable for wastewater treatment with a high capacity of removing nutrients and other substances through uptake, sorption and microbiological degradation. The heavy metals Cd, Cu, Fe, Ni and Pb were found to exceed limit values. The studies revealed high values of phenol and SO(4). No samples showed concentrations in sediments exceeding limit values, but fish samples showed concentrations of Hg exceeding the limit for fish sold in the European Union (EU). The main route of metal uptake in aquatic plants was through the roots in emergent and surface floating plants, whereas in submerged plants roots and leaves take part in removing heavy metals and nutrients. Submerged rooted plants have metal uptake potential from water as well as sediments, whereas rootless plants extracted metals rapidly only from water. Caution is needed about the use of SSF CWs (subsurface flow constructed wetlands) for the treatment of metal-contaminated industrial wastewater as metals are shifted to another environmental compartment, and stable redox conditions are required to ensure long-term efficiency. Mercury is one of the most toxic heavy metals and wetlands have been shown to be a source of methylmercury. Methyl Hg concentrations are typically approximately 15% of Hgt (total mercury). In wetlands polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), bisphenol A, BTEX, hydrocarbons including diesel range organics, glycol, dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB), cyanide, benzene, chlorophenols and formaldehyde were found to exceed limit values. In sediments only PAH and PCB were found exceeding limit values. The pesticides found above limit values were atrazine, simazine, terbutylazine, metolachlor, mecoprop, endosulfan, chlorfenvinphos and diuron. There are few water quality limit values of these compounds, except for some well-known endocrine disrupters such as nonylphenol, phtalates, etc.     

Ammonia oxidizing bacterial community composition and process performance in wastewater treatment plants under low temperature conditions

Nitrification can be difficult to maintain at wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) during cold periods resulting in disrupted nitrogen removal. The aim of this study was to relate nitrification process performance to abundance and composition of the ammonia oxidizer communities in two closely located municipal WWTPs in Sweden during an eight month period covering seasonal changes and low temperature conditions. Both facilities showed lower NH(4)(+)-N removal efficiency and nitrification rates as temperature decreased. However, one of the plants had a more stable nitrification rate and higher ammonia removal efficiency throughout the entire period. The differences in performance was related to a shift in the composition of the bacterial ammonia oxidizing community from a Nitrosomonas oligotropha-dominated community to a mixed community including also Nitrosomonas ureae-like ammonia oxidizers. This was likely a response to differences in NH(4)(+)-N and organic loading.     

The removal and degradation of pharmaceutical compounds during membrane bioreactor treatment

Pharmaceutical compounds such as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and antibiotics have been detected in sewage treatment plant (STP) effluents, surface and ground water and even in drinking water all over the world, and therefore have developed as compounds of concern. Membrane bioreactor (MBR) treatment has gained significant popularity as an advanced wastewater treatment technology and might be effective for an advanced removal of these pollutants. This paper evaluates the treatment of wastewater containing three NSAIDs (acetaminophen, ketoprofen and naproxen) and three antibiotics (roxithromycin, sulfamethoxazole and trimethoprim) performed in two MBRs with sludge retention times (SRTs) of 15 (MBR-15) and 30 (MBR-30) days over a period of four weeks. It was observed that NSAIDs were removed with higher efficiencies than the antibiotics for both MBRs, and the MBR-30 presented higher removal efficiencies for all the compounds than obtained by MBR-15. Removal rates ranged from 55% (sulfamethoxazole) up to 100% (acetaminophen, ketoprofen). Besides mineralisation biological transformation products of ketoprofen and naproxen produced by wastewater biocoenosis were identified in both MBR permeates using liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (LC-MS). The results indicated the importance of investigating the environmental fate of pharmaceuticals and their transformation products reaching the environment.     

Biodegradation of lipids from olive oil mill wastewaters in a stationary basket bioreactor with immobilized Bacillus spp. cells - influence of internal diffusion

The study is focused on the external and internal mass transfers of lipids during their biodegradation process in a bioreactor with stationary basket bed of immobilized Bacillus spp. cells. By means of the lipid mass balance for a single particle of biocatalyst, considering the kinetic model adapted for the immobilized bacterial cells, specific mathematical models have been developed to estimate their mass flows in the liquid boundary layer surrounding the particle and inside the particle. The values of mass flows are significantly influenced by the internal diffusion velocity of lipids and the rate of their consumption, but also by the position inside the basket bed. These influences accumulated led to the appearance of a biological inactive region near the particle centre, its magnitude varying from 1.3 to 49.4% of the overall volume of particles.     

Performance indicators for wastewater treatment plants

The Swedish Water & Wastewater Association has operated a web-based system, VASS, for the collection and compilation of key data from the Swedish water utilities since 2003. The VASS system will now be expanded to include data on operation of individual wastewater treatment plants (WWTP). The objective is to provide performance indicators (PIs) for performance and economy and the use of resources such as energy, chemicals and manpower. A set of PIs has been developed that also includes explanatory factors to compensate for differences in the condition of operation between plants. This paper discusses the data required for the calculation of PI but also for explanatory factors, quality checks and for plant operation context. The discussion is based on the experiences from a test round with the participation of 24 WWTP.     

GIS-based applications of sensitivity analysis for sewer models

Sensitivity analysis (SA) evaluates the impact of changes in model parameters on model predictions. Such an analysis is commonly used when developing or applying environmental models to improve the understanding of underlying system behaviours and the impact and interactions of model parameters. The novelty of this paper is a geo-referenced visualization of sensitivity indices for model parameters in a combined sewer model using geographic information system (GIS) software. The result is a collection of maps for each analysis, where sensitivity indices (calculated for model parameters of interest) are illustrated according to a predefined symbology. In this paper, four types of maps (an uncertainty map, calibration map, vulnerability map, and design map) are created for an example case study. This article highlights the advantages and limitations of GIS-based SA of sewer models. The conclusion shows that for all analyzed applications, GIS-based SA is useful for analyzing, discussing and interpreting the model parameter sensitivity and its spatial dimension. The method can lead to a comprehensive view of the sewer system.     

Comparison of the sensitivities of fish, Microtox and Daphnia-magna bioassays to amoxycillin in anaerobic/aerobic sequential reactor systems

In this study the anaerobic treatability of amoxycillin (AMX) was investigated in a laboratory-scale anaerobic multi-chamber bed reactor (AMCBR)/aerobic continuously stirred tank reactor (CSTR) system. The chemical oxygen demand (COD) and AMX removal efficiencies were around 94% in the AMCBR reactor at hydraulic retention times (HRTs) between 2.25 and 5.5 days. Decreasing the HRT appeared not to have a significant effect on the performance of the AMCBR up to a HRT of 1.13 days. The maximum methane production rate and methane percentage were around 1,100-1,200 mL/day and 55%, respectively, at HRTs between 2.25 and 5.5 days. The decrease in HRT to 1.5 days decreased slightly the gas productions (1,000 mL/day and 500 mL for total and methane gases) and methane percentage (45%). The AMCBR recovered back to its baseline performance within a couple of days. The acute toxicity of 150 mg/L AMX was monitored with Daphnia magna, Lepistes sp., and Vibrio fischeri acute toxicity tests. The acute toxicity removals were 98, 96 and 96% for V. fischeri, D. magna and Lepistes sp. in the effluent of the sequential system treating 150 mg/L AMX at HRTs of 2.25-5.5 days. Among the trophic organisms used in the acute toxicity tests the most sensitive organism was found to be bacteria (V. fischeri) while the most resistant organism was found to be fish (Lepistes sp.).     

Study on the removal efficiency of UF membranes using bacteriophages in bench-scale and semi-technical scale

To determine the removal efficiency of ultrafiltration (UF) membranes for nano-particles in the size range of viruses the state of the art uses challenge tests with virus-spiked water. This work focuses on bench-scale and semi-technical scale experiments. Different experimental parameters influencing the removal efficiency of the tested UF membrane modules were analyzed and evaluated for bench- and semi-technical scale experiments. Organic matter in the water matrix highly influenced the removal of the tested bacteriophages MS2 and phiX174. Less membrane fouling (low ΔTMP) led to a reduced phage reduction. Increased flux positively affected phage removal in natural waters. The tested bacteriophages MS2 and phiX174 revealed different removal properties. MS2, which is widely used as a model organism to determine virus removal efficiencies of membranes, mostly showed a better removal than phiX174 for the natural water qualities tested. It seems that MS2 is possibly a less conservative surrogate for human enteric virus removal than phiX174. In bench-scale experiments log removal values (LRV) for MS2 of 2.5-6.0 and of 2.5-4.5 for phiX174 were obtained for the examined range of parameters. Phage removal obtained with differently fabricated semi-technical modules was quite variable for comparable parameter settings, indicating that module fabrication can lead to differing results. Potting temperature and module size were identified as influencing factors. In conclusion, careful attention has to be paid to the choice of experimental settings and module potting when using bench-scale or semi-technical scale experiments for UF membrane challenge tests.     

Influence of photoperiod on carbon dioxide and methane emissions from two pilot-scale stabilization ponds

Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (CO(2), CH(4)) from pilot-scale algal and duckweed-based ponds (ABP and DBP) were measured using the static chamber methodology. Daylight and nocturnal variations of GHG and wastewater characteristics (e.g. chemical oxygen demand (COD), pH) were determined via sampling campaigns during midday (12:30-15:30) and midnight (00:30-03:30) periods. The results showed that under daylight conditions in ABP median emissions were -232 mg CO(2) m(-2) d(-1) and 9.9 mg CH(4) m(-2) d(-1), and in DBP median emissions were -1,654.5 mg CO(2) m(-2) d(-1) and 71.4 mg CH(4) m(-2) d(-1), respectively. During nocturnal conditions ABP median emissions were 3,949.9 mg CO(2) m(-2) d(-1), 12.7 mg CH(4) m(-2) d(-1), and DBP median emissions were 5,116 mg CO(2) m(-2) d(-1), 195.2 mg CH(4) m(-2) d(-1), respectively. Once data measured during daylight were averaged together with nocturnal data the median emissions for ABP were 1,566.8 mg CO(2) m(-2) d(-1) and 72.1 mg CH(4) m(-2) d(-1), whilst for DBP they were 3,016.9 mg CO(2) m(-2) d(-) and 178.9 mg CH(4) m(-2) d(-1), respectively. These figures suggest that there were significant differences between CO(2) emissions measured during daylight and nocturnal periods (p < 0.05). This shows a sink-like behaviour for both ABP and DBP in the presence of solar light, which indicates the influence of photosynthesis in CO(2) emissions. On the other hand, the fluxes of CH(4) indicated that DBP and ABP behave as net sources of CH(4) during day and night, although higher emissions were observed from DBP. Overall, according to the compound average (daylight and nocturnal emissions) both ABP and DBP systems might be considered as net sources of GHG.