A laboratory continuous feed biofilm reactor, comprising a bulk fluid reactor, a biofilm plastic module, a feed tank, and pneumatic devices and controls, was operated for a total period of 257 days, including seeding time, to treat domestic-strength synthetic wastewater under increasing ammonium nitrogen (NH(4)(+)--N) loading rates, ranging from 0.17+/-0.01 (0.71+/-0.06 gm(-2)d(-1)) to 0.70+/-0...

The ammonia removal as well as the current efficiency during electrolysis was investigated by using a vermiculite-packed electrochemical reactor under continuous mode. Experimental results showed that adsorption of ammonia by vermiculite and electrolytic desorption of ammonia simultaneously existed in the reactor, leading to 89% removal of initial 30 mg N/L ammonia and current efficiency of 25%...

Linear alkylbenzene sulfonate (LAS) is widely used in the formulation of domestic and industrial cleaning products, the most synthetic surfactants used worldwide. These products can reach water bodies through the discharge of untreated sewage or non-effective treatments. This study evaluates the ability of the microorganisms found in the Tiete river sediment to degrade this synthetic surfactant...

Expansion of urban populations, increased coverage of domestic water supply and sewerage give rise to greater quantities of municipal wastewater. With the current emphasis on environmental health and water pollution issues, there is an increasing discharge of waste water in developing countries. Present technologies in developing countries for treating waste water are not sufficient and cost ef...

This study is to investigate on the long term performance of submerged membrane adsorption hybrid system (SMAHS) for organic matter removal from synthetic wastewater representative of biologically treated wastewater using low dose of powder activated carbon (PAC). A simple periodic backwash system is used to declog the hollow fiber membrane. In this reactor, bioreaction takes place due to the g...

The use of wastewater for irrigation may introduce antimicrobials and human pathogens into the food supply through vegetative uptake. The objective of this study was to investigate the uptake of three antimicrobials and Salmonella in two lettuce cultivars. After repeated subirrigation with synthetic wastewater, lettuce leaves and soil were collected at three sequential harvests. The internaliza...

In biological wastewater treatment high lipid concentration is known to inhibit microorganisms and cause active biomass flotation. To reduce lipid inhibition, a two-phase anaerobic system, consisting of an anaerobic sequencing batch reactor (ASBR) and an upflow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactor, was applied to synthetic dairy wastewater. During 153 days of operation, the two-phase system ...

Membrane bioreactors (MBRs) are applied for municipal wastewater treatment with advantages such as high effluent quality and low footprint. However, membrane fouling is inevitable even at low fluxes. This study aims to provide a deeper understanding of fouling mechanisms and filter cake characteristics based on modeling and results from both full, pilot and lab-scale MBRs. It has been found tha...

We will develop rapid screening tools to measure wastewater composition and correlate bulk composition measures to nitrification inhibition. Initially, we will focus on metals (cadmium, zinc, nickel and copper, which have been implicated in nitrification inhibition, moderate to high toxicity to nitrifying microorganisms. Prior to the start of the monitoring study, we will optimize and validate ...

Treating a synthetic wastewater containing phenol as the sole substrate at 26°C, an upflow anaerobic sludge blanket reactor was able to remove over 98% of phenol up to 1,260 mg/l in wastewater with 12 h of hydraulic retention time, corresponding to 6.0 g-COD/(l·day). Results showed that benzoate was the key intermediate of phenol degradation. Conversion of benzoate to methane was suppressed by ...