Nitrogen Removal in Moving Bed Sequencing Batch Reactors with Polyurethane Foam Cube and Luffa Sponge Carrier Materials
Publication: Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 145, Issue 6
Abstract
Nitrogen removal performance was investigated in a sequencing batch reactor (SBR) and two moving bed sequencing batch reactors (MBSBRs) containing a given proportion (20% v/v) of various carrier materials. The maximum total nitrogen (TN) removal efficiency (78%) was achieved using an MBSBR packed with luffa sponge (LS) substrate; polyurethane (PU) foam cube-packed MBSBR and SBR systems followed at 71% and 62%, respectively. Suspended-growth biomass played a role in the conversion of ammonium-N to nitrite-N and nitrate-N. Simultaneous nitrification and denitrification (SND) processes enhanced TN removal in the MBSBRs. In addition, LS facilitated denitrification by serving as a carbon source. Pyrosequencing analysis showed that the enhanced nitrate removal rates in Reactor B (RB; MBSBR-PU) and Reactor C (RC; MBSBR-LS) systems may be attributed to Clostridia enrichment; the higher relative abundance of Clostridia in RC may have caused the superior nitrate removal rate therein. Pseudomonas was the dominant genus in denitrification processes in RB and RC. This work demonstrates that MBSBRs are capable of outperforming traditional SBRs and that the choice of carrier material is essential to MBSBR wastewater treatment performance.
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Acknowledgments
This work was financially supported by the National Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 41675120), Science and Technology Development Fund of Macau (Grant Nos. 136/2016/A3 and 0040/2018/A1), and a Multi-Year Research (Grant No. MYRG2017-00044-FST) from the University of Macau. The authors wish to express their sincere appreciation to the late Prof. In Chio Lou, who contributed greatly to this work.
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Published In
Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 145 • Issue 6 • June 2019
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©2019 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Jul 31, 2018
Accepted: Nov 9, 2018
Published online: Mar 23, 2019
Published in print: Jun 1, 2019
Discussion open until: Aug 23, 2019
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