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Purpose: To investigate the effect of eriocitrin on sevoflurane-induced neurotoxicity in mice. Methods: Mouse hippocampal neurons (HT22) were exposed to different concentrations of sevoflurane for 6 h and then incubated with different concentrations of eriocitrin for another 24 h. Cell viability was determined by CCK8 assay, while fluorescence intensity of dichlorodihydrofluorescein was used to evaluate reactive oxygen species. Enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to determine oxidative stress, and cellular apoptosis was determined by flow cytometry. Results: Sevoflurane exposure decreased HT22 cell viability, whereas incubation with eriocitrin increased viability of sevoflurane-treated HT22 cells (p < 0.05). Sevoflurane-induced increase in dichlorodihydrofluorescein fluorescence intensity was reduced by eriocitrin, but eriocitrin attenuated sevoflurane-induced increase in malondialdehyde, superoxide dismutase, and glutathione peroxidase in HT22 cells. Cell apoptosis increased after sevoflurane exposure, and eriocitrin suppressed apoptosis in sevoflurane-treated HT22 cells through downregulation of cleaved caspase-3 and cleaved caspase-9 (p < 0.05). Eriocitrin incubation enhanced protein expression of nuclear factor E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2), heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1), and NAD(P)H quinone dehydrogenase 1 (NQO1) in sevoflurane-treated HT22 cells (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Eriocitrin ameliorates sevoflurane-induced oxidative stress and inflammatory response in HT22 cells via activation of Nrf2/HO-1/NQO1 signaling. Thus, agent may be useful in the treatment of sevoflurane-induced toxicity, but in vivo studies are required to buttress this. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the university stage, the cultivation of sports EQ should be paid enough attention to, and sportsmanship is one of the essential core qualities of university students. The paper first defines the concept of university students' core literacy and university basketball teaching, expounds the relationship between the two, and with the core literacy as the background, analyzes the current situation and challenge of cultivating sportsmanship in university basketball teaching, and discusses the effective countermeasures and methods, aiming at expanding the path of cultivating sportsmanship and upgrading the quality of talent training. Promote the connotation development of university basketball teaching. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Greenhouse gas (GHG) accounting protocols have addressed emissions from wastewater conveyance and treatment using a variety of simplifying methodologies. While these methodologies vary to some degree by protocol, within each protocol they provide consistent tools for organizational entities of varying size and scope to report and verify GHG emissions. Much of the science supporting these methodologies is either limited or the protocols have failed to keep abreast of developing GHG research. This state-of-the-art review summarizes the sources of direct GHG emissions (both those covered and not covered in current protocols) from wastewater handling; provides a review of the wastewater-related methodologies in a select group of popular protocols; and discusses where research has out-paced protocol methodologies and other areas where the supporting science is relatively weak and warrants further exploration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Oxygen injection is a commonly used mitigation strategy for sulfide control in sewers. Methane, a potent greenhouse gas, is also produced in sewers. Oxygen injection may reduce methane generation/emission, but could potentially lead to N2O production due to the development of a nitrifying microbial community. The impact of oxygen dosing for sulfide control in sewers on CH4 and N2O production was assessed in this study in laboratory sewer reactors. Results showed that oxygen injection is able to reduce CH4 formation in sewers, although full control of CH4 was not achieved, likely due to partial oxygen penetration into sewer biofilm. The experimental results also revealed a nitrogen loss of around 5 mN/L. However, no significant N2O accumulation was detected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adhesion molecules are known to play an important role in endothelial activation and angiogenesis. Here we determined the functional role of IQGAP1 in the regulation of endothelial adherens junctions. VE-cadherin is found to be associated with actin filaments and thus stable, but IQGAP1 at intercellular junctions is not bound to actin filaments and thus labile. Expression of GFP labeled VE-a-catenin is shown to increase the electrical resistance across HUVEC monolayers and diminishes endogenous labile IQGAP1 at the intercellular junctions. Knockdown of endogenous IQGAP1 enhances intercellular adhesion in HUVECs by increasing the association of VE-cadherin with P120 and ß-catenin. IQGAP1 knockdown also decreases the interaction of N-cadherin with P120 and ß-catenin. Together, these results suggest that a labile pool of IQGAP1 at intercellular junctions disassembles adherens junctions and thus impairs endothelial cell-cell adhesion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A sequencing batch reactor (SBR) was used for the treatment of abattoir wastewater to produce effluent with desirable nitrogen and phosphorus levels for irrigation. The SBR cycle consisted of an anaerobic phase with wastewater feeding, a relatively short aerobic period (allowing full ammonium oxidation), a second anoxic period with feeding, followed by settling and decanting. This design of operation allowed biological nitrification and denitrification via nitrite, and therefore with reduced demand for aeration and COD for nitrogen removal. The design also allowed ammonium, rather than oxidized nitrogen, being the primary nitrogen species in the effluent. Biological phosphorus removal was also achieved, with an effluent level desirable for irrigation. A high-level of nitrite accumulation (40 mg N/L) in the reactor caused inhibition to the biological P uptake. This problem was solved through process optimization. The cycle time of the SBR was reduced, with the wastewater load per cycle also reduced, while the daily hydraulic loading maintained. This modification proved to be an effective method to ensure reliable N and P removal. N2O accumulation was measured in two experiments simulating the anoxic phase of the SBR and using nitrite and nitrate respectively as electron donors. The estimated N2O emissions for both experiments were very low. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At present, the potential generation of methane in wastewater collection systems is ignored under international greenhouse gas (GHG) accounting protocols, despite recent reports of substantial dissolved methane formation in sewers. This suggests that the current national GHG inventories for wastewater handling systems are likely to be underestimated for some situations. This study presents a new catalogue of field data on methane formation in rising main sewerage systems and proposes an empirically-fitted, theoretical model to predict dissolved methane concentrations, based upon the independent variables of pipeline geometry (i.e. surface area to volume ratio, A/V) and hydraulic retention time (HRT). Systems with longer HRT and/or larger A/V ratios are shown to have higher dissolved methane concentrations. This simple predictive model provides a means for water authorities to estimate the methane emissions from other pressurised sewerage systems of similar characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The inhibitory effects of nitrite (NO2-)/free nitrous acid (HNO2-FNA) on the metabolism of Nitrobacter were investigated using a method allowing the decoupling of the growth and energy generation processes. A lab-scale sequencing batch reactor was operated for the enrichment of a Nitrobacter culture. Fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) analysis showed that 73% of the bacterial population was Nitrobacter. Batch tests were carried out to assess the oxygen and nitrite consumption rates of the enriched culture at low and high nitrite levels, in the presence or absence of inorganic carbon. It was observed that in the absence of CO2, the Nitrobacter culture was able to oxidize nitrite at a rate that is 76% of that in the presence of CO2, with an oxygen consumption rate that is 85% of that measured in the presence of CO2. This enabled the impacts of nitrite/FNA on the catabolic and anabolic processes of Nitrobacter to be assessed separately. FNA rather than nitrite was likely the actual inhibitor to the Nitrobacter metabolism. It was revealed that FNA of up to 0.05 mg HNO2-N·L-1 (3.4 μM), which was the highest FNA concentration used in this study, did not have any inhibitory effect on the catabolic processes of Nitrobacter. However, FNA initiated its inhibition to the anabolic processes of Nitrobacter at approximately 0.011 mg HNO2-N·L-1 (0.8HM), and completely stopped biomass synthesis at a concentration of approximately 0.023 mg HNO2-N·L-1 (1.6 HM). The inhibitory effect could be described by an empirical inhibitory model proposed in this paper, but the underlying mechanisms remain to be revealed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Addresses the control of nitrite recirculation flow in a predenitrification system. Elementary mass balance analysis of the utilization of the influent biodegradable COD for nitrate removal; Result of maintaining the nitrate concentration at the outlet of the anoxic zone.

Pharmaceutical removal could be significantly enhanced through cometabolism during nitrification processes. To date, pharmaceutical biotransformation models have not considered the formation of transformation products associated with the metabolic type of microorganisms. Here we report a comprehensive model to describe and evaluate the biodegradation of pharmaceuticals and the formation of their biotransformation products by enriched nitrifying cultures. The biotransformation of parent compounds was linked to the microbial processes via cometabolism induced by ammonium-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) growth, metabolism by AOB, cometabolism by heterotrophs (HET) growth, and metabolism by HET in the model framework. The model was calibrated and validated using experimental data from pharmaceutical biodegradation experiments at realistic levels, taking two pharmaceuticals as examples, i.e., atenolol and acyclovir. Results demonstrated the good predictive performance of the established biotransformation model under different metabolic conditions, as well as the reliability of the established model in predicting different pharmaceutical biotransformations. The linear positive correlation between ammonia oxidation rate and pharmaceutical degradation rate confirmed the major role of cometabolism induced by AOB in the pharmaceutical removal. Dissolved oxygen was also revealed to be capable of regulating the pharmaceutical biotransformation cometabolically, and the substrate competition between ammonium and pharmaceuticals existed especially at high ammonium concentrations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Antibiotic resistance is an urgent threat to global health. Antidepressants are consumed in large quantities, with a similar pharmaceutical market share (4.8%) to antibiotics (5%). While antibiotics are acknowledged as the major driver of increasing antibiotic resistance, little attention is paid to the contribution of antidepressants in this process. Here, we demonstrate that antidepressants at clinically relevant concentrations induce resistance to multiple antibiotics, even following short periods of exposure. Antibiotic persistence was also enhanced. Phenotypic and genotypic analyses revealed the enhanced production of reactive oxygen species following exposure to antidepressants was directly associated with increased resistance. An enhanced stress signature response and stimulation of efflux pump expression were also associated with increased resistance and persistence. Mathematical modeling also predicted that antidepressants would accelerate the emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, and persister cells would help to maintain the resistance. Overall, our findings highlight the antibiotic resistance risk caused by antidepressants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The production of sludge (biosolids) during wastewater treatment is a major issue for water utilities. A main issue limiting its beneficial reuse on agricultural lands is the presence of toxic metals. The currently used metal reduction technologies achieve insufficient removal of metals that are bound to the organic fraction of the sludge. In this study, we propose and demonstrate a novel method that involves the addition of nitrite during sludge acidification to enhance metal removal. Using waste activated sludge collected from three full-scale wastewater treatment plants, we found that acidification to pH 2.0 achieved good Zn solubilization of around 70%, but only 3-7% of Cu was being dissolved. Nitrite addition to the acidified sludge at a concentration of 20 mg NO2--N/L (equals to 19.2 mg HNO2-N/L), substantially enhanced Cu removal to 45-64%, while Zn removal was also increased to over 81%. Metal distribution analysis using sequential chemical extraction revealed that the improvement of Cu and Zn removal was mainly due to the release of the organically bound metal fraction. We hypothesize that free nitrous acid (HNO2, FNA) may assist in the (partial) disruption of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) and the subsequent release and solubilization of fixed metals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Competition for electrons among different steps of denitrification has previously been shown to occur, and to play an important role in the accumulation and emission of N2O in wastewater treatment. However, this electron competition is not recognized in the current denitrification models, limiting their ability to predict N2O accumulation during denitrification. In this work, a new denitrification model is developed for wastewater treatment processes. It describes electron competition among the four steps of denitrification, through modeling the carbon oxidation and nitrogen reduction processes separately, in contrast to the existing models that directly couple these two types of processes. Electron carriers are introduced to link carbon oxidation, which donates electrons to carriers, and nitrogen oxides reduction, which receives electrons from these carriers. The relative ability of each denitrification step to compete for electrons is modeled through the use of different affinity constants with reduced carriers. Model calibration and validation results demonstrate that the developed model is able to reasonably describe the nitrate, nitrite, and N2O reduction rates of a methanol-utilizing denitrifying culture under various carbon and nitrogen oxides supplying conditions. The model proposed, while subject to further validation, is expected to enhance our ability to predict N2O accumulation in denitrification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sulfide is produced in sewer networks, and previous studies suggest that sulfide in sewage could alter the activity of heterotrophic denitrification and lead to N2O accumulation during biological wastewater treatment. However, the details of this phenomenon are poorly understood. In this study, the potential inhibitory effects of sulfide on nitrate, nitrite, and N2O reduction were assessed with a methanol-utilizing denitrifying culture both prior to and after its exposure and adaptation to sulfide. Hydrogen sulfide was found to be strongly inhibitory to N2O reduction, with 50% inhibition observed at H2S concentrations of 0.04 mg H2S-S/L and 0.1 mg H2S-S/L for the unadapted and adapted cultures, respectively. In comparison, both nitrate and nitrite reduction was more tolerant to H2S. A 50% inhibition of nitrite reduction was observed at approximately 2.0 mg H2S-S/L for both unadapted and adapted cultures, while no inhibition of nitrate reduction occurred at the highest H2S concentrations applied (2.0 mg H2S-S/L) to either culture. N2O accumulation was observed during nitrate and nitrite reduction by the adapted culture when H2S concentrations were above 0.5 and 0.2 mg H2S-S/L, respectively. Additionally, we reveal that hydrogen sulfide (H2S), rather than sulfide, was likely the true inhibitor of N2O reduction, and the inhibitory effect was reversible. These findings suggest that sulfide management in sewers could potentially have a significant impact on N2O emission from wastewater treatment plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of nitrite (NO2-) on the nitrous oxide (N2O) production rate of an enriched ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) culture was characterized over a concentration range of 0-1000 mg N/L. The AOB culture was enriched in a nitritation system fed with synthetic anaerobic digester liquor. The N2O production rate was highest at NO2- concentrations of less than 50 mg N/L. At dissolved oxygen (DO) concentration of 0.55 mg O2/L, further increases in NO2- concentration from 50 to 500 mg N/L resulted in a gradual decrease in N2O production rate, which maintained at its lowest level of 0.20 mg N2O-N/h/g VSS in the NO2- concentration range of 500-1000 mg N/L. The observed NO2--induced decrease in N2O production was even more apparent at increased DO concentration. At DO concentrations of 1.30 and 2.30 mg O2/L, the lowest N2O production rate (0.25 mg N2O-N/h/g VSS) was attained at a lower NO2- concentration of 200-250 mg N/L. These observations suggest that N2O production by the culture is diminished by both high NO2- and high DO concentrations. Collectively, the findings show that exceedingly high NO2- concentrations in nitritation systems could lead to decreased N2O production. Further studies are required to determine the extent to which the same response to NO2- is observed across different AOB cultures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new method for the simultaneous online measurement of sulfide and nitrate in wastewater is developed. A UV-VIS spectrometer was used. The sensor was calibrated by means of simultaneous online and offline measurements of sulfide and nitrate in batch tests carried out on a laboratory-scale sewer system. The developed calibration algorithm was successfully validated for both sulfide and nitrate measurement, with confidence limits of 2.7 mg S/L for total dissolved sulfide, and 7.5 mg N/L for nitrate. The online measurement of sulfide and nitrate enabled detailed evaluation of seven nitrate dosing strategies in the laboratory-scale sewer system, providing strong support to process optimisation. The dosage optimisation revealed that nitrate should be added at a location close to the point of sulfide control rather than at the beginning of a rising main, at a rate proportional to the expected hydraulic retention time (HRT) of the wastewater in the sewer section between the point of nitrate addition and the point where sulfide control is desired. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The electron recovery in microbial fuel cells (MFCs) is decreased by processes like methanogenenis, bacterial growth, and the accumulation of intermediates. Using a suite of analytical techniques, including electrochemical monitoring, chemical analysis, microsensor analysis, and Titration and Off-Gas Analysis (TOGA), thin study aimed to (a) identify and quantify the electron losses occurring at the anode and the cathode of a MFC removing acetate and nitrate (NO3-), respectively, and (b) to investigate the impact of the operational characteristics of the cathode no the denitrification process. Our results show that methane (CH4) production and estimated biomass formation at the anode and nitrous oxide (N2O) accumulation at the cathode were responsible for the reduction of Coulombic efficiency (ϵ) during continuous feeding conditions. At the anode, up to 40.1% of the acetate consumed was released as methane at closed circuit. At the cathode, N2O accumulation represented instead the main loss accounting for up to 10.0 ± 2.1% of the oxidation capacity of the electron acceptor provided as NO3-. Batch experiments at controlled potentials and currents revealed that for a given current the fraction of electron transferred and released as N2O is significantly reduced by low cathodic potentials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The treatment of wastewater containing sulfides in bioelectrochemical systems (BES) causes deposition of sulfur on the anode as a result of a solely electrochemical process. In this study, we investigate whether microorganisms can use this sulfur, rather than the anode or soluble sulfate, as an electron acceptor for the oxidation of acetate. Our results indicate that microorganisms use electrodeposited sulfur as preferable electron acceptor over the anode and sulfate and produce sulfide irrespective of electrochemical conditions. Bioelectrochemical and biological sulfide generation pathways were studied under different electrochemical conditions. The obtained results show that the sulfide generation rate at open circuit condition (anode potential -235 ± 5 mV versus standard hydrogen electrode, SHE) was higher in comparison to the electrochemical sulfide generation even at a lower potential of -275 mV (vs SHE), confirming that sulfide is produced through biological processes without any current generation. However, during closed circuit operation, the overall Coulombic efficiency (97% ± 2%) is not affected as the produced sulfide (originating from the reduction of deposited sulfur) is spontaneously reoxidized to sulfur when a favorable potential is maintained. This confirms the mediator role of sulfur during acetate oxidation in BES. A diagrammatic representation of the mechanism is proposed to characterize the interactions between acetate oxidation and sulfur conversions on the anode. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microbial fuel cell (MFC) anodes are anaerobic bioreactors. Processes such as fermentations and methanogenesis are likely competitors to electricity generation. This work studied the pathway of glucose conversion in continuous microbial fuel cell anodes with an adapted bacterial community. The study revealed that the majority of glucose is first fermented to hydrogen and acetate. Both are then used as substrates for bacterial electricity generation. When methanogens are present, methane production occurs at a rate that slightly increases with the current Methanogenesis and electricity generation compete for hydrogen, causing increased fermentation rates. In a rather young anodic biofilm on granular graphite, metha-nogenesis can be suppressed by aerating the anode compartment for one hour. Only short-term inhibition can be achieved applying the same technique on a well established biofilm on granular graphite. This study shows that fermentative processes are not detrimental to current generation, and that direct oxidation of glucose does not play a major role in mixed population conversions in a MFC anode. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The structure and function of aerobic microbial granules from a lab-scale sequencing batch reactor treating nutrient-rich abattoir wastewater were investigated. These wastewater-fed granules were examined using a wide range of micro-scale techniques including light microscopy, scanning and transmission electron microscopy, fluorescent in situ hybridisation (FISH) combined with confocal laser scanning microscopy and oxygen and pH microsensors, in conjunction with a range of measurements in the bulk liquid phase. Interesting structural features were observed in these granules that have not been reported in synthetic-fed granules. The complex nature of abattoir wastewater was suggested to be responsible for accelerating the breaking process of large mature granules due to a rapid clogging of the granules pores and channels and for the very diverse microbial community observed displaying specific spatial distribution throughout the granules. More importantly, the dissolution at lower pH of mineral complexes associated to the granule matrix of extracellular polymeric substances might have caused the structural damages observed on the granules even though some pH buffer capacity was observed inside these granules. Ciliate protozoa were found to be very abundant on the surface of these wastewater-fed granules, which could potentially assist with reducing the high levels of suspended solids usually present in the aerobic granular sludge effluent. All these observations provide support to future studies on aerobic granular sludge treating real wastewater especially with regard to the granule structure and the mechanisms involved in their formation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Glycogen-accumulating organisms (GAOs) are found in enhanced biological phosphorus removal systems where they compete with polyphosphate-accumulating organisms for external carbon substrates. 13C nuclear magnetic resonance (13C-NMR) was used to elucidate the metabolic pathways operating in an enriched GAO culture dominated by two known GAOs (81.2%). The experiments consisted of adding 13C-acetate (labelled on position 1 or 2) to the culture under anaerobic conditions, and operating the culture through a cycle consisting of an anaerobic, an aerobic and a further anaerobic phase. The carbon transformations over the cycle were monitored using in vivo13C-NMR. The two-carbon moieties in hydroxybutyrate and hydroxyvalerate were derived from acetate, while the propionyl precursor of hydroxyvalerate was primarily derived from glycogen, with only a small fraction originating from acetate. Comparison of the labelling patterns in hydroxyvalerate at the end of the first and the second anaerobic periods in pulse experiments with 2-13C-acetate showed that the Entner–Doudoroff (ED) pathway was used for the breakdown of glycogen. This conclusion was further supported by the labelling pattern on glycogen observed in the pulse experiments with 1-13C-acetate, which can only be explained by the operation of ED with recycling of pyruvate and glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate via gluconeogenesis. The activity of the ED pathway for glycogen degradation by GAOs is demonstrated here for the first time. In addition, the decarboxylating part of the tricarboxylic acid cycle was confirmed to operate also under anaerobic conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nitrifier growth parameters--the maximum growth rate (μAmax and yield (YA)--were estimated by measuring the rate of carbon dioxide uptake and additional rates of oxygen uptake and ammonia (or nitrite) use. Batch tests in a combined titrimetric and offgas analyzer with enriched Nitrobacter and Nitrosomonas cultures and an activated sludge sample were performed. The measured μAmax values for the Nitrobacter and Nitmsomonas cultures were 0.67 ± 0.03 day-1 and 0.54 μAmax 0.09 day-1, while the YA values were 0.072 μAmax 0.01 g volatile suspended solids (VSS) · g nitrogen (N)-1 and 0.14 ± 0.02 gVSS · gN-1, respectively. For the activated sludge sample, μAmax was observed to increase with pH (μAmax = 0.72.3 · 3(pH·7.1) over the range 6.8 to 7.1. All μAmax and YA values determined by this method were similar to those previously reported. Compared with other μAmax and YA estimation methods, this method allows for unique μAmax and YA estimations for given conditions from a single experiment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) are emerging as a novel technology with a great potential to reduce the costs of wastewater treatment. Their most studied application is organic carbon removal. One of the parameters commonly used to quantify the performance of these cells is the Coulombic efficiency, i.e., the electron recovery as electricity from the removed substrate. However, the ‘inefficiencies’ of the process have never been fully identified. This study presents a method that uses the combination of electrochemical monitoring, chemical analysis, and a titration and off-gas analysis (TOGA) sensor to identify and quantify the sources of electron loss. The method was used successfully to close electron, carbon, and proton balances in acetate and glucose fed microbial fuel cells. The method revealed that in the case that a substrate is loaded as pulses carbon is stored inside the cells during initial high substrate conditions and consumed during starvation, with up to 57% of the current being generated after depletion of the external carbon source. Nile blue staining of biomass samples revealed lipophilic inclusions during high substrate conditions, thus confirming the storage of polymeric material in the bacterial cells. The method also allows for indirect measurement of growth yields, which ranged from 0 to 0.54 g biomass-C formed per g substrate-C used, depending on the type of substrate and the external resistance of the circuit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Systematic sampling and analysis of wastewater samples are increasingly adopted for estimating drug consumption in communities. An understanding of the in-sewer transportation and transformation of illicit drug biomarkers is critical for reducing the uncertainty of this evidence-based estimation method. In this study, biomarkers stability was investigated in lab-scale sewer reactors with typical sewer conditions. Kinetic models using the Bayesian statistics method were developed to simulate biomarkers transformation in reactors. Furthermore, a field-scale study was conducted in a real pressure sewer pipe with the systematical spiking and sampling of biomarkers and flow tracers. In-sewer degradation was observed for some spiked biomarkers over typical hydraulic retention time (i.e., a few hours). Results indicated that sewer biofilms prominently influenced biomarker stability with the retention time in wastewater. The fits between the measured and the simulated biomarkers transformation demonstrated that the lab-based model could be extended to estimate the changes of biomarkers in real sewers. Results also suggested that the variabilities of biotransformation and analytical accuracy are the two major contributors to the overall estimation uncertainty. Built upon many previous lab-scale studies, this study is one critical step forward in realizing wastewater-based epidemiology by extending biomarker stability investigations from laboratory reactors to real sewers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Achieving maintream anammox is critical for energy-neutral sewage treatment. This study presents a new way to achieve mainstream anammox, which couples anammox with denitratation (nitrate reduction to nitrite) instead of nitritation (ammonium oxidation to nitrite). An anoxic/oxic (A/O) biofilm system treating systhetic domestic wastewater was used to demonstrate this concept for over 400 days. This A/O biofilm system achieved a total nitrogen (TN) removal efficiency of 80 ± 4% from the influent with a low C/N ratio of 2.6 and a TN concentration of 60.5 mg/L. Nitrogen removal via anammox was found to account for 70% of dinitrogen production in the anoxic reactor. Batch tests confirmed that the anoxic biofilm could oxidize ammonium using nitrite as electron acceptor, and that it had a higher nitrate reduction rate than the nitrite reduction rate, thus producing nitrite for the anammox reaction. Metagenomic analysis showed that Candidatus Jettenia caeni and Candidatus Kuenenia stuttgartiensis were the top two dominant species in anoxic biofilm. Genes involved in the metabolism of the anammox process were detected in anoxic biofilm. The abundance of nitrate reductase (73360 hits) was much higher than nitrite reductase (13114 hits) in anoxic biofilm. This system can be easily integrated with the high-rate activated sludge technology, which produces an effluent with a low C/N ratio. While this new design consumes 21% more oxygen in comparison to the currently studied nitritation/anammox process, the nitrite-producing process appears to be more stable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The performance of a granule-based partial nitritation-anammox process is expected to be affected by the granule size distribution, but little is known about the impact of granule size on microbial community structure and diversity. To reveal how the microbial composition and diversity vary with granule size, granules from a partial nitritation-anammox reactor were size-fractionated into five classes (<0.2, 0.2-0.5, 0.5-0.8, 0.8-1.0 and >1.0 mm). Microbial communities and diversity in these size-fractionated granules were investigated using 16S rRNA gene high-throughput sequencing. It was found that larger granules harbor more diverse microbial communities than small granules. Both quantitative PCR and 16S rRNA gene sequencing indicated that the abundance of anammox bacteria (dominated by Candidatus Brocadia) exhibited an increasing trend with granule size. In contrast, the abundance of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (Nitrosomonas) decreased with increasing granule size. Moreover, larger granules harbored more diverse anammox bacteria, with four genera found in the largest granules while only two with limited abundance were detected in the smallest granules. The findings highlight an important role for granule size in shaping community structure and biodiversity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The impact of methanol (CH3OH) as a source of anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO2) in denitrification at wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) has never been quantified. CH3OH is the most commonly purchased carbon source for sewage denitrification. Until recently, greenhouse gas (GHG) reporting protocols consistently ignored the liberation of anthropogenic CO2 attributable to CH3OH. This oversight can likely be attributed to a simplifying notion that CO2 produced through activated-sludge-process respiration is biogenic because most raw-sewage carbon is un-sequestered prior to entering a WWTP. Instead, a biogenic categorization cannot apply to fossil-fuel-derived carbon sources like CH3OH. This paper provides a summary of how CH3OH use at DC Water's Blue Plains Advanced Wastewater Treatment Plant (AWTP; Washington, DC, USA) amounts to 60 to 85% of the AWTP's Scope-1 emissions. The United States Environmental Protection Agency and Water Environment Federation databases suggest that CH3OH CO2 likely represents one quarter of all Scope-1 GHG emissions attributable to sewage treatment in the USA. Finally, many alternatives to CH3OH use exist and are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this work is to compare the capability of two recently proposed two-pathway models for predicting nitrous oxide (N2O) production by ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) for varying ranges of dissolved oxygen (DO) and nitrite. The first model includes the electron carriers whereas the second model is based on direct coupling of electron donors and acceptors. Simulations are confronted to extensive sets of experiments (43 batches) from different studies with three different microbial systems. Despite their different mathematical structures, both models could well and similarly describe the combined effect of DO and nitrite on N2O production rate and emission factor. The model-predicted contributions for nitrifier denitrification pathway and hydroxylamine pathway also matched well with the available isotopic measurements. Based on sensitivity analysis, calibration procedures are described and discussed for facilitating the future use of those models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Magnesium hydroxide [Mg(OH)2 is a commonly used chemical for controlling corrosion and odor problems in sewers by reducing the transfer of hydrogen sulfide from the liquid to the gas phase through pH elevation. The effectiveness of many current dosing practices is unsatisfactory due to negligence of the dynamics of sewage flow and characteristics, and their effects on sewage pH. This paper reports the design and validation of the first online control algorithm for [Mg(OH)2 dosing to sewers. The control algorithm consists of a combination of feedforward and feedback loops. A feedback controller is used to calculate the [Mg(OH)2 dosing rate to raise the sewage pH at the pumping station to the set-point. A feedforward controller is then used to calculate the additional [Mg(OH)2 dose based on the prediction of acid production in the downstream sewer pipe due to in-sewer processes. A further feedback controller is used to adjust the [Mg(OH)2 dosing rate to correct the error between the sewage pH at the end of the pipe and the pH set-point. Following comprehensive assessment using modeling and simulation, the control was successfully validated and its effectiveness demonstrated in a 2-month field study. The online control algorithm reduced the variation of pH at the discharge point, i.e., from 8.73 ± 0.21 to 8.59 ± 0.10. In addition to improved sulfide control, the controller also resulted in 15% saving in chemical consumption, leading to significant financial benefits and lower environmental footprint. It was also found that the sewage flow rate should be predicted online for sewers influenced by rainwater infiltration as the variation of flow rate and sewage dilution are important disturbances for the controller. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydrogen sulfide produced by sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) in sewers causes odor problems and asset deterioration due to the sulfide-induced concrete corrosion. Free nitrous acid (FNA) was recently demonstrated as a promising antimicrobial agent to alleviate hydrogen sulfide production in sewers. However, details of the antimicrobial mechanisms of FNA are largely unknown. Here, we report the multiple-targeted antimicrobial effects of FNA on the SRB Desulfovibrio vulgaris Hildenborough by determining the growth, physiological, and gene expression responses to FNA exposure. The activities of growth, respiration, and ATP generation were inhibited when exposed to FNA. These changes were reflected in the transcript levels detected during exposure. The removal of FNA was evident by nitrite reduction that likely involved nitrite reductase and the poorly characterized hybrid cluster protein, and the genes coding for these proteins were highly expressed. During FNA exposure, lowered ribosome activity and protein production were detected. Additionally, conditions within the cells were more oxidizing, and there was evidence of oxidative stress. Based on an interpretation of the measured responses, we present a model depicting the antimicrobial effects of FNA on D. vulgaris. These findings provide new insight for understanding the responses of D. vulgaris to FNA and will provide a foundation for optimal application of this antimicrobial agent for improved control of sewer corrosion and odor management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An increase of nitrite in the domestic-strength range is generally recognized to stimulate nitrous oxide (N2O) production by ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB). It was found in this study, however, that N2O emission from a mainstream nitritation system (cyclic nitrite = 25-45 mg of N/L) that was established by free nitrous acid (FNA)-based sludge treatment was not higher but much lower than that from the initial nitrifying system with full conversion of NH4+-N to NO3--N. Under dissolved oxygen (DO) levels of 2.5-3.0 mg/L, N2O emission from the nitritation stage was 76% lower than that from the initial stage. Even when the DO level was reduced to 0.3-0.8 mg/L, N2O emission from the nitritation stage was still 40% lower. An investigation of the mechanism showed that FNA treatment caused a shift of the stimulation threshold of nitrite on N2O emission. At the nitritation stage, the maximal N2O emission factor occurred at ~16 mg of N/(L of nitrite). However, it increased with increasing nitrite in the range of 0-56 mg of N/L at the initial stage. FNA treatment decreased the biomass-specific N2O production rate, suggesting that the enzymes relevant to nitrifier denitrification were inhibited. Microbial analysis revealed that FNA treatment decreased the microbial community diversity but increased the abundances of AOB and denitrifiers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Free nitrous acid (FNA) has recently been demonstrated as an antimicrobial agent on a range of micro-organisms, especially in wastewater-treatment systems. However, the antimicrobial mechanism of FNA is largely unknown. Here, we report that the antimicrobial effects of FNA are multitargeted. The response of a model denitrifier, Pseudomnas aeruginosa PAO1 (PAO1), common in wastewater treatment, was investigated in the absence and presence of inhibitory level of FNA (0.1 mg N/L) under anaerobic denitrifying conditions. This was achieved through coupling gene expression analysis, by RNA sequencing, and with a suite of physiological analyses. Various transcripts exhibited significant changes in abundance in the presence of FNA. Respiration was likely inhibited because denitrification activity was severely depleted, and decreased transcript levels of most denitrification genes occurred. As a consequence, the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle was inhibited due to the lowered cellular redox state in the FNA-exposed cultures. Meanwhile, during FNA exposure, PAO1 rerouted its carbon metabolic pathway from the TCA cycle to pyruvate fermentation with acetate as the end product as a possible survival mechanism. Additionally, protein synthesis was significantly decreased, and ribosome preservation was evident. These findings improve our understanding of PAO1 in response tofNA and contribute toward the potential application for use of FNA as an antimicrobial agent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

"Sludge-drying lagoons" are a preferred sludge treatment and drying method in tropical and subtropical areas due to the low construction and operational costs. However, this method may be a potential significant source of methane (CH4) because some of the organic matter would be microbially metabolized under anaerobic conditions in the lagoon. The quantification of CH4 emissions from lagoons is difficult due to the expected temporal and spatial variations over a lagoon maturing cycle of several years. Sporadic ebullition of CH4, which cannot be easily quantified by conventional methods such as floating hoods, is also expected. In this study, a novel method based on mass balances was developed to estimate the CH4 emissions and was applied to a full-scale sludge-drying lagoon over a three year operational cycle. The results revealed that processes in a sludge-drying lagoon would emit 6.5 kg CO2-e per megaliter of treated sewage. This would represent a quarter to two-thirds of the overall greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from wastewater-treatment plants (WWTPs). This work highlights the fact that sludge-drying lagoons are a significant source of CH4 that adds substantially to the overall GHG footprint of WWTPs despite being recognized as a cheap and energy-efficient means of drying sludge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Caustic shock-loading and oxygen injection are commonly used by the water industry for biofilm and sulfide control in sewers. Caustic can be produced onsite from wastewater using a two-compartment electrochemical cell. This avoids the need for import and storage of caustic soda, which typically represents a cost and a hazard. An issue limiting the practical implementation of this approach is the occurrence of membrane scaling due to the almost universal presence of Ca2+ and Mg2+ in wastewater. It results in a rapid increase in the cell voltage, thereby increasing the energy consumption of the system. Here, we propose and experimentally demonstrate an innovative solution for this problem involving the inclusion of a middle compartment between the anode and cathode compartments. Caustic was efficiently produced from wastewater over a period of 12 weeks and had an average Coulombic efficiency (CE) of 84.1 ± 1.1% at practically relevant caustic strengths (~3 wt %). Neither membrane scaling nor an increase in the cell voltage was observed throughout the experiments. In addition, dissolved oxygen was produced in the anode, resulting in continuously oxygenated wastewater leaving the three-compartment cell. This membrane-scaling control strategy represents a major step forward toward practical implementation of on-site simultaneous electrochemical caustic and oxygen generation for sulfide control in sewers and also has the potential to be applied to other (bio)electrochemical systems receiving wastewater as source for product recovery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Anaerobic digestion has been widely applied to treat the waste activated sludge from biological wastewater treatment and produce methane for biofuel, which has been one of the most efficient solutions to both energy crisis and environmental pollution challenges. Anaerobic digestion sludge contains highly complex microbial communities, which play crucial roles in sludge treatment. However, traditional approaches based on 16S rRNA amplification or fluorescent in situ hybridization cannot completely reveal the whole microbial community structure due to the extremely high complexity of the involved communities. In this sense, the next-generation high-throughput sequencing provides a powerful tool for dissecting microbial community structure and methane-producing pathways in anaerobic digestion. Results: In this work, the metagenomic sequencing was used to characterize microbial community structure of the anaerobic digestion sludge from a full-scale municipal wastewater treatment plant. Over 3.0 gigabases of metagenomic sequence data were generated with the Illumina HiSeq 2000 platform. Taxonomic analysis by MG-RAST server indicated that overall bacteria were dominant (~93%) whereas a considerable abundance of archaea (~6%) were also detected in the anaerobic digestion sludge. The most abundant bacterial populations were found to be Proteobacteria, Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, and Actinobacteria. Key microorganisms and related pathways involved in methanogenesis were further revealed. The dominant proliferation of Methanosaeta and Methanosarcina, together with the functional affiliation of enzymes-encoding genes (acetate kinase (AckA), phosphate acetyltransferase (PTA), and acetyl-CoA synthetase (ACSS)), suggested that the acetoclastic methanogenesis is the dominant methanogenesis pathway in the full-scale anaerobic digester. Conclusions: In short, the metagenomic sequencing study of this work successfully dissected the detail microbial community structure and the dominated methane-producing pathways of a full-scale anaerobic digester. The knowledge garnered would facilitate to develop more efficient full-scale anaerobic digestion systems to achieve high-rate waste sludge treatment and methane production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Surface water methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) concentrations and fluxes were investigated in two subtropical coastal embayments (Bramble Bay and Deception Bay, which are part of the greater Moreton Bay, Australia). Measurements were done at 23 stations in seven campaigns covering different seasons during 2010-2012. Water-air fluxes were estimated using the Thin Boundary Layer approach with a combination of wind and currents-based models for the estimation of the gas transfer velocities. The two bays were strong sources of both CH4 and N2O with no significant differences in the degree of saturation of both gases between them during all measurement campaigns. Both CH4 and N2O concentrations had strong temporal but minimal spatial variability in both bays. During the seven seasons, CH4 varied between 500% and 4000% saturation while N2O varied between 128 and 255% in the two bays. Average seasonal CH4 fluxes for the two bays varied between 0.5 ± 0.2 and 6.0 ± 1.5 mg CH4/(m²•day) while N2O varied between 0.4 ± 0.1 and 1.6 ± 0.6 mg N2O/(m²•day). Weighted emissions (t CO2-e) were 63%-90% N2O dominated implying that a reduction in N2O inputs and/or nitrogen availability in the bays may significantly reduce the bays' greenhouse gas (GHG) budget. Emissions data for tropical and subtropical systems is still scarce. This work found subtropical bays to be significant aquatic sources of both CH4 and N2O and puts the estimated fluxes into the global context with measurements done from other climatic regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Surface water-methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) concentrations were measured and diffusive fluxes were estimated in three subtropical freshwater reservoirs (Little Nerang Dam (LND), Lake Wivenhoe (LW) and Lake Baroon (LB)) in southeast Queensland, Australia, during four seasons in 2011-2012. All reservoirs were strong sources of CH4 in all seasons. Surface water CH4 varied between 1350 and 524 000% saturation, and was overall highest in spring and summer, and lowest in winter, however, with no clear patterns common to all reservoirs. In contrast, all reservoirs switched from weak N2O sinks in spring to strong N2O sources for the rest of the year. N2O saturation in all reservoirs varied between 70 and 1230%. There were significant differences for CH4 concentrations and fluxes between the reservoirs. Within each reservoir, there was strong spatial CH4 variability but minimal N2O saturation variability. CH4 saturation was higher in inflow zones than in the main body. Area-weighted average fluxes were estimated using six water-air gas transfer velocity estimation models and resulted in fluxes in the range 4.8-20.5, 2.3-5.4, and 2.3-7.5 mg CH4 m-2 d-1 , while N2O was 0.07-0.41, 0.09-0.22, and 0.03-0.09 mg N2O m-2 d-1 for LND, LW, and LB, respectively. Total emissions, in carbon dioxide equivalents, from all measurement campaigns were CH4 dominated (67-86%). The measured degree of CH4 saturation and fluxes are among the highest reported thus far indicating that subtropical freshwater reservoirs could be significant aquatic greenhouse gas sources. This paper provides a comprehensive assessment of the interplay between biogeochemical processes and the physical forcing driving the water-air gaseous emissions. The high variability coupled with the lack of consensus among estimation models calls for concerted efforts to address uncertainty of measurements for reliable emissions accounting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simultaneous production of sulfide and methane by anaerobic sewer biofilms has recently been observed, suggesting that sulfate- reducing bacteria (SRB) and methanogenic archaea (MA), microorganisms known to compete for the same substrates, can coexist in this environment. This study investigated the community structures and activities of SRB and MA in anaerobic sewer biofilms (average thickness of 800 μm) using a combination of microelectrode measurements, molecular techniques, and mathematical modeling. It was seen that sulfide was mainly produced in the outer layer of the biofilm, between the depths of 0 and 300 μm, which is in good agreement with the distribution of SRB population as revealed by cryosection-fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). SRB had a higher relative abundance of 20% on the surface layer, which decreased gradually to below 3% at a depth of 400 μm. In contrast, MA mainly inhabited the inner layer of the biofilm. Their relative abundances increased from 10% to 75% at depths of 200 μm and 700 μm, respectively, from the biofilm surface layer. High-throughput pyrosequencing of 16S rRNA amplicons showed that SRB in the biofilm were mainly affiliated with five genera, Desulfobulbus, Desulfomicrobium, Desulfovibrio, Desulfatiferula, and Desulforegula, while about 90% of the MA population belonged to the genus Methanosaeta. The spatial organizations of SRB and MA revealed by pyrosequencing were consistent with the FISH results. A biofilm model was constructed to simulate the SRB and MA distributions in the anaerobic sewer biofilm. The good fit between model predictions and the experimental data indicate that the coexistence and spatial structure of SRB and MA in the biofilm resulted from the microbial types and their metabolic transformations and interactions with substrates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the limitation or deficiency of nutrients, such as nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P), has been one of the frequently reported factors causing filamentous or non-filamentous bulking of activated sludge, the mechanisms are still unclear. In this work, the long-term effects of N and P limitation or deficiency on sludge settleability and bioflocculation characteristics were investigated in six sequencing batch reactors (SBRs) fed with wastewater with different nutrient availability. The sludge volume index (SVI), microbial community structures, intracellular poly-β-hydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) and extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) were characterised over time. Bulking was not observed in SBRs with N limitation or deficiency, in which SVI remained below 150 mL/g. In contrast, bulking was encountered in those reactors with P deficiency. The occurrence of non-filamentous bulking was associated with a higher carbohydrates fraction and a lower proteins fraction in EPS. In the case of filamentous bulking, SVI correlated negatively with the amount of PHAs. Our experimental data support the hypothesis that the occurrence and/or the type of bulking in activated sludge could be affected by the combination of kinetic selection, microbial storage, as well as the EPS composition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Methane is a highly potent greenhouse gas and contributes significantly to climate change. Recent studies have shown significant methane production in sewers. The studies conducted so far have relied on manual sampling followed by off-line laboratory-based chromatography analysis. These methods are labor-intensive when measuring methane emissions from a large number of sewers, and do not capture the dynamic variations in methane production. In this study, we investigated the suitability of infrared spectroscopy-based on-line methane sensors for measuring methane in humid and condensing sewer air. Two such sensors were comprehensively tested in the laboratory. Both sensors displayed high linearity (R2 > 0.999), with a detection limit of 0.023% and 0.110% by volume, respectively. Both sensors were robust against ambient temperature variations in the range of 5 to 35°C. While one sensor was robust against humidity variations, the other was found to be significantly affected by humidity. However, the problem was solved by equipping the sensor with a heating unit to increase the sensor surface temperature to 35°C. Field studies at three sites confirmed the performance and accuracy of the sensors when applied to actual sewer conditions, and revealed substantial and highly dynamic methane concentrations in sewer air. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Methane production from anaerobic digestion of waste activated sludge (WAS) is often limited by the slow degradation and poor substrate availability of WAS. Our previous study revealed that WAS pre-treatment using free nitrous acid (FNA, i.e. HNO2) is an economically feasible and environmentally friendly method for promoting methane production. In order to further improve methane production from WAS, this study presents a novel strategy based on combined FNA and heat pre-treatment. WAS from a full-scale plant was treated for 24 h with FNA alone (0.52-1.43 mg N/L at 25 °C), heat alone (35, 55 and 70 °C), and FNA (0.52-1.11 mg N/L) combined with heat (35, 55 and 70 °C). The pre-treated WAS was then used for biochemical methane potential tests. Compared to the control (no FNA or heat pre-treatment of WAS), biochemical methane potential of the pre-treated WAS was increased by 12-16%, 0-6%, 17-26%, respectively; hydrolysis rate was improved by 15-25%, 10-25%, 20-25%, respectively, for the three types of pre-treatment. Heat pre-treatment at 55 and 70 °C, independent of the presence or absence of FNA, achieved approximately 4.5 log inactivation of pathogens (in comparison to ~1 log inactivation with FNA treatment alone), thus capable of producing Class A biosolids. The combined FNA and heat pre-treatment is an economically and environmentally attractive technology for the pre-treatment of WAS prior to anaerobic digestion, particularly considering that both FNA and heat can be produced as by-products of anaerobic sludge digestion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions from nitritation reactors receiving real anaerobic sludge digestion liquor have been reported to be substantially higher than those from reactors receiving synthetic digestion liquor. This study aims to identify the causes for the difference, and to develop strategies to reduce N2O emissions from reactors treating real digestion liquor. Two sequencing batch reactors (SBRs) performing nitritation, fed with real (SBR-R) and synthetic (SBR-S) digestion liquors, respectively, were employed. The N2O emission factors for SBR-R and SBR-S were determined to be 3.12% and 0.80% of the NH4+-N oxidized, respectively. Heterotrophic denitrification supported by the organic carbon present in the real digestion liquor was found to be the key contributor to the higher N2O emission from SBR-R. Heterotrophic nitrite reduction likely stopped at N2O (rather than N2), with a hypothesised cause being free nitrous acid inhibition. This implies that all nitrite reduced by heterotrophic bacteria was converted to and emitted as N2O. Increasing dissolved oxygen (DO) concentration from 0.5 to 1.0 mg/L, or above, decreased aerobic N2O production from 2.0% to 0.5% in SBR-R, whereas aerobic N2O production in SBR-S remained almost unchanged (at approximately 0.5%). We hypothesised that DO at 1 mg/L or above suppressed heterotrophic nitrite reduction thus reduced aerobic heterotrophic N2O production. We recommend that DO in a nitritation system receiving anaerobic sludge digestion liquor should be maintained at approximately 1 mg/L to minimise N2O emission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nitrogen removal by using the synergy of denitrifying anaerobic methane oxidation (DAMO) and anaerobic ammonium oxidation (Anammox) microorganisms in a membrane biofilm reactor (MBfR) has previously been demonstrated experimentally. In this work, a mathematical model is developed to describe the simultaneous anaerobic methane and ammonium oxidation by DAMO and Anammox microorganisms in an MBfR for the first time. In this model, DAMO archaea convert nitrate, both externally fed and/or produced by Anammox, to nitrite, with methane as the electron donor. Anammox and DAMO bacteria jointly remove the nitrite fed/produced, with ammonium and methane as the electron donor, respectively. The model is successfully calibrated and validated using the long-term (over 400 days) dynamic experimental data from the MBfR, as well as two independent batch tests at different operational stages of the MBfR The model satisfactorily describes the methane oxidation and nitrogen conversion data from the system. Modeling results show the concentration gradients of methane and nitrogen would cause stratification of the biofilm, where Anammox bacteria mainly grow in the biofilm layer close to the bulk liquid and DAMO organisms attach close to the membrane surface. The low surface methane loadings result in a low fraction of DAMO microorganisms, but the high surface methane loadings would lead to overgrowth of DAMO bacteria, which would compete with Anammox for nitrite and decrease the fraction of Anammox bacteria. The results suggest an optimal methane supply under the given condition should be applied not only to benefit the nitrogen removal but also to avoid potential methane emissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Autotrophic ammonia oxidizing bacteria (AOB) have been recognized as a major contributor to N2O production in wastewater treatment systems. However, so far N2O models have been proposed based on a single N2O production pathway by AOB, and there is still a lack of effective approach for the integration of these models. In this work, an integrated mathematical model that considers multiple production pathways is developed to describe N2O production by AOB. The pathways considered include the nitrifier denitrification pathway (N2O as the final product of AOB denitrification with NO2- as the terminal electron acceptor) and the hydroxylamine (NH2OH) pathway (N2O as a byproduct of incomplete oxidation of NH2OH to NO2-). In this model, the oxidation and reduction processes are modeled separately, with intracellular electron carriers introduced to link the two types of processes. The model is calibrated and validated using experimental data obtained with two independent nitrifying cultures. The model satisfactorily describes the N2O data from both systems. The model also predicts shifts of the dominating pathway at various dissolved oxygen (DO) and nitrite levels, consistent with previous hypotheses. This unified model is expected to enhance our ability to predict N2O production by AOB in wastewater treatment systems under varying operational conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chemicals such as magnesium hydroxide (Mg(OH)2) and iron salts are widely used to control sulfideinduced corrosion in sewer networks composed of interconnected sewer pipe lines and pumping stations. Chemical dosing control is usually non-automatic and based on experience, thus often resulting in sewage reaching the discharge point receiving inadequate or even no chemical dosing. Moreover, intermittent operation of pumping stations makes traditional control theory inadequate. A hybrid automata-based (HA-based) control method is proposed in this paper to coordinate sewage pumping station operations by considering their states, thereby ensuring suitable chemical concentrations in the network discharge. The performance of the proposed control method was validated through a simulation study of a real sewer network using real sewage flow data. The physical, chemical and biological processes were simulated using the well-established SeweX model. The results suggested that the HA-based control strategy significantly improved chemical dosing control performance and sulfide mitigation in sewer networks, compared to the current common practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anaerobic digestion of waste activated sludge (WAS) is currently enjoying renewed interest due to the potential for methane production. However, methane production is often limited by the slow hydrolysis rate and/or poor methane potential of WAS. This study presents a novel pretreatment strategy based on free nitrous acid (FNA or HNO2) to enhance methane production from WAS. Pretreatment of WAS for 24 h at FNA concentrations up to 2.13 mg N/L substantially enhanced WAS solubilization, with the highest solubilization (0.16 mg chemical oxygen demand (COD)/mg volatile solids (VS), at 2.13 mg HNO2-N/L) being six times that without FNA pretreatment (0.025 mg COD/mg VS, at 0 mg HNO2-N/L). Biochemical methane potential tests demonstrated methane production increased with increased FNA concentration used in the pretreatment step. Model-based analysis indicated FNA pretreatment improved both hydrolysis rate and methane potential, with the highest improvement being approximately 50% (from 0.16 to 0.25 d-1) and 27% (from 201 to 255 L CH4/kg VS added), respectively, achieved at 1.78-2.13 mg HNO2-N/L. Further analysis indicated that increased hydrolysis rate and methane potential were related to an increase in rapidly biodegradable substrates, which increased with increased FNA dose, while the slowly biodegradable substrates remained relatively static. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work demonstrates, for the first time, the feasibility of nitrogen removal by using the synergy of anammox and denitrifying anaerobic methane oxidation (DAMO) microorganisms in a membrane biofilm reactor (MBfR). The reactor was fed with synthetic wastewater containing nitrate and ammonium. Methane was delivered from the interior of hollow fibres in the MBfR to the biofilm that grew on the fiber's outer wall. After 24 months of operation, the system achieved a nitrate and an ammonium removal rate of about 190 mgN L-1 d-1 (or 86 mgN m-2 d-1, with m2 referring to biofilm surface area) and 60 mgN L-1 d-1 (27 mgN m-2 d-1), respectively. No nitrite accumulation was observed. Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) analysis indicated that DAMO bacteria (20-30%), DAMO archaea (20-30%) and anammox bacteria (20-30%) jointly dominated the microbial community. Based on the known metabolism of these microorganisms, mass balance, and isotope studies, we hypothesize that DAMO archaea converted nitrate, both externally fed and produced by anammox, to nitrite, with methane as the electron donor. Anammox and DAMO bacteria jointly removed the nitrite produced, with ammonium and methane as the electron donor, respectively. The process could potentially be used for anaerobic nitrogen removal from wastewater streams containing ammonium and nitrate/nitrite. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mathematical modeling of N2O emissions is of great importance toward understanding the whole environmental impact of wastewater treatment systems. However, information on modeling of N2O emissions from full-scale wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) is still sparse. In this work, a mathematical model based on currently known or hypothesized metabolic pathways for N2O productions by heterotrophic denitrifiers and ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) is developed and calibrated to describe the N2O emissions from full-scale WWTPs. The model described well the dynamic ammonium, nitrite, nitrate, dissolved oxygen (DO) and N2O data collected from both an open oxidation ditch (OD) system with surface aerators and a sequencing batch reactor (SBR) system with bubbling aeration. The obtained kinetic parameters for N2O production are found to be reasonable as the 95% confidence regions of the estimates are all small with mean values approximately at the center. The model is further validated with independent data sets collected from the same two WWTPs. This is the first time that mathematical modeling of N2O emissions is conducted successfully for full-scale WWTPs. While clearly showing that the NH2OH related pathways could well explain N2O production and emission in the two full-scale plants studied, the modeling results do not prove the dominance of the NH2OH pathways in these plants, nor rule out the possibility of AOB denitrification being a potentially dominating pathway in other WWTPs that are designed or operated differently. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A two-stage moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR) was applied at the Bundamba advanced water treatment plant (AWTP) (Queensland, Australia) to treat the reverse osmosis concentrate (ROC) for inorganic nutrient removal. One of the operational challenges for the system was to cope with the large fluctuations of the ROC flow. This study investigated the decay rates of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) and nitrite-oxidizing bacteria (NOB) and biofilm detachment in MBBR during starvation for up to one month. An intermittent aeration strategy of 15 min aeration every 6 h was applied. This study also evaluated the activity recovery of both AOB and NOB after normal operation was resumed. The results showed that the activity loss of AOB and NOB was relatively minor (<20%) within 10 days of starvation, which ensured relatively quick recovery of ammonium removal when normal operation resumed. In contrast, the AOB and NOB activity loss reached 60-80% when the starvation time was longer than 20 days, resulting in slower recovery of ammonium removal after starvation. Starvation for less than 20 days didn't result in an apparent biomass detachment from carriers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions from wastewater treatment plants vary substantially between plants, ranging from negligible to substantial (a few per cent of the total nitrogen load), probably because of different designs and operational conditions. In general, plants that achieve high levels of nitrogen removal emit less N2O, indicating that no compromise is required between high water quality and lower N2O emissions. N2O emissions primarily occur in aerated zones/compartments/periods owing to active stripping, and ammonia-oxidizing bacteria, rather than heterotrophic denitrifiers, are the main contributors. However, the detailed mechanisms remain to be fully elucidated, despite strong evidence suggesting that both nitrifier denitrification and the chemical breakdown of intermediates of hydroxylamine oxidation are probably involved. With increased understanding of the fundamental reactions responsible for N2O production in wastewater treatment systems and the conditions that stimulate their occurrence, reduction of N2O emissions from wastewater treatment systems through improved plant design and operation will be achieved in the near future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]