The assessment of the coke wastewater treatment efficacy in rotating biological contractor.

Coke wastewater is known to be relatively difficult for biological treatment. Nonetheless, biofilm-based systems seem to be promising tool for such treatment. That is why a rotating biological contactor (RBC) system focused on the Anammox process was used in this study. The experiment was divided into two parts with synthetic and then real wastewater. It was proven that it is possible to treat coke wastewater with RBC but such a procedure requires a very long start-up period for the nitritation (190 days), as well as for the Anammox process, where stable nitrogen removal over 70% was achieved after 400 days of experiment. Interestingly, it was possible at a relatively low (20.2 ± 2.2 °C) temperature. The polymerase chain reaction-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE) based monitoring of the bacterial community showed that its biodiversity decreased when the real wastewater was treated and it was composed mainly of GC-rich genotypes, probably because of the modeling influence of this wastewater and the genotypes specialization.

Startup of the Anammox Process in a Membrane Bioreactor (AnMBR) from Conventional Activated Sludge.

In this study, a laboratory-scale anammox process in a membrane bioreactor (AnMBR) was used to startup the anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox) process from conventional activated sludge. Stable operation was achieved after 125 days. From that time, nitrogen load was gradually increased. After six months, the average nitrogen removal efficiency exceeded 80%. The highest obtained special anammox activity (SAA) achieved was 0.17 g (-N + -N) (g VSS × d)-1. Fluorescent in situ hybridization also proved the presence of the anammox bacteria, typically a genus of Brocadia anammoxidans and Kuenenia stuttgartiensis.

Dissolved oxygen as a factor influencing nitrogen removal rates in a one-stage system with partial nitritation and Anammox process.

A biofilm system with Kaldnes biofilm carrier was used in these studies to cultivate bacteria responsible for both partial nitritation and Anammox processes. Due to co-existence of oxygen and oxygen-free zones within the biofilm depth, both processes can occur in a single reactor. Oxygen that inhibits the Anammox process is consumed in the outer layer of the biofilm and in this way Anammox bacteria are protected from oxygen. The impact of oxygen concentration on nitrogen removal rates was investigated in the pilot plant (2.1 m3), supplied with reject water from the Himmerfjärden Waste Water Treatment Plant. The results of batch tests showed that the highest nitrogen removal rates were obtained for a dissolved oxygen (DO) concentration around 3 g O2 m(-3) At a DO concentration of 4 g O2 m(-3), an increase of nitrite and nitrate nitrogen concentrations in the batch reactor were observed. The average nitrogen removal rate in the pilot plant during a whole operating period oscillated around 1.3 g N m(-2)d(-1) (0.3 +/- 0.1 kg N m(-3)d(-1)) at the average dissolved oxygen concentration of 2.3 g O2 m(-3). The maximum value of a nitrogen removal rate amounted to 1.9 g N m(-2)d(-1) (0.47 kg N m(-3)d(-1)) and was observed for a DO concentration equal to 2.5 g O2 m(-3). It was observed that increase of biofilm thickness during the operational period, had no influence on nitrogen removal rates in the pilot plant.

A one-stage system with partial nitritation and anammox processes in the moving-bed biofilm reactor.

The ability of bacterial cultures to create biofilm brings a possibility to enhance biological wastewater treatment efficiency. Moreover, the ability of Anammox and Nitrosomonas species to grow within the same biofilm layer enabled a one-stage system for nitrogen removal to be designed. Such a system, with Kaldnes rings as carriers for biofilm growth, was tested in a technical pilot plant scale (2.1 m(3)) at the Himmerfjärden Waste Water Treatment Plant (WWTP) in the Stockholm region. The system was directly supplied with supernatant originating from dewatering of digested sludge containing high ammonium concentrations. Nearly 1-year of operational data showed that during the partial nitritation/Anammox process, alkalinity was utilised parallel to ammonium removal. The process resulted in a small pH drop, and its relationship with conductivity was found. The nitrogen removal rate for the whole period oscillated around 1.5g N m(-2)d(-1) with a maximum value equal to 1.9 g N m(-2)d(-1). Parallel to the pilot plant experiment, a series of batch tests were run to investigate the influence on removal rates of different dissolved oxygen conditions and addition of nitrite. The highest nitrogen removal rate (5.2g N m(-2)2d(-1)) in batch tests was obtained when the Anammox process was stimulated by the addition of nitrite. In the simultaneous partial nitritation and Anammox process, the partial nitritation was the rate-limiting step.

Biological nitrogen removal from landfill leachate by deammonification assisted by heterotrophic denitrification in a rotating biological contactor (RBC).

Due to negative environmental effects of nitrogen discharge to recipients and increasingly stringent effluent standards, effective nitrogen removal is necessity. Biological methods are the simplest and cheapest way to treat wastewater; however, it may become an extremely expensive option when high influent nitrogen concentrations are measured and there is a lack of biodegradable organic carbon. Therefore, there is a great need to find new solutions and improve existing technologies. The deammonification is an excellent example of such a new process that requires considerably low amounts of organic carbon and oxygen in comparison to conventional nitrification/denitrification. The main objective of presented research was to investigate an Anammox process accompanied with autotrophic nitrification and heterotrophic denitrification in one rotating biological contactor (RBC). During the research period, it was possible to carry out the Anammox process in low temperature below 20 'C. Additionally, it was found that the process is insensitive to high nitrite concentration in the reactor, up to 100 g NO2-N m(-3), resulting only in a temporary decrease in removal rates. Furthermore, analysis of data indicated that the Stover-Kincannon model can be used for the description of ammonium and nitrite removal processes.

Nitrogen removal rates at a technical-scale pilot plant with the one-stage partial nitritation/Anammox process.

Traditional nitrification/denitrification is not suitable for nitrogen removal when wastewater contains high concentrations of ammonium nitrogen and low concentrations of biodegradable carbon. Recently, a deammonification process was developed and proposed as a new technology for treatment of such streams. This process relies on a stable interaction between aerobic bacteria Nitrosomonas, that accomplish partial nitritation and anaerobic bacteria Planctomycetales, which conduct the Anammox reaction. Simultaneous performance of these two processes can lead to a complete autotrophic nitrogen removal in one single reactor. The experiments where nitrogen was removed in one reactor were performed at a technical-scale moving-bed pilot plant, filled with Kaldnes rings and supplied with supernatant after dewatering of digested sludge. It was found that a nitrogen removal rate obtained at the pilot plant was 1.9 g m(-2) d(-1). Parallel to the pilot plant run, a series of batch tests were carried out under anoxic and aerobic conditions. Within the batch tests, where the pilot plant's conditions were simulated, removal rates reached up to 3 g N m(-2)d(-1). Moreover, the batch tests with inhibition of Nitrosomonas showed that only the Anammox bacteria (not anoxic removal by Nitrosomonas) are responsible for nitrogen removal.