Article
Environmental Sciences
Hongjie Wang, Hang Li, Lei Zhu, Xianglong Yang, Qiushuo Zhang, Yali Wang, Dongbo Wang
Summary: This study investigated the effect of benzalkonium bromide (BK) on the production of short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) during anaerobic sludge fermentation. The results showed that BK exposure significantly increased the production of SCFAs. Mechanism exploration revealed enhanced bioavailable organic matter release and inhibition of methanogenesis due to BK exposure. Microbial community investigation indicated an increase in hydrolytic-acidifying bacteria and improved metabolic pathways and functional genes for sludge lysis.
JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
(2023)
Article
Agricultural Engineering
Qian Ping, Zhipeng Zhang, Xiaohu Dai, Yongmei Li
Summary: The use of novel composite CaO2 beads can enhance the production of total short-chain fatty acids (TSCFAs) and phosphorus (P) recovery from iron-rich waste activated sludge during ambient anaerobic fermentation. The CaO2 beads with porous structure and sustained release of CaO2 effectively enriched dissimilatory iron-reducing bacteria (DIRB) and promoted iron-reduction related genes, leading to a high TSCFAs production and P recovery rate. The P-rich beads are easily separated from sludge for further P recovery, while the supernatant containing acetate and Fe2+ can be returned to wastewater treatment line for nutrient removal.
BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Qianqian Zhang, Linyu Wu, Jianghao Huang, Yuetong Qu, Yu Pan, Li Liu, Hongtao Zhu
Summary: This study proposes a new approach for the recovery of SCFAs from wasted activated sludge using biocarriers and microfiltration (MF) membrane separation. The results show that biocarriers and MF membrane promote SCFA production in different ways, and the combination of these methods achieves a higher concentration of SCFAs. Additionally, biocarriers effectively alleviate membrane fouling and increase membrane flux.
RESOURCES CONSERVATION AND RECYCLING
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Zhenmin Li, Jishi Zhang, Chunduo Kong, Wenqing Li, Jinwei Wang, Lihua Zang
Summary: The hydrothermal coupled calcium peroxide co-cellulase pretreatment of lignocellulosic biomass proposed in this study can improve methane production by increasing total organic carbon content, leading to enhanced anaerobic digestion efficiency for wheat straw.
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Giulia Adele Tuci, Francesco Valentino, Edoardo Bonato, Paolo Pavan, Marco Gottardo
Summary: This study evaluates the performance of anaerobic fermentation process to obtain short-chain fatty acids from tannery sludge, with the best results obtained through a combination of microwave and hydrogen peroxide pretreatment followed by thermophilic conditions. Without pretreatment, mesophilic temperature is preferred for comparable or even better acidification performances.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Jianghao Huang, Yu Pan, Li Liu, Jinsong Liang, Linyu Wu, Hongtao Zhu, Panyue Zhang
Summary: This study investigated the effects and mechanisms of salinity on the production of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) in the anaerobic fermentation of kitchen wastewater. The results showed that high salinity conditions accelerated the release of soluble proteins and inhibited the hydrolysis and degradation of proteins and carbohydrates. High salinity delayed the production of n-butyric acid but did not change the composition of total SCFAs. It also enriched certain bacterial genera and showed negative correlation with the relative abundance of bacteria responsible for SCFA production.
JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Haixiao Guo, Yufen Wang, Lixin Tian, Wei Wei, Tingting Zhu, Yiwen Liu
Summary: The pretreatment of anaerobic sludge with POMs increases the production of SCFAs, improves the biodegradability of organics, and alleviates the inhibition on SCFAs producers, leading to SCFAs accumulation. Additionally, POMs pretreatment has an impact on the microbial community structure.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Shuli Liu, Aijuan Zhou, Yaxin Fan, Yanqing Duan, Zhihong Liu, Zhangwei He, Wenzong Liu, Xiuping Yue
Summary: In this study, a novel coupling strategy of heat-activated persulfate (Heat_PS) pretreatment and sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) triggering was explored to enhance short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) produced by waste activated sludge (WAS) fermentation. The results showed that this coupling strategy significantly increased SCFAs yield, with the proportion of acetate reaching 57.8%.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Xiao Huang, Chongsen Duan, Jianghua Yu, Wenyi Dong, Hongjie Wang
Summary: This study found that temperature plays a crucial role in the succession and interspecific interaction of microorganisms in primary sludge anaerobic fermentation system, affecting the production of volatile fatty acids (VFAs). Higher temperatures promote the production of acetic and iso-valeric acid, and there are metabolic differences among microorganisms at different temperatures.
JOURNAL OF CLEANER PRODUCTION
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Qizi Fu, Qiuxiang Xu, Zongyao Liu, Dongbo Wang, Xuran Liu, Dandan He, Yanying He, Yifu Li, Jingnan Yang, Abing Duan
Summary: Potassium permanganate, a versatile strong oxidant, has been used as an effective additive for degrading pollutants and recovering resources from waste activated sludge. Research has shown that KMnO4 significantly reduces H2S production during anaerobic fermentation of waste activated sludge. Furthermore, addition of KMnO4 inhibits the activities of sulfate reducing bacteria and other anaerobes responsible for sulfur-containing organics hydrolysis, leading to a reduction in sulfur-based precipitations and an increase in fermentation pH which benefits the chemical equilibrium of sulfide species.
CHEMICAL ENGINEERING JOURNAL
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Ming Zheng, Qian Ping, Lin Wang, Xiaohu Dai, Yongmei Li, Shane A. Snyder
Summary: This study proposed a sludge pretreatment method using UV combined with CaO2 to enhance AD performance, increase product production, and remove TOrCs simultaneously, laying the foundation for promoting sludge resource recycling.
JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS
(2021)
Article
Thermodynamics
Mohamed Saad Hellal, Filip Gamon, Grzegorz Cema, Gamal Kamel Hassan, Gehad Ginedy Mohamed, Aleksandra Ziembinska-Buczynska
Summary: This study investigated the enrichment of biohydrogen production from pretreated industrial sludge using SiO2@Cu-Ag core-shell nanostructure. The results showed that the addition of 40 mg/L of core-shell nanostructure significantly improved the biohydrogen yield and promoted the development of hydrogen-producing bacteria.
ENERGY CONVERSION AND MANAGEMENT
(2024)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Zhihong Liu, Aijuan Zhou, Yanqing Duan, Sufang Wang, Yanjuan Gao, Xi Chen, Zhixuan Cui, Zhengtong Guo, Xiuping Yue
Summary: This study found that the co-pretreatment of PAA and FNA can effectively promote the production of short-chain fatty acids during anaerobic fermentation of waste activated sludge. Higher dosage of PAA was beneficial for organics release and significantly increased the release compared to lower dosage of PAA. The effective release of soluble organics contributed to the accumulation of SCFAs, with acetic acid and propionic acid being the major components. OH· and O2·- were detected in the co-pretreatment and may play a role in the decomposition of EPS along with other intermediates.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Xing Fan, Shuohui Shi, Hong Lin, Yongqiu Xia, Xuejie He, Jian Zhou
Summary: The study investigated the effects of zero valent iron (ZVI) and magnetite (Mag.) on the quality of hydrolysis-acidification effluent. It was found that ZVI effectively alleviated high temperature and strong alkali stress and improved the effluent VFAs.
JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
(2023)
Article
Agricultural Engineering
Nan Jiang, Jinling He, Ai Zhang, Yongquan Zhou, Ming Zheng, Xianbao Xu, Andere Clement Miruka, Xiang Li, Yanan Liu, Gang Xue
Summary: The combination of dielectric barrier discharge plasma with calcium peroxide was found to significantly enhance the hydrolysis of waste activated sludge and the production of short-chain fatty acids. This was achieved by promoting the decomposition of extracellular polymeric substances, lysing cells, and releasing biodegradable substances. Additionally, the treatment increased the abundance of hydrolytic and SCFAs-forming bacteria, while decreasing the abundance of SCFAs-consuming bacteria.
BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Rong-Gui Zhu, Chang-Gui Pan, Feng-Jiao Peng, Chao-Yang Zhou, Jun-Jie Hu, Kefu Yu
Summary: This comprehensive survey investigated the occurrence, bioaccumulation, and trophic magnification of parabens and their metabolite 4-HB in a marine food web. Results showed that parabens were the predominant pollutants in marine organisms, with significant bioaccumulation from sediments. The estimated trophic magnification factor indicated biomagnification for MeP and trophic dilution for 4-HB. Overall, the risks for humans consuming marine organisms were found to be low.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Andres F. Torres-Franco, Deborah Leroy-Freitas, Cristina Martinez-Fraile, Elisa Rodriguez, Pedro A. Garcia-Encina, Raul Munoz
Summary: Anaerobic and microalgae-based technologies have emerged as sustainable alternatives for municipal wastewater treatment. However, the presence of viruses in the treated wastewater is a major concern for reuse applications. This study assessed the ability of these technologies to reduce viruses during secondary wastewater treatment. The results showed that all technologies were effective in reducing the concentration of viruses, with microalgae-based treatment exhibiting the highest potential for reducing the disinfection requirements of treated wastewater.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Young Gwang Kim, Sae Yun Kwon, Spencer J. Washburn, Scott C. Brooks, Ji Won Yoon, Lucien Besnard
Summary: The study uses Hg isotope ratios to identify the sources and exposure pathways of mercury in bivalves, finding that dissolved Hg phases in the water column are the primary source and exposure pathway to bivalves. This provides new insights into using bivalves as bioindicators for sediment quality monitoring.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Hui Geng, Ying Xu, Rui Liu, Dianhai Yang, Xiaohu Dai
Summary: This study investigates the effect of cation exchange resin (CER) on the sequential recovery of hydrogen and methane from anaerobic digestion (AD) and the corresponding mechanisms. The results show that CER can simultaneously enhance the production of hydrogen and methane by promoting the solubilisation, hydrolysis, and acidification of organic matter. Additionally, CER facilitates effective contact between bacteria and organic particulates and reduces the energy barrier for mass transfer during methane production. The study also reveals changes in the microbial community structure and metagenomics during the AD process.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Xiaojing Lin, Zhan Jin, Shunfeng Jiang, Zhiquan Wang, Suqing Wu, Ke Bei, Min Zhao, Xiangyong Zheng
Summary: Dehumidification combined with addition of absorbent resin supplement (ARS) was used to achieve rapid evaporation of non-pretreated urine, resulting in high water evaporation efficiency and nutrient recovery.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Yangli Che, Chaoran Lin, Shen Li, Jiao Liu, Longhai Zhu, Shilei Yu, Nan Wang, Haoshuai Li, Mutai Bao, Yang Zhou, Tonghao Si, Rui Bao
Summary: Hydrodynamic processes play a crucial role in the transmission of sediments, microbial assembly, and organic carbon redistribution in the ocean. Through experiments and analysis, we found that hydrodynamics shape the assembly of microbial communities and control the redistribution of different sourced organic carbon, thereby influencing microbial-mediated biogeochemical transformation.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Chao Chen, Yu Yang, Nigel J. D. Graham, Zhenyu Li, Xingtao Yang, Zhining Wang, Nadia Farhat, Johannes S. Vrouwenvelder, Li -an Hou
Summary: The fouling of seawater reverse osmosis membranes is a persistent challenge in desalination. This study monitored the operational performance of a desalination plant for 7 years and the fouling development in different areas of membrane modules. The findings showed that operational performance declined over time and fouling mainly occurred at the feed side of the modules, with the highest microbial diversity. Keystone species like Chloroflexi and Planctomycetes played an important role in maintaining community structure and biofilm maturation. Polysaccharides, soluble microbial products, marine humic acid-like substances, and inorganic substances contributed to fouling. Overall, biofouling had a significant impact on membrane fouling after 7 years of operation.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Dan Li, Jieyi Sun, Yibo Fu, Wentao Hong, Heli Wang, Qian Yang, Junhong Wu, Sen Yang, Jianhui Xu, Yunfei Zhang, Yirong Deng, Yin Zhong, Ping'an Peng
Summary: Sulfidation-oxidation treatment of magnetite (Fe3O4) enhances the production of dark center dot OH, which can efficiently degrade dissolved organic matter (DOM) and accelerate carbon cycling.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Cheng Yu, Kaijun Wang, Kaiyuan Zhang, Ruiyang Liu, Pingping Zheng
Summary: This study implemented a microaerobic-aerobic configuration in a full-scale municipal wastewater treatment facility and investigated the effects on sludge characteristics, pollutant removal, microbial community, and granulation mechanisms. The results showed successful transition from flocculent-activated sludge to well-defined AGS after two months of operation. The primary pathways for pollutant removal were simultaneous nitrification, denitrification, and phosphorus removal. Moreover, the incorporation of internal separators induced shifts in the flow pattern, which promoted granulation.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Zhe Zhang, Shaoyang Hu, Guangrong Sun, Wei Wang
Summary: Halogenated aromatic disinfection byproducts (DBPs), such as halogenated phenols, have garnered widespread attention due to their high toxicity and prevalence. This study reports on the analysis, occurrence, and cytotoxicity of a group of emerging halogenated aromatic DBPs, known as halogenated polyhydroxyphenols (HPPs), in drinking water.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Shengyue Chen, Jinliang Huang, Peng Wang, Xi Tang, Zhenyu Zhang
Summary: Accurate prediction of river water quality is crucial for sustainable water management. This study introduces wavelet analysis and transfer learning techniques to assist LSTM modeling, proposing a newly coupled modeling approach that improves short-term prediction of river water quality.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Bang Du, Xinmin Zhan, Piet N. L. Lens, Yifeng Zhang, Guangxue Wu
Summary: Efficient anaerobic digestion relies on the cooperation of different microorganisms with different metabolic pathways. This study investigated the effects of different operational modes and the addition of powdered activated carbon (PAC) on ethanol metabolic pathways. The results showed that the SBR mode and the presence of CO2 facilitated ethanol metabolism towards propionate production, while the CFR mode with extended solids retention time enriched Geobacter. Adjusting operational modes and PAC addition can modulate anaerobic ethanol metabolism and enrich Geobacter.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Wanfa Wang, Si-Liang Li, Jun Zhong, Yuanbi Yi, Fujun Yue, Zenglei Han, Qixin Wu, Ding He, Cong-Qiang Liu
Summary: This study compares the carbon biogeochemical processes in karst and non-karst regions within large thermal stratified river-reservoir systems. The results demonstrate that karst reservoirs have a reduced potential for carbon emissions and highlight the importance of considering geologic settings to improve accuracy in regional and global CO2 emission estimates.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Chunxia Jiang, Zelong Zhao, Dong Zhu, Xiong Pan, Yuyi Yang
Summary: This study analyzed the occurrence and distribution of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in different environmental media of the Yangtze River using metagenomics. Core resistome dominated by multidrug resistance genes was found in all samples, while rare resistome dominated by various resistance genes was more prevalent in plasmids. Specific bacteria were identified as hosts for both core and rare resistomes, with high clinical concern ARGs found in the rare resistome. Particle-associated environment provided the most ideal conditions for resistome hosts. This study provided insights into the genetic locations of ARGs and the community assembly mechanisms of ARG hosts in freshwater environments.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Yu Zhang, Yongtao He, Linchun Jia, Lei Xu, Zheng Wang, Yueling He, Ling Xiong, Xumeng Lin, Hong Chen, Gang Xue
Summary: By synergizing organic carbon source, thiosulfate, and zero-valent iron, efficient mixotrophic denitrification of oligotrophic secondary effluent can be achieved. Thiosulfate plays a vital role in promoting TN removal efficiency, while corrosion of Fe0 releases OH- to neutralize H+ from thiosulfate-driven denitrification, creating a suitable environment for denitrification. The coordination of thiosulfate and Fe0 maintains the dominance of Thiobacillus for denitrification.