Article
Engineering, Environmental
Liang Zhu, Huizhou Yuan, Jingwei Ma, Lin Deng, Zhou Shi, Qiulai He, Shuizhou Ke
Summary: Pure Moving bed biofilm reactor (pure MBBR) is an effective method for treating antibiotics, but its response to sulfadiazine (SDZ) has not been fully investigated. This study examined the impact of different doses of SDZ on pure MBBR. The results showed that SDZ inhibited COD and TN removal, but enhanced NH4+-N and TP removal at certain concentrations. SDZ also affected the biofilm community and gene expression. Overall, the pure MBBR performed well when SDZ concentration was below 3 mg/L, providing new insights into antibiotic wastewater treatment.
JOURNAL OF WATER PROCESS ENGINEERING
(2023)
Review
Agricultural Engineering
Kumari Uma Mahto, Surajit Das
Summary: Moving bed biofilm reactors (MBBR) are widely used in wastewater treatment due to their low operational costs, technical feasibility, and stability. They are capable of achieving high removal rates of nitrogen, organic carbon, and ammonium nitrogen, and modifications in the surface properties of the biocarrier materials can further improve removal efficiency.
BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Agricultural Engineering
Dandan Pan, Sicheng Shao, Jinfeng Zhong, Minghui Wang, Xiangwei Wu
Summary: The long-term moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR) was operated successfully for simultaneous removal of nitrogen, phosphorus, and COD. Different C/N ratios were tested, and the results showed efficient removal of these pollutants. The study also investigated the microbial communities and biological processes involved in the removal.
BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY
(2022)
Review
Water Resources
Sangeeta Madan, Richa Madan, Athar Hussain
Summary: This review examines the application and development of the moving bed biofilm process (MBBR) in wastewater treatment, as well as factors affecting system performance, current research on organic matter and nutrient removal, and the potential of MBBR technology as a hybrid system. The paper also discusses future research prospects and challenges for the moving bed process.
APPLIED WATER SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Shasha Yuan, Sixian Guo, Xihao Huang, Fangang Meng
Summary: This study investigated the interspecies interactions during biofilm development in a moving bed biofilm reactor using regular and time-series phylogenetic molecular ecological networks. The results showed that positive interactions dominated both regular and time-series networks, indicating extensive cooperative behaviors. Time-lagged interspecies interactions prevailed in the biofilm development process, with a higher proportion of directional negative interactions than positive interactions. Keystone species with more positive interactions were positively correlated with biofilm biomass and removal efficiencies, while those targeted negatively by their neighbors showed positive correlations with specific metabolite concentrations.
BIOTECHNOLOGY AND BIOENGINEERING
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Alessandro di Biase, Maciej S. Kowalski, Tanner R. Devlin, Jan A. Oleszkiewicz
Summary: The study evaluated the performance, kinetics, and stoichiometry of three MBBRs and found that the model could be calibrated/validated for a single HRT, but could not accurately predict the performance, kinetics, or stoichiometry at other HRTs.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Yajun Fan, Miao Zhang, Jilin Cheng, Daming Yong, Junjie Ji, Qichao Wu, Chengda He
Summary: The three-stage plug flow moving bed biofilm reactor (PF-MBBR) demonstrated optimal NH4(+)-N removal efficiency and nitrite accumulation ratio in chamber N2, with distinct differences in bacterial community structure and biomass distribution. Ammonia oxidizing bacteria played a crucial role in the nitrification process, showing a significant advantage over nitrite oxidizing bacteria.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Ting Xie, Xinyu Liu, Yiming Xu, Samuel Bryson, Lu Zhao, Kai Huang, Shiqi Huang, Xiaoming Li, Qi Yang, Huiyu Dong, Mari-Karoliina H. Winkler
Summary: Simultaneous removal of ammonium and nitrate was achieved in a methane-fed moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR) through the collaboration of methanotrophic microorganisms, denitrifiers, and anaerobic ammonium oxidizing bacteria.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Agricultural Engineering
Sicheng Shao, Jinfeng Zhong, Chunxiao Wang, Dandan Pan, Xiangwei Wu
Summary: This study established a simultaneous removal method for NH4+-N, NO3--N, COD, and P in nutrient wastewater using manganese redox cycling in a single-stage moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR) with a low C/N ratio. The results showed that when sodium succinate was used as the denitrifying carbon source, removal efficiencies of TN, NO3--N, NH4+-N, TP, and Mn(2+) were 65.13%, 79.63%, 92.79%, 51.57%, and 68.10%, respectively. The study also investigated the characteristics of the biofilm and identified the microbial community. The transformation processes and the main functional groups involved in the removal of N, P, and Mn2+ were analyzed, with MnO(2) identified as the main component of biogenic manganese oxides.
BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Jaehyeon Park, Yeowool Choi, Sang Don Kim
Summary: This study investigated the impact of the MBBR process in wastewater treatment plants on aquatic environments, focusing on OPEs. The study found that OPEs, particularly TCEP, can be released into the water from the biofilm carrier, and transformation products of TCEP are also emitted from the MBBR process.
ENVIRONMENTAL GEOCHEMISTRY AND HEALTH
(2022)
Article
Agricultural Engineering
Jinfeng Zhong, Jiamin Liu, Rui Hu, Dandan Pan, Sicheng Shao, Xiangwei Wu
Summary: Simultaneous removal of NH4+-N, NO3 -N, COD, and P in nutrient wastewater was achieved using two MBBRs with in-situ generated BioMnOx. The presence of BioMnOx promoted denitrification, leading to higher removal rates of NO3 -N, NH4+-N, and TN compared to the control MBBR without BioMnOx. Various factors including enzymes activity, EPS, ETSA, ROS, valence, morphology, nitrogen and phosphorus removal, electrochemical characteristics, and microbial community were investigated. This study presents a novel strategy for nutrient removal in BioMnOx-mediated wastewater treatment.
BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Navid Ahmadi, Mona Abbasi, Ali Torabian, Mark C. M. van Loosdrecht, Joel Ducoste
Summary: The transformation of four pharmaceuticals in a moving bed biofilm reactor was investigated under different COD/N ratios. Changes in the COD/N ratio influenced the competition between heterotrophic and nitrifying communities, resulting in shifts in microbial populations and composition in the biofilms. Autotrophic conditions exhibited higher transformation rates, indicating the importance of nitrification.
JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Jing Zhao, Gaofeng Ni, Maria Piculell, Jie Li, Zhetai Hu, Zhiyao Wang, Jianhua Guo, Zhiguo Yuan, Min Zheng, Shihu Hu
Summary: This study investigated the establishment, structure, and microbial community composition of biofilms in three laboratory-scale moving bed biofilm reactors, and found that the depth of living space significantly influenced the biofilm formation and community composition.
JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Ellen Edefell, Per Falas, Elena Torresi, Marinette Hagman, Michael Cimbritz, Kai Bester, Magnus Christensson
Summary: A novel process configuration with additional substrate from primary treated wastewater was designed to improve micropollutant removal in MBBRs with low substrate availability. The recirculating MBBR showed a significant increase in biomass concentration and micropollutant degradation rates, with aerobic conditions being critical for high degradation rates. The results suggest that degradation rates normalized to carrier surface area can facilitate the comparison of different biofilm systems.
JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS
(2021)
Article
Agricultural Engineering
Liang Zhu, Jingwei Ma, Huizhou Yuan, Lin Deng, Zhou Shi, Qiulai He, Shuizhou Ke
Summary: This study investigated the effects of sulfadiazine (SDZ) on the response of biofilm in a moving bed biofilm reactor, focusing on changes in extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) and functional genes. The results showed that 10 mg/L SDZ significantly reduced the protein (PN) and polysaccharide (PS) contents of EPS, while maintaining a high ratio of PN to PS and unaffected functional groups. Bioinformatics analysis revealed alterations in community activity, including increased expression of s_Alcaligenes faecali. The study highlights the role of EPS and functional genes in antibiotic removal and provides more insights into the biofilm community's exposure to antibiotics.
BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Agricultural Engineering
Antonio Mineo, Alida Cosenza, Giorgio Mannina
Summary: Volatile fatty acids (VFAs), produced through acidogenic digestion of sewage sludge, play a significant role in achieving carbon neutrality in wastewater treatment plants. However, there is limited research on VFAs production from sludge fermenters with membrane. In this study, VFAs from a pilot plant equipped with a membrane bioreactor and fed with real sewage sludge were monitored, and the optimal operation conditions were determined by investigating the effect of headspace volume (HdV).
BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Editorial Material
Agricultural Engineering
Bin-Le Lin, Duu-Jong Lee, Giorgio Mannina, Wenshan Guo
BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Applied
Sofia Maria Muscarella, Vito Armando Laudicina, Beatriz Cano, Luigi Badalucco, Pellegrino Conte, Giorgio Mannina
Summary: The study evaluated the physical-chemical properties of NH4+ adsorption from aqueous solution by two zeolitic mixtures, one treated with NaCl and one untreated. The zeolitic mixture richer in mordenite and with high specific surface area adsorbed more NH4+ than the one richer in clinoptilolite and heulandite with a lower specific surface area. NaCl treatment increased the amount of NH4+ adsorbed by the zeolitic mixtures. The results suggest that modulation of NaCl treatment of zeolitic mixtures can be applied to obtain new materials for water remediation from NH4+ contamination.
MICROPOROUS AND MESOPOROUS MATERIALS
(2023)
Review
Environmental Sciences
Manish Kumar, Srinidhi Sridharan, Ankush D. Sawarkar, Adnan Shakeel, Prathmesh Anerao, Giorgio Mannina, Prabhakar Sharma, Ashok Pandey
Summary: Pharmaceutical and personal care products (PPCPs) from wastewater pose potential hazards to human health and wildlife, prompting recent concern among researchers. Treatment technologies for PPCPs include physical, biological, and chemical methods, but advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) are expensive and energy-intensive. Integrating chemical techniques with biological processes and using ozone and activated carbon (AC) can improve removal efficiency. Lower-cost emerging technologies, such as the photo-Fenton method and solar radiation-based methods, as well as constructed wetlands, show promise. However, the feasibility and practicality of most advanced treatment technologies at the pilot scale have not been evaluated. This review explores the treatment of emerging PPCPs in wastewater using conventional, non-conventional, and integrated technologies, highlighting limitations, challenges, and future research directions in terms of techno-economic feasibility.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Francesco Traina, Santo Fabio Corsino, Michele Torregrossa, Gaspare Viviani
Summary: The study aimed to evaluate the production of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) and extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) from agro-industrial wastewater treatment. Results showed that both aerobic granular sludge (AGS) and sequencing batch reactor (SBR) systems were effective in enriching biopolymers. The AGS system had a higher biopolymers accumulation capacity and EPS content, while the SBR system achieved higher PHA production.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Santo Fabio Corsino, Daniele Di Trapani, Federica De Marines, Michele Torregrossa, Gaspare Viviani
Summary: The present study evaluated the effects of different sludge-reduction mechanisms on methane productivity in the oxic-settling-anaerobic (OSA) process. Scheme A promoted an overall increase in methane production (+19%), but resulted in a significant decrease in excess sludge production (31%). Scheme B led to a higher reduction of excess sludge (82%), but a significant decrease in methane productivity (-41%). These findings suggest that specific sludge-reduction mechanisms can be triggered in the OSA process to maintain high levels of methane production.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Chen Wang, Yun Wang, Zhijie Chen, Wei Wei, Xueming Chen, Giorgio Mannina, Bing-Jie Ni
Summary: The development and use of new and renewable energy sources are urgently needed as the global energy crisis is approaching due to rapid population growth and overexploitation of fossil fuels. This study developed a novel technology to efficiently produce renewable liquid bioenergy from discarded wastes, by transforming sewage sludge into high-value medium chain fatty acids (MCFA). The use of free nitrous acid (FNA) pretreatment significantly increased the yield of MCFA in the anaerobic sludge fermentation process. However, direct addition of FNA inhibited the generation of total products due to its toxicity on live cells in the sludge. The study also investigated the mechanism of MCFA promotion by FNA pretreatment and found that it increased MCFA production rate by converting refractory materials into rapidly bioavailable substrates and favoring the growth of microorganisms related to MCFA production.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Vinay, Deepti Surana, Pooja Ghosh, Manish Kumar, Sunita Varjani, Vivek Kumar, Giorgio Mannina
Summary: This review evaluates the performance analysis of conventional and advanced sludge treatment methods in eliminating microplastics from sludge. It uncovers that conventional sludge treatment processes are ineffective in eliminating microplastics and research for advanced technology is still at a nascent stage.
CURRENT POLLUTION REPORTS
(2023)
Review
Agricultural Engineering
Hussein E. Al-Hazmi, Mojtaba Maktabifard, Dominika Grubba, Joanna Majtacz, Gamal K. Hassan, Xi Lu, Grzegorz Piechota, Giorgio Mannina, Charles B. Bott, Jacek Makinia
Summary: PD-anammox, a promising sustainable method for nitrogen removal in wastewater, combines partial denitrification and anammox to address challenges with NOB suppression and NO3- accumulation. This review provides comprehensive insights into the PD-anammox system, including stable performance outcomes, operational parameters, and mathematical models. It also categorizes start-up and recovery strategies, examines its contributions to sustainable development goals, and suggests future trends for improving efficiency and integration into full-scale wastewater treatment systems.
BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Agricultural Engineering
Alida Cosenza, Hazal Gulhan, Giorgio Mannina
Summary: This paper presents a comprehensive experimental study on a Membrane Bioreactor (MBR) pilot plant, addressing the trade-off between greenhouse emissions and operational costs in the water treatment sector. The study evaluates the best operational variables and the quality of reclaimed water for reuse. The results provide operators with effective insights into achieving a balance between operational costs and water quality.
BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Antonio Mineo, Laura Isern-Cazorla, Carla Rizzo, Antonio Palumbo Piccionello, Maria Eugenia Suarez-Ojeda, Giorgio Mannina
Summary: Despite previous studies, there is still a gap in understanding the relationship between operational conditions and polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) production from sewage sludge. This work aims to provide experimental data on PHA productivity and purity, considering process parameters for industrial scale-up. The results showed that the highest PHA content was obtained using the highest organic load during accumulation tests, and the adopted extraction protocol demonstrated high efficiency and purity.
CHEMICAL ENGINEERING JOURNAL
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Laura Isern-Cazorla, Antonio Mineo, Maria Eugenia Suarez-Ojeda, Giorgio Mannina
Summary: This study investigated the effect of organic loading rate on the production of Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) from sewage sludge. The results showed that decreasing the organic loading rate improved the removal of organic matter but reduced PHA production. Additionally, the emissions of N2O were evaluated during the process. The study also achieved a PHA production of 24% w/w.
JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Giorgio Mannina, Bing-Jie Ni, Jacek Makinia, Jerome Harmand, Marion Alliet, Christoph Brepols, M. Victoria Ruano, Angel Robles, Marc Heran, Hazal Gulhan, Ignasi Rodriguez-Roda, Joaquim Comas
Summary: A mathematical correlation between biomass kinetic and membrane fouling can enhance the understanding and application of Membrane Bioreactor (MBR) technology in solving fouling issues. This paper reviews the current state-of-the-art in modelling the kinetic processes of biomass, with a focus on soluble microbial products (SMP) and extracellular polymeric substances (EPS). The findings suggest that new conceptual approaches emphasize the role of different bacterial groups in the generation and breakdown of SMP/EPS. However, more research is needed to accurately model membrane fouling due to the complexity of SMP and the limited understanding of EPS dynamics in MBR systems.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Giorgio Mannina, Antonio Mineo
Summary: This paper presents a comprehensive study on the production of polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) from sewage sludge and evaluates the greenhouse gas emissions for the first time. The results show that sewage sludge can be a suitable feedstock for PHA production, and the study provides valuable insights into balancing PHA production and greenhouse gas emissions.
JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
(2023)