published_or_final_version / Civil and Structural Engineering / Master / Master of Philosophy

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The effectiveness of a cheap, low-tech, environmentally and technically favorable treatment of secondary treated municipal wastewater by contaminant removal through a floodplain-soil filter was evaluated using floodplain-simulating field lysimeters, packed with a sandy soil in 2002 and sand in 2003 and 2004. Secondary treated wastewaters from Vaudreuil (2002 and 2003) and Pincourt (2004) Wastewater Treatment Plants were used as influent. This was applied at rates of 0.06, 0.19, and 0.31 m3 m-2 d -1 to vegetated lysimeters, and at a rate of 0.19 m3 m-2 d-1 to bare-soil lysimeters. / Removal of NH4+-N, NO3--N, and COD from the influent was studied in all three years. Irrespective of flow rate or year, the system removed 62~84%, 96~99%, and 6~67% of TKN, NH4+-N, and COD, respectively, from the influent. Under 0.19 m3 m-2 d-1 flow rate, vegetated systems removed slightly more of these constituents from the influent, than did bare-soil lysimeters. Organic degradation mainly occurred in the top 0.1 m soil depth. Degradation of organic and inorganic influent nitrogen increased NO3--N levels in the effluent. Only minimal increases in soil-N levels and N2O emissions occurred with increasing application rates. The nitrogen mass balance accounted for 85∼98% (2003) and 67∼96% (2004) of input nitrogen (through leaching, soil retention, and N2O emissions), the remaining portion being attributable to vegetative effects and volatilization of non-N2O nitrogenous gases. The under established vegetation on the lysimeters reduced nitrogen leaching through soil, being 6% (2003) and 60% (2004) more effective than bare soil. / Effluent water quality improved with decreasing levels of heavy metals. Compared to influent levels, in vegetated lysimeters, under all flow rates, mean effluent As, Cd, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn levels had dropped by 58%, 9%, 3%, 37%, 63%, and 52% in 2003, and by 20%, 63%, 5%, 23%, 18%, 57%, and 79% for As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn, in 2004. In both years, similar decreases in heavy metal levels occurred in the bare soil lysimeters. Across all flow rates and influent concentrations, soil heavy metal levels increased. In 2004, even low heavy metal content influent further increased (6∼179%) their accumulation in soil. As inputs of heavy metals to the soil increased with the increase in application rates, their associated times to reach maximum permissible limits also decreased. / LEACHN simulation of NO3--N in leachate arising from wastewater application, showed lowered levels with increasing flow rates, due to enhanced denitrification in the resulting anoxic upper soil zones. The simulation under continuous wastewater application at different range of nitrogen concentrations (low, medium, high) showed an increase of NO 3--N levels in the leachate with increasing N-levels. For all flow rates, and under tropical or humid conditions, the effluent NO 3--N levels remained below permissible limits for the low-N content wastewater applications. Intermittent applications, under all wastewater N-contents and flow rates, reduced NO3--N levels in the leachate by 51∼89% compared to continuous wastewater application, and permissible limits were not exceeded. Hence, wastewater with high levels of nitrogenous compounds, as occurs in most developing countries, could be treated by land under an intermittent application pattern, allowing a considerable reduction in nitrate pollution.

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Thesis (M.S.)--University of Hawaii at Manoa, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 127-132). / xvi, 132 leaves, bound ill. 29 cm

Driven by the increase in industrialization and population, the global demand of energy and material products is steadily growing. Microalgae have come into prominence in the past several decades due to their ability to utilize solar energy to fix atmospheric carbon dioxide, and produce biomass and lipids at productivities much higher than those possible with terrestrial biomass. The main objective of this research is to maximize the biomass and lipid production of Chlorella vulgaris by varying different external conditions so as to achieve the ideal feedstock for the production of commodity chemicals and implement wastewater treatment. The effects of various culture medium compositions on Chlorella vulgaris growth and lipid production were investigated using batch culture. Thirteen culture media: Modified Chu’s No. 10, Bold basal, BG-11, Modified BG-11, N-8, M-8, RM, Modified Spirulina, F-si, Fogg’s Nitrogen free, Fog, F/2, and Johnson medium were compared in terms of optical density, biomass production, specific growth rate and lipid production. Following a 10-day culture in a temperature controlled environment, Bold basal medium was found to have the highest average biomass productivity of 48.056 ± 2.097 mg L -1 day -1 , with overall specific growth rate of (d -1 ): 0.211 ± 0.003 and lipid productivity of 9.295 mg L -1 day -1 among the selected media. This is a basis for the optimization of different cultivating medium to enhance algal lipid production. In order to maximize the quality and quantity of the algal biomass and lipid content in Chlorella vulgaris, different strategies were used using different ratios of nitrogen and phosphorus source in the modified Bold basal medium (BBM). In the 12-day batch culture period, the highest biomass productivity obtained was 72.083 mg L -1 day -1 under Bold basal medium with Nitrogem control Phosphorus limited conditions. The highest lipid content, lipid concentration and lipid productivity obtained were 53.202%, 287.291 mg/L and 23.449 mg L -1 day -1 respectively, under Bold basal medium with Nitrogen Control Phosphorus Deprivation conditions. Nitrogen starvation was found to be the critical factor affecting the biomass production and lipid accumulation while the starvation of phosphorus induced a higher total lipid content and affected the lipid composition of Chlorella vulgaris cultures. Recently, as the demand for pure microalgae strains for the production of algal lipid as a feedstock of renewable energy has been increasing, the designation of an effective photobioreactor (PBR) for mass cultivation is essential to assure stability in the amount of feedstock. Various PBRs design such as bubbling, air-lift, porous air-lift was compared. In general, the bubbling design is a better PBR designs than the others, having the highest biomass concentration of 0.78 g/L during the culture time. Besides, it was observed that the 35 cm draft tube of the porous air-lift PBR had shorter mixing time (24.5 seconds) and higher biomass concentration (0.518 g/L) than the 50 cm air- lift design. The bubbling PBR with the highest gas flowrate of 2.7 L/min produced the highest biomass production of 0.74 g/L within the cultivation time. The information is shown to be a useful guide for determining the optimal condition of the PBRs. Light wavelengths and intensities were determinant factors in affecting the growth and lipid content of autotrophic organisms such as C. vulgaris. The experiment investigated the effect of algal lipid production by using LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes) with different wavelengths. C. vulgaris was grown in the effluent for 10 days under the photoperiod of 18:6 h Light/Dark cycles with different visible light sources (cool white, blue and red) and intensities (50 μmol m -2 s -1 ) at 25°C. The overall maximum dry biomass of 1353.33 mg/L was observed at 50 μmol m -2 s -1 cool white light during 10th culture day, with the highest overall productivity of dry biomass production (117.23 mg/L d -1 ) within cultivation time. The highest lipid content (34.06 %) was obtained with the blue color due to light efficiency and deep penetration to the photosynthetic pigments (chlorophyll) in C. vulgaris. However, the highest lipid productivity was observed in cool white light of 318.63 mg/L during the 10th culture day. The effect of light intensity toward the lipid productivity was further investigated by increasing the light intensity of cool white light. The highest lipid productivity was observed at 110 μmol m -2 s -1 in a light intensity of 658.99 mg/L during the 10th culture day. In high irradiance (110 μmol m -2 s -1 ), the proportion of poly unsaturated fatty acid (C18:1 and C18:2) contributed most of the fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) content in the collected sample, irrespective of all treatments. The next study optimized the harvesting rate of algae by using an electro- coagulation-flotation (ECF) harvester, which combines the electrochemical reaction in the electrodes and the dispersion of hydrogen gas to allow floatation of microalgae cell for surface harvesting. The response surface methodology model (RSM) was employed to optimize different ECF parameters: electrode plate material, electrode plate number, charge of electrode, electrolyte concentration and pH of the solution. The model revealed that aluminum was the best electrode material for the ECF process. It was also found that a three electrode plates setup with one anode and two cathodes had the best performance for harvesting. Additionally, sodium chloride (NaCl) at 8 g/L in harvesting medium could increase the flocculant concentration and reduce electric power consumption. Also, having the culture medium at pH 4 also had a significant effect on improving the flocculant production. Combining these optimal conditions, the highest flocculant concentration reached 2966 mg/L in 60 mins; a 79.8% increase in flocculant concentration, based on the tested conditions. The results of this study show the significance of different parameters affecting the coagulation and flocculation of C. vulgaris and provide a reference for the design of a large-scaled harvester for microalgae harvesting in the further study. To conclude, this research comprises a study on the use of indigenous algae for the production of algal lipid, which is used to produce commodity chemicals. Details on the use of nutrient sources, the techniques of cultivation and the optimization of cell harvesting were included so as to remove nutrients from effluents to minimize the occurrence of eutrophication in harbor, thereby providing economic advantages. Thus, the optimization of these processes is very adequate and offers significant advantages for the wastewater treatment. The developing of algal cell biotechnology is necessary to further enhance algal lipid production in an attempt to apply it commercially.

The development of the High Rate Algal Pond (HRAP) as an independent tertiary treatment unit operation for phosphate and nitrate removal is reported. A novel Integrated Algal Ponding System (lAPS) design is proposed for nutrient removal from the effluents of both a conventional domestic sewage treatment plant and from an Advanced Integrated Wastewater Ponding System (AIWPS). The viability of an independently operated HRAP has been identified and termed the Independent High Rate Algal Pond (l-HRAP). A 500 m² pilot 1- HRAP was operated in such a way as to facilitate the precipitation of calcium phosphate, known to be controlled by pH (greater than 9.4) and resulting in final phosphate levels of less than 1 mg.L⁻¹ as P0₄-P. The incorporation of the I-HRAP into a denitrification process was also investigated. Continuously fed column reactors, utilising algal biomass as a carbon source, showed that the heterotrophic bacterial community dominant in the anaerobic algal sludge were denitrifying the nitrate in the feed. It was demonstrated that as the cultures were stressed (using increased nitrate concentrations, anaerobiosis and light starvation) total polysaccharide (TPS) concentrations increased, with a notable increase 111 the exopolysaccharide (EPS) fraction. These experiments corroborated the hypothesis that harvested microalgal biomass can be manipulated to produce, and release, exopolymeric substances under stress conditions, and which may serve as carbon source for denitrification. In both batch flask studies and in laboratory-scale reactor systems, harvested microalgal biomass from an HRAP was shown to produce exopolymeric substances under stress conditions. Initial high loading-rates of greater than 20 mg.L⁻¹ NO₃-N resulted in double the amount of exopolysaccharide production than in flasks with initial low loading-rates (less than 5 mg.L⁻¹ NO₃-N). Making use of an upflow anaerobic sludge blanket-type degrading-bed reactor, and an anaerobic, flooded trickle filter (ANTRIC) receiving HRAP effluent, the relationship between denitrification and the changes in polysaccharide content was investigated. This phenomenon has considerable beneficial implications in biological wastewater treatment systems where high nitrate concentration in the final effluent is a potential mitigating factor. Identification of the heterotrophic bacteria active in the denitrification process was attempted. This study presents a first report on the development and operation of the I-HRAP and has been followed by a technical-scale pilot plant evaluation of the process in the tertiary treatment of domestic wastewaters.

Biotechnology of sulphate reducing bacteria has developed rapidly in recent years with the recognition of their extensive and diverse biocatalytic potential. However, their application in a number of areas has been constrained due to problems including poor cell retention within the continuous bioprocess reactor environment, and contamination of the treated stream with residual organic feed components and cell biomass. These problems have so far excluded the application of biological sulphate reduction in the treatment of ‘clean’ inorganic waste streams where components such as sulphate, acidity and heavy metal contamination require treatment. This study investigated the effective immobilisation of sulphate reducing bacterial cultures and proposed that the disarticulation of the electron donor and carbon source supply using such systems would create the basis for their application in the treatment of ‘clean’ inorganic waste streams. A functional and stable sulphate reducing culture was selected and following evaluation using a number of techniques, was immobilised by encapsulation within a calcium-alginate-xanthum gum membrane to give robust capsules with good sulphate reduction activity. The concept of disarticulation was investigated in a swing-back cycle where the carbon source was excluded and the electron donor supplied in the form of hydrogen gas in a continuous up-flow capsule-packed column reactor. Following a period of operation in this mode (4-12 days), the system was swung back to a carbon feed to supply requirements of cell maintenance (2-3 days). Three types of synthetic ‘clean’ inorganic waste stream treatments were investigated, including sulphate removal, neutralisation of acidity and heavy metal (copper and lead) removal. The results showed: • Sulphate removal at a rate of 50 mg SO₄²⁻L/day/g initial wet mass of capsules during three 4-day cycles of electron donor phase. This was comparable to the performance of free cell systems; • Neutralisation of acidity where influent pH values of 2.4 and 4.0 were elevated to above pH 7.5; • Copper removal of 99 and 85 % was achieved with initial copper concentrations of 2 and 60 mg/L respectively; • Percentage lead removal values of 49 and 78 % were achieved; This first report on the application of the concept of capsular immobilisation and disarticulation in the treatment of ‘clean’ inorganic waste streams will require future studies in order to extend the development of the full potential of the concept.

Efficient treatment of waste materials from agricultural operations is a problem in most of the countries of the world. This is particularly true where livestock are being reared in large high-production confinement housing systems. There are several treatment systems available to handle the wastes from this type of operation. These systems are described with particular emphasis on thermophilic fermentation. Thermophilic treatment of wastes offers several advantages over the other types of waste treatment systems. The thermophilic system at the University of British Columbia differs from most other high-temperature systems in that no external heat source is provided. Experiments were carried out which show that the heat necessary to maintain the temperature in the thermophilic range comes solely from microbial activity. The actions of agitation and aeration do not provide any input of heat into the fermenter. The foam which forms on the top of the liquid during a fermentation was shown to be a good insulator. Feeding trials conducted with the liquid product from thermophilic fermentation demonstrated that this liquid can be substituted for water in the diet of pigs older than twenty-eight days of age with no harmful effects. It is possible that pigs older than fifty-six days of age will be able to utilize the nutrients in the liquid more efficiently and increase their rate of gain without increasing the amount of feed consumed. Experiments with larger sized fermenters resulted in a commercial design for a thermophilic waste treatment system with a total capacity of six thousand gallons. Finally, preliminary trials utilizing lignocellulose as a substrate for thermophilic bacteria indicated that these bateria are able to utilize cellulose as a nutrient source. / Land and Food Systems, Faculty of / Graduate