<p>Analytical analyses conducted at the Himmerfjärden WWTP (285.000 PE connected) identified 70 pharmaceutical compounds belonging to different therapeutic classes. Such organic micropollutants at low detected concentration range of µg - ng l^-1 did not affect the treatment processes at WWTP. Results from analytical studies indicated continuous discharge of organic micropollutants to the surface water with a calculated load amounting to 1.51 kg day-1. Metoprolol, carbamazepine and naproxen were chosen for testing different removal methods. Oxygen Uptake Rate (OUR) tests were conducted to assess the bacterial activity of an activated sludge taken from a full scale aeration plant with the presence of selected target compounds.</p><p>A semi-technical scale membrane bioreactor ZeeWeed10™, treating final effluent from the Himmerfjärden WWTP (Sweden) was seeded with activated sludge from full scale biological stage. The membrane bioreactor (MBR) system placed after the final treatment appeared to be an insufficient technology for removal of residual amounts of organic micropollutants from WWTP effluents. Batch test studies with activated sludge taken from the membrane bioreactor and with application of granular activated carbon (GAC) filtration resulted in giving an overall assessment of removal efficiency. Metoprolol and carbamazepine tend to be resistant to the biodegradation process and in the dosed high concentration lead to bacterial cell decomposition in the activated sludge. Apparently, removal efficiency for naproxen exceeded the value of 46% with the spiked initial amount of 3.3 mg NAP g^-1MLSS. Application of the GAC filtration proved to be an efficient technique for removal of pharmaceutical compounds from treated wastewater.</p><p>Application of the statistical programme Modde7 was a time saving tool in studies of fouling occurrence. The effect of fouling phenomenon, which is a highly limiting factor for MBR performance, was minimised by adjusting the operational parameters as predicted by the Modde7 programme.</p>

Le colmatage des membranes reste la principale limitation pour le développement du bioréacteur à membrane (BAM). Dans cette thèse, l'objectif principal se concentre sur les effets des micropolluants pharmaceutiques qui se retrouvent dans les eaux usées domestiques sur le colmatage de la membrane du BAM. Carbamazépine (CBZ), un médicament antiépileptique, a été choisi. Les effets de la CBZ sur le colmatage du BAM ont été étudiés de deux manières: un pic de pollution pour étudier les effets des pics de CBZ à court terme sur le pouvoir colmatant et une pollution continue pour examiner les effets de CBZ à long terme sur le colmatage du BAM. Les résultats ont montré que, pendant 3 heures contact avec CBZ de 100 µg L-1, le pouvoir colmatant des boues activées a augmenté en raison de l'augmentation des protéines de 100-1000 kDa dans le surnageant, ce qui pourrait être complètement retenu par la membrane du BAM et les membranes utilisées dans les essais de filtrabilité. L'augmentation des protéines de 100-1000 kDa dans le surnageant peut probablement être causé par la décomposition bactérienne face aux médicaments. L'effet réduit a été observée pour les boues provenant du BAM fonctionné sous la charge organique plus élevée. Pendant le contact continue, la vitesse du colmatage plus élevée a été observé après l'addition en continu de CBZ dans le BAM (90 µg L-1 dans l'alimentation), qui pourrait être lié à l'augmentation importante des protéines de 10-100 kDa dans le surnageant. Des protéines de 10-100 kDa s’accumulent dans le dépôt de la membrane du BAM, modifient de la structure de dépôt et changent les caractéristiques de rétention de BAM. L'augmentation des protéines de 10-100 kDa a probablement été causée par la réaction de défense des bactéries face en permanence des médicaments. Légère inhibition de l'activité microbienne a été trouvée plusieurs jours après l'addition de la CBZ dans le BAM, puis il a été stabilisé à un certain niveau en raison de l'acclimatation des boues au stress pharmaceutique. Similaire, l'augmentation significative de la concentration en protéine a été observée au début plusieurs jours après l'addition de la CBZ dans le BAM, puis retourne à son niveau initial. Aucun changement significatif de la taille des flocs des boues et de la concentration en polysaccharides dans le surnageant n’a été constaté au cours de la période de contact continu à long terme. Cette étude pourrait contribuer à améliorer la compréhension des interactions complexes entre les micropolluants pharmaceutiques, boues activées et le colmatage du BAM / Membrane fouling still remains the main limitation for the development of membrane bioreactor (MBR). In this thesis, the main objective focuses on the effects of pharmaceutical micropollutants which are frequently found in domestic wastewater on MBR fouling. Carbamazepine (CBZ), an anti-epileptic drug, was chosen in this study due to its occurrence in domestic wastewater and persistency in MBR process. The effects of CBZ on MBR fouling were investigated in two different ways of contact, i.e. short-term peak contact and long-term continuous contact. The results showed that during only 3 hours contact with 100 µg L-1 CBZ, the fouling propensity of the sludge increased due to the increase in 100-1000 kDa protein-like substances in the supernatant, which could be completely retained by the MBR membrane and the membranes used in the filterability tests. The increase of 100-1000 kDa protein-like compounds in the supernatant may probably be caused by the bacterial decay when facing the pharmaceutical stress. Besides, the reduced effect was observed for sludge obtained from MBR operated under higher organic loading rate. During the long-term continuous contact, significantly higher MBR fouling rate was observed after the continuous addition of CBZ in the MBR via the feed (90 µg L-1 CBZ in the feed), which could be related to the significant increase of 10-100 kDa protein-like compounds in the supernatant after addition of CBZ. The 10-100 kDa protein-like compounds could accumulate in the biocake, which was formed on MBR membrane surface, modify the biocake structure and change the retention characteristics of MBR. The increase of 10-100 kDa protein-like compounds was probably caused by the defensive response of bacteria when continuously facing the pharmaceutical stress. Slight inhibition of microbial activity was found several days after addition of CBZ in MBR, and then it was stabilized to some constant level due to the acclimation of sludge to the pharmaceutical stress. Similar, significant increase of protein concentration was observed at the beginning several days after addition of CBZ in MBR, then returned to the initial level. No significant change in sludge floc size and polysaccharide concentration in supernatant was found during the long-term continuous contact period. This study could help to enhance the understanding of complex interactions among pharmaceutical micropollutants, activated sludge and MBR fouling

The current global water crisis in addition to continues contamination of natural water bodies with harmful organic micropollutants (OMPs) have driven the development of new water treatment technologies that allow the efficient removal of such compounds. Among a long list of OMPs, antibiotics are considered as top priority pollutants to be treated due to their great resistance to biological treatments and their potential to develop bacterial resistance. Different approaches, such as membrane-based and advance oxidation processes have been proposed to alleviate or minimize antibiotics discharge into aquatic environments. However most of these processes are costly and generate either matrices with high concentration of OMPs or intermediate products with potentially greater toxicity or persistence. Therefore, this thesis proposes the study of an anaerobic membrane bioreactor (AnMBR) for the treatment of synthetic municipal wastewater containing sulfamethoxazole (SMX), a world widely used antibiotic. Besides the general evaluation of AnMBR performance in the COD removal and biogas production, this research mainly focuses on the SMX removal and its degradation pathway. Thus 5 SMX quantification was performed through solid phase extraction-liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry and the identification of its transformation products (TPs) was assessed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry technique. The results achieved showed that, working under optimal conditions (35°C, pH 7 and ORP around -380 to -420 mV) and after a biomass adaptation period (maintaining 0.85 VSS/TSS ratio), the AnMBR process provided over 95% COD removal and 95-98% SMX removal, while allowing stable biogas composition and methane production (≈130 mL CH4/g CODremoved). Kinetic analysis through a batch test showed that after 24 h of biological reaction, AnMBR process achieved around 94% SMX removal, indicating a first order kinetic reaction with K= 0.119, which highlights the high degradation capacity of the anaerobic bacteria. Along the AnMBR process, 7 TPs were identified and possible degradation pathways were proposed. At low influent SMX concentrations (<10ppb), the only TPs detected was (1) Benzene sulfonamide N-Butyl. However, as the influent SMX concentration increased, it was possible to identify (2) Sulfanilamide, (3) Sulfisomidine and (4) 4-Aminothiophenol. Further degradation of compounds 2, 3 and 4 were detected after 9 hours of biological reaction in a batch test, producing three new intermediate products: (5) Aniline, (6) 4-Pyrimidinamine, 2,6-dimethyl and (7) Acetamide, N-(4-mercaptophenyl). Most of the detected TPs present a less complex structure than SMX, which can be associates with a lower toxicity.

Wastewater reuse is very important in water resource management for both environmental and economic reasons. Unfortunately, wastewater from textile industries is difficult to treat by convectional wastewater treatment technologies. Now days, polluted water due to color from textile dyeing and finishing industries is burning issue for researchers. Textile or industrial wastewaters contain non-biodegradable organic compounds, which cannot be easily biodegraded because of their complex chemical structure. Dye wastewater discharged from textile wastewaters is one example of non-biodegradable organic compounds and it is difficult to remove dye effluent by convectional wastewater treatment methods. Therefore, this thesis deals about a review of advanced treatment technologies, which can de-colorize and remove non-biodegradable organic compounds from textile wastewater effluents. In addition to this, the potential and limitation of these advanced treatment methods are reviewed. Advanced treatment technologies reviewed in this paper are; Adsorption process, Membrane bioreactor (MBR) and advanced oxidation process (AOPs).

La creciente demanda de reutilización de agua residual urbana, los elevados requerimientos de calidad, la preocupación por el medio ambiente y la presencia en las diferentes matrices de agua de compuestos orgánicos persistentes a los tratamientos biológicos convencionales han derivado en el desarrollo de nuevas tecnologías de depuración más eficientes y sostenibles para la obtención de aguas tratadas de alta calidad aptas para su reutilización. Aunque los procesos de tratamiento anaerobios son ampliamente conocidos, investigaciones recientes han puesto de manifiesto su eficiencia en combinación con otros sistemas en el tratamiento de ciertos microcontaminantes. No obstante, quedan aún por clarificar aspectos como la influencia de la carga orgánica del afluente en los rendimientos de eliminación de estos compuestos. Este estudio analiza el efecto de la carga orgánica del afluente en la eficiencia de eliminación de 30 microcontaminantes de diferente naturaleza, materia orgánica y nutrientes mediante un sistema combinado consistente en un reactor anaerobio de manto de fangos de flujo ascendente-UASB con un biorreactor de membranas –MBR. Se llevó a cabo también la evaluación de los principales parámetros de operación de la planta combinada, como son: el control del ensuciamiento de la membrana de microfiltración, la evolución de los MLSS, el oxígeno disuelto, la acidez del medio, el comportamiento biocinético de los fangos aerobios o la producción y calidad del biogás generado en el proceso de digestión anaerobia. Durante una primera fase experimental se operó una planta piloto escala laboratorio UASB-MBR a tres escalones de carga orgánica diferentes y con la biomasa aerobia suspendida. En una segunda fase experimental se introdujeron biosoportes en el tanque aerobio a fin de evaluar la influencia de la presencia de biomasa soportada en los rendimientos de eliminación de la planta combinada. Los resultados pusieron de manifiesto las sinergias establecidas entre ambos sistemas anaerobio y aerobio. La degradación de la materia orgánica fue superior al 97% durante toda la experimentación, con máximos superiores al 99% operando a cargas orgánicas altas y medias. El reactor UASB fue el principal responsable de las eliminaciones en cargas orgánicas altas mientras que, cuando descendió su rendimiento en cargas más bajas, fue el MBR el encargado de dichas eliminaciones. La eliminación de nutrientes en el reactor UASB fue muy limitada y se debió fundamentalmente a su acumulación por parte de la biomasa anaerobia activa para su asimilación celular. El MBR fue el principal responsable de la reducción de NT y PT, donde los altos tiempos de retención celular, un elevado ratio de recirculación entre el tanque de membranas y el tanque aerobio y la coexistencia de biomasa aerobia suspendida y soportada favorecieron el rendimiento de los procesos de nitrificación-desnitrificación, obteniendo rendimientos medios de eliminación de NT y PT del 35,5% y 40,0% y máximos del 44,8% y 54% respectivamente. Para la mayor parte de los 30 microcontaminantes las eficiencias de eliminación superiores al 90%. Los compuestos más recalcitrantes tanto al tratamiento anaerobio (UASB) como al tratamiento combinado en el UASB-MBR fueron las triazinas atrazina, simazina y terbutilazina, el linurón y, especialmente, los fármacos carbamazepina y diclofenaco. Los mayores rendimientos se obtuvieron cuando el influente estuvo en carga orgánica alta (0,7±0,1 kg DQO/m3·d) y con presencia de biomasa aerobia soportada, generando a la vez una alta tasa de producción de biogás (0,48 m3 biogás·kg DQO-1) con un contenido medio de CH4 del 73%, adecuado para su recuperación energética. La presencia de biomasa soportada mejoró las eliminaciones de todos los compuestos, especialmente de las triazinas, el linurón y la carbamazepina.

Membrane bioreactors (MBR) combined with biological phosphorous treatment (Bio-P) has been investigated if that could be an alternative to the future expansion with conventional active sludge treatment at Lundåkra wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) in the proximity of Landskrona, Sweden.The results showed that the surface demand in the biological treatment will be reduced with 67% with the MBR-alternative compared to a conventional activated sludge process. The nutrient removal in the MBR-solution was decreased or unchanged for nitrogen-, phosphorous- and organic parameters. However, the energy demand will increase with an estimated cost of approximately 1 million SEK annually. Moreover, the extra chemical consumption is estimated to cost 370 000 SEK annually.The disturbances caused by filamentous bacteria such as sludge dispersal could be resolved with MBR-technology because the membranes are not affected by these organisms. The Bio-P process combined with MBR-technology works if the wastewater recirculates from the membranes to an aerobic zone.In the proposal, there will be a new pre-treatment step, for instance hole screens. In addition, there will be an introduction of chemical precipitation in the biological treatment, use the present post-precipitation basin with lamella sedimentation as an overflow wastewater treatment and transform one of the clarifiers into a side stream hydrolysis. The new MBR-design will consist of a new basin built between the clarifiers and the lamella sedimentation building. An extended study of the MBR-alternative with respect to sludge treatment and hydraulics is required before it can be shown if that is a better solution than a conventional activated sludge process.

京都大学 / 0048 / 新制・課程博士 / 博士(工学) / 甲第19984号 / 工博第4228号 / 新制||工||1654(附属図書館) / 33080 / 京都大学大学院工学研究科都市環境工学専攻 / (主査)教授 田中 宏明, 教授 米田 稔, 講師 山下 尚之 / 学位規則第4条第1項該当 / Doctor of Philosophy (Engineering) / Kyoto University / DFAM

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Analytical analyses conducted at the Himmerfjärden WWTP (285.000 PE connected) identified 70 pharmaceutical compounds belonging to different therapeutic classes. Such organic micropollutants at low detected concentration range of µg - ng l-1 did not affect the treatment processes at WWTP. Results from analytical studies indicated continuous discharge of organic micropollutants to the surface water with a calculated load amounting to 1.51 kg day-1. Metoprolol, carbamazepine and naproxen were chosen for testing different removal methods. Oxygen Uptake Rate (OUR) tests were conducted to assess the bacterial activity of an activated sludge taken from a full scale aeration plant with the presence of selected target compounds. A semi-technical scale membrane bioreactor ZeeWeed10™, treating final effluent from the Himmerfjärden WWTP (Sweden) was seeded with activated sludge from full scale biological stage. The membrane bioreactor (MBR) system placed after the final treatment appeared to be an insufficient technology for removal of residual amounts of organic micropollutants from WWTP effluents. Batch test studies with activated sludge taken from the membrane bioreactor and with application of granular activated carbon (GAC) filtration resulted in giving an overall assessment of removal efficiency. Metoprolol and carbamazepine tend to be resistant to the biodegradation process and in the dosed high concentration lead to bacterial cell decomposition in the activated sludge. Apparently, removal efficiency for naproxen exceeded the value of 46% with the spiked initial amount of 3.3 mg NAP g-1 MLSS. Application of the GAC filtration proved to be an efficient technique for removal of pharmaceutical compounds from treated wastewater. Application of the statistical programme Modde7 was a time saving tool in studies of fouling occurrence. The effect of fouling phenomenon, which is a highly limiting factor for MBR performance, was minimised by adjusting the operational parameters as predicted by the Modde7 programme. / QC 20101104

Stockholm Vatten AB (SVAB) behöver utöka kapaciteten på avloppsreningsverket i Henriksdal. Därför kommer en membranbioreaktor (MBR) att implementeras i dagens befintliga aktivslamanläggning. Den nya anläggningen dimensioneras för att kunna hantera det förväntade flödet år 2040. Det framtida verket kommer dessutom behöva rena avloppsvatten som i dagsläget behandlas i verket i Bromma. Ytterligare förväntas utsläppskraven för fosfor (P), kväve (N) och organiskt material (BOD7) att skärpas.   För närvarande bedriver SVAB i samarbete med IVL (Svenska miljöinstitutet) en pilotanläggning i Sjöstadsverket för att undersöka hur tekniken effektivt kan implementeras i Henriksdal. En stor utmaning för att optimera driften är reningsprocessen av fosfor. Som alternativ till efterfällning av fosfor önskar Henriksdal att simultanfälla fosfor med tvåvärt järn (Fe2+) i MBR:en.   I följande arbete utreds hur kemisk fällning av fosfor med Fe2+ fungerar i kombination med aktivslam och mer specifikt, med MBR. Syftet med arbetet är att bidra med kunskap till fortsatta studier i Sjöstadsverket inför implementeringen av MBR i Henriksdal. Arbetet utreder delar inom den kunskap och forskning som finns gällande området idag och identifierar kunskapsluckor inom studiet. Fokus har bland annat legat på att beskriva; mekanismer och reaktionskinetik; utreda vilka parametrar som styr utfällningen; hur slammet och den biologiska aktiviteten påverkas; samt hur dosering av järn inverkar på MBR.   Få studier har gjorts inom området och i många fall varierar resultaten studierna emellan. Detta beror sannolikt på två faktorer: 1) Vattenmatrisen i avloppsvattnet är komplex. 2) Avloppsvattnets innehåll kan variera mycket.   Exakta reaktioner och mekanismer för hur fosfor avskiljs med järn(II)dosering är ännu inte fullständigt klarlagt. En stor del av Fe2+ som tillsätts kommer att oxideras till trevärt järn (Fe3+). Oxidationshastigheten av Fe2+ styrs främst av pH och syretillgänglighet i vatten och hastigheten varierar kraftigt med avseende på dessa parametrar. Fe2+ kan även oxideras biologiskt under anoxiska förhållanden av denitrifierare. Fosfor avskiljas i sin tur antingen direkt genom utfällning med Fe2+ eller Fe3+, eller genom adsorption till järnhydroxider.   Järn(II)dosering inverkar på slammets morfologi, sedimenteringsindex, storlek och stabilitet. Dosering med Fe2+ ger kompakta flockar med släta och täta ytor samt få utstickande filament. Fe2+ kan inverka på den biologiska aktiviteten i slammet, men där finns bevis gällande både en synergistisk inverkan och en reducerande effekt.   Generellt rekommenderas att molförhållanden över 2, Fe2+:P används för att uppnå tillräcklig avskiljning av fosfor i aktivslam. Liknande molförhållande tycks rekommenderas i MBR. Utöver doseringshalt kan även doseringspunkt inverka på både avskiljningsgraden av fosfor och nedsmutsningen av membranen.   I studien sammanställdes även en massbalans av flödet och järn i MBR-linjen i Sjöstadsverket. Ytterligare gjordes analyser på vattnet för att undersöka förhållandet   Vid massbalansen uppmärksammades att avskiljningen av fosfor är låg i förluftning (FL) och försedimentering (FS). Avskiljningsgraden låg under vad som förväntades (uppmätt 18 %, förväntad 50 %). Den låga avskiljningsgraden beror sannolikt på att FL och Fs är förhållandevis små. I MBR erhölls ett 40 % större uttag av järn jämfört med inkommande halt järn till MBR. Det bör kunna förklaras av att järnhalten i slammet under denna period var ovanligt hög.   Förhållandet mellan fria Fe2+- och Fe3+-joner analyserades i tvåpunkter, efter FL (mätpunkt 1) och efter FS (mätpunkt 2). I mätpunkt 1 hade 80 % av järnjonerna fällt ut och ca 60 % oxiderat till trevärt järn. Uppehållstiden i FL är ca 13 min.   pH mättes i hela MBR-reningslinjen. I FL och FS låg pH kring ungefär 7,5 och i MBR-reaktorerna låg pH omkring 6,5. Det förenklade hastighetsuttrycket för oxidation av järn vid syrerika förhållanden d[Fe (II)]/dt = -k􁇱[Fe(II)] användes för att beräkna den teoretiska halveringstiden (t1/2) av Fe2+. t1/2 i FL beräknades till 13 min, i FS till 22 min och i MBR-reaktorerna till omkring 2 h. Den teoretiska t1/2 stämmer relativt bra överens med vad som uppmättes vid analys av Fe2+: Fe3+. Den slutsats som kan dras är att sannolikt så kommer mer av järnet att fälla ut i sin trevärda form då järnet doseras i FL och FS, än då järnet doseras i de luftade biologiska reaktorerna.   Sammanfattningsvis, finns få studier som utreder processen för utfällning av fosfor med Fe(II) i aktivslam eller MBR. Kunskapen inom området är begränsad och det finns ännu många kunskapsluckor som behöver täckas. På grund av avloppsvattnets komplexitet räcker inte teoretisk kunskap för en effektiv implementering av MBR. / To expand the capacity of the Stockholm Vatten AB (SVAB) municipal waste water treatment plant (WWTP) “Henriksdal” a membrane bioreactor will be implemented in the existing activated sludge process. The new WWTP is dimensioned to handle the expected flow of year 2040. The future WWTP will also need to treat waste water is currently treated in Bromma. Furthermore, the effluent treatment requirements for phosphorus (P), nitrogen (N) and organic substituents is expected to become stricter.   In cooperation between SVAB and IVL (The Swedish Environmental Institute) the new treatment process is being tested in a pilot plant in Sjöstadsverket. One of the challenges in the new project is to achieve sufficient removal of phosphorus. Today Henriksdal WWTP removes phosphorus through post-precipitation with ferrous iron (Fe2+). When the MBR is implemented SVAB wants to use simultaneous precipitation in the MBR.   In this report the chemical precipitation of Fe2+ in combination with activated sludge and MBR is examined. The aim of this thesis is to aid SVAB by contributing with knowledge in the mentioned area. The report examines the knowledge and research available about the area today and identifies if there are any gaps of knowledge. Focus of the study is among other things: the reaction mechanisms and kinetics; what parameters favor efficient precipitation; how does ferrous iron integrate with the sludge; how to efficiently combine ferrous iron precipitation in MBR.   There are only a few studies in the field and the results often contradict each other. It is likely due to two factors: 1) the matrix of waste water is complex. 2) the matrix varies considerably between different areas and different WWTP’s.   The exact mechanisms and kinetics of phosphorus removal with chemical precipitation of ferrous iron are not fully understood. A lot of the Fe2+ will oxidize to ferric iron (Fe3+). The oxidation rate is mainly dependent on the pH and oxygen concentration in the water. Fe2+ can also be oxidized through biological oxidation in anoxic environments. The phosphorus is removed by direct precipitation with Fe2+ and Fe3+, or through adsorption to iron hydroxides.   Fe2+ can influence the characteristics of the sludge by changing the morphology, the size and the stability of the flocs and the settleability of the sludge. Dosing Fe2+ gives more compact flocs, with smooth surfaces and few filaments. Fe2+ can also influence the biological activity in the sludge. Some studies states the iron contributes to synergistic effects, some claim it reduces the activity.   For efficient phosphorus removal in activated sludge ratios of Fe:P &gt; 2 mole /mole is mostly used. The recommendations seem to be the same for MBR. The dosing point also seem to be of importance to achieve sufficient removal, and furthermore to prevent fouling of the membranes.   Material balances for phosphorous and for iron, as well as analyses to examine the oxidation rate and pH of the waste water in the MBR-pilot plant were also performed. The material balance showed that the removal of phosphorous in the pre-aeration (PA) and the pre-sedimentation (PS) was low. The expected removal was 50 % while the achieved removal 18 %. This is probably due to the relatively small size of the PA and PS compared to the rest of the pilot-plant. In the MBR the outgoing flow of iron was 40 % larger than the incoming flow. During the examined weeks the iron concentration in the sludge was higher than usually. Probably iron had been accumulated in the sludge the weeks before.   The ratio between Fe2+-ions and Fe3+-ions was analyzed in two points, in the flow following the PA respectively the flow following the PS. In the PA 80 % of the ions had precipitated and 60 % of the free irons had been oxidized to Fe3+.   pH was measured in each reactor of the pilot plant. In the PA and the PS the pH was about 7.5, while in the MBR-reactors the pH was around 6.5. The theoretical half-life (t1/2) of Fe2+ was calculated from a simplified rate reaction expression for oxidation of Fe2+ in aerated waters. t1/2 in the PA was around 13 minutes, in the PS around 22 minutes and the bio reactors around 2h. The theoretical t1/2 of Fe2+ is relatively close to the measured values of the ratio between Fe2+-ions and Fe3+-ions. From the results of the studies it is likely that more of the iron will precipitate as ferric iron in the PA and PS than if the ferrous iron is dosed in the aerated bioreactors.   In conclusion: there are only very few studies that examines the precipitation process of ferrous iron in activated sludge or MBR. The theoretical knowledge is not wide enough to use as an only tool when MBR is implanted in new WWTP’s. Due to the complexity of the waste water empirical studies need to be performed under the actual conditions that prevail at Henriksdal WWTP.