The objective of this project was to treat petroleum refinery wastewater using a combination of anaerobic and aerobic processes, namely an Up-flow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket (UASB) reactor paired with a Rotation Algae Biofilm Reactor (RABR), respectively, to produce a treated effluent. The treatment method developed needed to produce a cost-effective and efficient way to decrease nitrogen, phosphorous, total suspended solids (TSS), and COD concentrations to below State of Utah limitations. It was demonstrated that RABR treatment was capable of reducing effluent concentrations of nitrogen, phosphorus, and TSS to State of Utah limitations. RABR treatment did not significantly reduce COD from the wastewater. The COD reduction requirement, however, was met through anaerobic digestion of the wastewater. Therefore, our system proved effectual at the treatment of the wastewater and met all design criteria.

Two batch mesocosms were created on site in Da Nang, Vietnam to reduce nutrients in wastewater from fish processing factories. The mesocosms contained either activated carbon or coconut fibre which in earlier studies has shown promising results in wastewater treatment. Three aspects of the materials were compared; Chemical content, which measured levels of COD, total-nitrogen and total-phosphorus. Rate of biofilm formation, where biofilm were measured visually and through weight. The last aspect was microbiological presence where fours species of microorganisms were cultivated. The experiment showed no obvious difference between the materials but concludes that this is an experiment that could and should be developed further.

Urbanization has led to rapid and uncontrolled growth of informal housing settlements in many developing countries. As most slum growth is unplanned, these areas tend to lack basic infrastructure including sanitation. The high user rates, lack of water and electricity infrastructure, space limitations, and scant financial resources make sanitation provision a major challenge in slums. As most decentralized sanitation technologies fail when applied in these environments, better technologies need to be developed that cater to the specific needs of slum dwellers. One promising technology, the membrane bioreactor (MBR) is routinely used in developed countries when a compact and resilient treatment system is required. However, the energy requirement of existing MBRs is high, as most are aerobic systems which require aeration. Anaerobic MBRs (AnMBR), which do not require aeration, have led to an improvement of the energy profile of MBRs. As research into the technology is still in its infancy, little is known regarding its applicability in high-density urban environments. This body of research is aimed at understanding the AnMBR’s treatment performance and overall reliability in challenging circumstances similar to those encountered in slums. The appropriateness of an AnMBR was investigated with pilot and full-scale systems treating real wastewater in field conditions. The first investigation, discussed in Chapter 3, was used to determine the resilience of AnMBR treatment when subjected to periods of disuse and high fluctuations in incoming feed strengths. Decentralized systems often see much higher variations in feed composition than centralized systems as they lack large collection systems which homogenize the influent wastewater. Depending on the application, periods of low and no flow are also possible. During this long-term study it was observed that the membrane served an important role in controlling the effluent quality, especially when environmental conditions and feed characteristics varied so significantly as to upset biological stability. The system achieved an average COD removal efficiency of 88.2% throughout the study. It was also observed during this study that the system had higher removal efficiencies when treating higher COD concentrations. Higher strength wastewaters can routinely be found in decentralized applications where dilution water is minimal. These locations include water-efficient buildings, direct coupling to public toilets, and fecal sludge treatment plants. It was also found that the AnMBR was capable of rapidly recovering from extended periods of disuse. This ensures that the AnMBR can be applied to areas, such as schools and hotels that experience large seasonal variations and periods of disuse. The second investigation, described in Chapter 4, examined how fluctuations in ambient temperatures affect fouling resistance. In small decentralized applications, operating the reactor at ambient temperatures is the most likely scenario, as controlling the reactor temperature would incur a high energy demand. Operating at ambient temperatures means that variations can be high, and that temperatures can drop below ideal ranges. Temperature is known to affect biological treatment and to a lesser extent membrane filtration, but the interactions between the two are not fully understood. To determine the effect of temperature on operation, a pilot scale AnMBR was used to treat wastewater with fluctuating ambient temperatures. Three trials were conducted during summer and winter conditions, as well an artificially heated period. It was found that membrane permeability can be greatly affected by operating temperature but its effect varied depending on the fouling state of the membrane. Virgin, or recently cleaned membranes were not affected by low temperatures, while the permeability of slightly fouled membranes was negatively correlated to changes in temperature. When slightly fouled, a membrane TMP could increase by 2.4 times with a 10oC drop in temperature. The magnitude of the TMP increase could not be explained by changes in water viscosity alone. The effect of temperature on TMP decreased when fouling became severe and normal operating pressures were high. These results suggest that seasonal adjustments to AnMBR operation would be necessary to prevent sharp and excessive increases in operational TMP during cold spells. Chapter 5 investigated the feasibility of recovering water, nutrients, and energy in an off-grid and decentralized AnMBR. This investigation performed an energy, nutrient, and mass balance for a theoretical AnMBR treating water from a public toilet in a high density setting. What was concluded from this study is that complete water recycling can be accomplished in such an environment. Onsite water recycling would allow the system to be applied in arid urban areas as well as places lacking regular water provision. The study also concluded that the energy content of wastewater in a high density area would be sufficient to power an AnMBR and electronic toilet. For areas where low wastewater strengths would be expected, food waste addition to the wastewater would improve the energy profile of the system. As many urban areas of developing countries struggle with solid waste management, there is the opportunity to link food waste management with wastewater treatment. This study also highlighted the potential problems that ammonia and salinity buildup could have on a system that achieves complete water recycling. Once the system specifically designed for urban areas was deemed theoretically feasible, a full-scale, solar-powered, prototypical system was constructed in Florida and tested in India (Chapter 6). This system, which was applied in Kerala, India, was investigated for its treatment and membrane performance as well as energy consumption. During the first four months of operation, the system was able to produce high quality product water that could be used for toilet flushing. This was achieved despite the low strength of the incoming feed water and higher than anticipated wastewater production rates. The wastewater strength was low due to the system’s application in a school setting and high levels of dilution water. The reliance on multiple anti-fouling mechanisms allowed the system to operate for 4 months without a significant change in TMP. The average energy consumption per unit of produced water depended on the amount of water treated per day. On average the energy consumption was 1.52 kWh/m3, but that value dropped to 0.83 kWh/m3 when volumes greater than 200 liters were treated per day. The lowest value measured during this trial was 0.16 kWh/m3 when 1,394 liters were produced. All of the energy used by the system was produced by onsite photovoltaics, with minimal carbon footprint. While the system was capable of meeting the water demand of the toilet system, further improvements in the energy demand of the system will be necessary to make the system more cost-effective, robust and reliable. These results suggest that AnMBRs can be applied in high density urban areas for the dual objectives of wastewater treatment and resource recovery. Their reliable treatment in the face of large fluctuations in feed concentration, volume, and temperature suggests they are appropriate for decentralized applications. Membrane filtration allows water to be reliably recycled onsite with minimal operator oversight. The low energy requirements of the system allow for onsite renewable energy sourced, such as photovoltaics to be used to power the system. AnMBRs are able to address many of the challenges that traditional sanitation technologies cannot, which makes them a promising technology to address the problems encountered in slum sanitation.

Knowing the concentrations of the nutrient elements in soils is important due to their toxic effect on humans and the environment. The aims of this study were to assess the effects of water quality, depths and distances of lateral installation on soil chemical properties during turfgrass cultivation. A field experiment was conducted using a Split Split Plot design based on the Randomized complete Block (RCB) with two treatments (well’s and wastewater), and eight sub-treatments (45 and 60 cm distance of the laterals and 15, 20, 25, and 30 cm depths of laterals) in three replicates on a sandy-loam soil, in Shahrekord, Iran. Soil samples were collected from 0-30 and 30-60 cm depth for measuring nitrate (NO3-), electrical conductivity (EC), and pH at the end of the experiment. During the experiment, fecal coliform (FC) were also measured at the soil surface. Results indicated that by increasing lateral distance, NO3- level increased in both layers. With installing laterals in deeper levels, NO3- concentration decreased at the beginning, then increased in the first layer, whereas in the second layer NO3- concentration decreased. In addition, installing laterals in deeper depth, caused an increase in soil EC in the top layer, but a decrease in the lower layer. However, the results showed that there was no significant effect of experimental factors on soil pH. The results also show that with increasing laterals depth, Fc level decreased at the soil surface.

Rapid urbanization has led to the generation of enormous wastewater after independence. The domestic wastewater generated in municipalities is rich in nutrients such as carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus along with other ions. The generated wastewater due to lack of adequate appropriate infrastructure including low treatment efficiencies are either untreated or partially treated and are let into water bodies. Present sewage treatment plants (STP’s) in the city are either under capacity or malfunctioning and hence are unable to meet the growing demand of burgeoning urban population. Water bodies have the ability to uptake nutrients (remediation by algae, bacteria, macrophytes) provided the wastewater inflow does not exceed the threshold. However, the sustained flow of wastewater beyond the water body’s treatment ability has led to the serious problem of nutrient enrichment in surface water bodies which is evident from algal bloom and profuse growth of invasive exotic macrophytes. This necessitates cost effective environmentally sound treatment options. The current research focuses on the characterisation of domestic wastewater fed ponds/lakes, understanding of nutrient regimes in wastewaters, pond dynamics, nutrient transformation and resource recovery. This has aided in devising an algae based treatment system for Bangalore city. The interplay between various biotic and abiotic factors governs water quality in a water body. Regular monitoring helps in characterisation of the water body and also helps in identifying the sources of external input (if any) to the system. Wastewater generated in urban localities in India, due to lack of adequate appropriate infrastructure including low treatment efficiencies are untreated or partially treated and are let into water bodies. Understanding the nature of the wastewater flow regimes and the turnover of biota with prevalent nutrient conditions is required to design treatment systems. Treatment involves breakdown of complex organism forms into simpler forms and transformations of organic nutrients into inorganic forms that are finally absorbed and assimilated by microbes as algae and bacteria. In wastewater fed urban pond systems, an array of microphytes as well as macrophytes grow and help in nutrient cycling in the system and still manage to remove nutrients to satisfactory levels. However, sustained inflow of wastewater with high nutrients results in the deterioration of the system as nutrient input exceed the supportive and assimilative capability resulting in proliferation of macrophytes, algal blooms, froth formations rendering the system anoxic that results in the loss of functional abilities of the urban pond systems. This biota in the system plays a major role in nutrient removal and recycles. Understanding the nutrient cycling aspects of urban wastewater fed systems is essential to find out the key players in treatment and for devising a sustainable treatment option with resource recovery. The review of wastewater generation, treatment systems highlight shortfall of the treatment systems and need for sustainable treatment for removal and recovery of nutrients such as C, N and P. Characterisation of Varthur water body (spatial extent 220 ha) located in the south of Bangalore city has been done through monthly monitoring for 18 months with the analyses of physico-chemical and biological. The analysis showed BOD removal of 70% (filterable) when the lake functioned as an anaerobic–aerobic lagoon for 6 months at an estimated residence time of 5 days. During this period, the biota of the lake, especially primary producers such as algae, treat the water through remediation of nutrients to nearly standard water quality levels. However, the growth and spread of invasive exotic macrophytes such as water hyacinth rendered the lake anaerobic which reduces its ability (due to absence of low algae) to treat the water. This highlights the role of algae especially Chlorophycean members as Chlorococcum sp., Chlorella sp. and Monoraphidium sp. in treating urban domestic wastewater and the scope for introducing algal ponds/lagoons to treat wastewater treatment and it may be used in a larger number of small towns to enable local reuse of water. The entire pond systems comprises of various components that are deeply affected by the biotic and abiotic factors in the system. Hence, studies on major biotic components were conducted especially on algae and macrophytes and the impact of abiotic factors as wind, light, and precipitation with seasonality’s. The diurnal and spatio-temporal variations in the dissolved oxygen as well other treatment parameters were used for zonation through multivariate analysis. Physico-chemical parameters confirm the nutrient enrichment (high Amm.-N) in the water body due to the sustained inflow of wastewater. High levels of nutrients together with BOD have resulted in the lower DO levels affecting the biological life. Study on biota revealed macrophytes altering the photosynthetic regime in the algae in water bodies thus, creating anoxia and nutrient re-suspension. The multivariate analysis showed three distinct zones (clusters) on the basis of physico-chemical variables and nutrient concentrations in the lake. The sedimentary C and N analysis showed a steady increase in the C: N ratio as a function of residence time. Importance of the various sub-systems in the water body in terms of nutrient uptake and accumulation showed algal systems to be efficient. C budgeting accounted to ~ 7 t/d i.e. ~2574 t/y, indicated that the lake is an accumulator of C. An estimated relatively high gas emission across the water/air interface (17 t/d) to carbon burial into sediments (2.3 t/d) further indicates very high emissions compared to sedimentation showing the dominance of internal C cycles. The overall mass balance, gas exchange and carbon burial balance showed Varthur water body as a major emitter of C due to high primary production, substantive allochthonous carbon inputs and intensive anthropogenic activities in the water body. Gaseous carbon emission accounted for 28 % of the total Influx C. The spatial profile of N in sediment ranged from 2280-3539 mg/kg of sediment dry mass. Very low value of N:P ratio in sediments suggested possible N limitation. The determination of ammonification and nitrification showed lower nitrification rates than the ammonification rates. The potentially mineralisable nitrogen content in Varthur pond sediments varied greatly from 21.65% to 75.54% and was strongly correlated (r2=0.85) to sedimentary TN. N budgeting showed NH4-N as the predominant Nr form for microbial uptake and is the major mechanism for nitrogen removal, followed by the sedimentation process. Bacterial biomass, algal biomass and macrophyte biomass accounted for 14, 4 and 1% N removal, respectively. Ammonium concentration and nitrification accounted for 27% and 2%, respectively. While bacterial uptake remained fairly constant throughout the year, micro-algae was the major player during monsoon and winter and macrophytes dominated Nr capture during summer among autotrophs. From the estimates, it has been observed that nearly 55% Nr was recovered, recycled as cell mass and transferred to a crop system when such N-captured water is used for irrigating fodder crops. About 45% of N input into the system was lost and methods to reduce this loss need to be evolved in the future. The spatial profile of P in sediment ranged from 2111.35-3982.03 mg/kg of sediment dry mass. Inorganic-P (IP) ranging from 1270.27-3505.73 mg/kg was found to be the major fraction (61.16-91.56%) of sedimentary P. High p values in both water columns and sediments showed potential P excess conditions. P concentrations in micro and macro-algae collected during the due course of the study (on dry biomass basis) were 0.347% and 0.939% P respectively. The P fractionation revealed metal oxide bound P (NaOH-P) and constituted major fraction of IP indicating, high concentrations of Fe and Al in sediments. High concentrations of sedimentary N and P indicated possible higher trophic status (bio-productivity/unit volume) signifying its towering nutrient status evidenced from the rank order of P fractions: NaOH-P > HCl-P > NH4Cl-P, which is specific for highly enriched water bodies. P budgeting showed that bulk of the P is trapped in sediment layer with a potential of ~50 % recovery from the sediments indicating, ~70% P retention within the system. The biotic components such as bacteria, algae and macrophytes accumulates a substantial amount of P, immobilising ~139, ~482 and ~131 tonness/yr of P. The sequential P extraction shows that ~70 % of sediment bound P is readily reducible during anoxic conditions which can potentially become bio-available to trigger algal growth. Assessment of treatment efficiency of facultative algal ponds, showed moderate treatment levels with 60 % total COD removal, 50% of filterable COD removal; 82% of total BOD removal and 70% of filterable BOD removal. The N removal efficiency was lower. However, a rapid decrease in the suspended solids after a faster euglenoids growth indicated particulate C removal by algal ingestion. Euglenoides dominated the facultative pond and Chlorophycean members were more abundant in the maturation ponds owing to variable surface BOD loadings. Significant correlations between algal biomass and nutrients indicate the importance of the type and nature of algal communities that can be used as an efficient tool for predicting the dynamics of various phases in wastewater treatment systems. Detailed morphological analysis of dominant algal species i.e. euglenoides was also performed. Euglenophycean members (>14 species) sampled from various locations in the facultative pond based system showed various striae patterns and distinct nano channels on the cell surface that might have possible role in cell secretions. Comparative assessment of treatment systems reveal that algal pond systems performed well under higher organic load with a COD removal efficiency of 70%, TN removal efficiency of 73% and TP removal efficiency of 22%. However, the facultative pond based systems were effective in suspended solid (SS) removal up to 93% and BOD removal up to 82%. The conventional wastewater treatment systems were efficient in terms of SS removal up to 88%, COD removal up to 74% and BOD removal up to 63%, but were highly ineffective in nutrient removal. The evaluation of treatment processes in mechanically aerated systems, facultative ponds and large shallow lake based systems in terms of capital and annual O&M costs, COD removal cost and land requirements reveals that the mechanical systems require 5 times more capital and O&M costs than ponds. The treatment systems were also ranked in terms of the total annual cost (e.g., capital, manpower, chemical, repair, electricity, land). It showed that algal pond systems followed by facultative pond based system are economically better choice than mechanical technologies. Finally, it was found that the large pond based systems could be economically the best option for the developing countries considering all factors, including economic viability and treatment efficiency. The treatment efficiency analysis showed that algal pond systems were the most effective options for treating urban wastewater. Culturing native wastewater species in growth media and wastewaters, assessment of efficient cell disruption and solvent systems, lipid profiles of wastewater algal species were studied. Wastewater grown algal species as Euglena sp., Spirogyra sp., Phormidium sp., Lepocinclis ovum, and Chlorococcum sp. are comparatively rich in lipids. These algae grow mixotrophically and can store substantial amount of wastewater carbon as TAG’s in varied environments. Among the different cell disruption methods used for the study, sonication was the most effective. The combination of maceration and methanol: chloroform: water (2:1:0.8, v/v) (Bligh and Dyer’s, solvent) gave highest lipid extraction yield among other combinations. Further more these wastewater algae as Lepocinclis ovum and Chlorococcum sp. were found to grow better in wastewaters. Increased lipid content was recorded during the cell cultures with accumulation of quality FAME with high saturates predominated by C16-C18 fatty acids. These wastewater algal lipids are suitable for bio-energy generation with potential biomass productivity (6.52 t/ha/yr) of wastewater-grown species as Euglena. The studies on Euglena sp. showed mixotrophic mode that offers an efficient removal of TOC, N and P from domestic wastewater without any pre-treatment. Lipid profiles of the extracted algal oil were similar to the vegetative feedstock oils, indicating a good quality fuel for energy generation. Mixed algal consortia’s bioremediation potential (removal of nutrients) with the scope for biofuel production highlights self flocculating abilities of algal consortia aided in the effective treatment of wastewater with substantial algal harvest. Studies on cultivating wastewater algal consortia in novel cascading algal parcel flow reactor (CAPFR) operating in continuous mode showed 70-80 % nutrient and ~90 % C removal with in a residence time of ~4 days with highest cell densities (0.91 g/l) and productivities (0.26 g/l/d) in the last stages. The lipid contents varied from 26-28 % with highest lipid productivities ~58 mg/l/d in the 2nd phase of the bioreactor. Most of the lipids were associated with the pigments as chlorophyll and carotenoids. Furthermore, the algal rector removed bacteria up to 4 log orders. Essential cations and phosphates were responsible for self clumping of algal biomass in the final stages with a high internal P content within the cell. The algal biomass also showed substantial exothermic peaks and high heat values (~18 MJ/kg). Studies on continuous cultivation of Dictyosphaerium sp. showed that this species could adapt to wastewater conditions and also showed good nutrient removal at lower HRT (2.5 days). The high biomass productivities with high lipid content (~36%) at low HRT in the continuous mode offer potential options for economic and feasible nutrient removal with biofuel production. Investigations on city wastewaters showed low nutrient ratio indicating C limitations and possible scope for algal wastewater treatment. Integration of algal ponds in the present treatment network requires an additional land ranging from ~0.37 to 2.75 ha to treat an MLD of wastewater depending on the nutrient content and influent waters fed to algal systems. The treatment plants require an additional ~1.6 ha of land to treat 1 MLD of wastewater considering an average N and P values of 18 and 5 mg/l. The continuous algal bio-processes implemented at decentralised levels would help in the economical ways for nutrient removal and recycling of the nutrient free waters after treatment. This meets multiple objectives of low cost treatment of wastewater, nutrient recovery and fuel production. Algal nutrient capture and consequent biofuel production would ensure sustainability through i) water purification ii) nutrients capture and iii) biofuel to meet the growing energy demand, and would be an optimal treatment option for urban wastewater. The thesis consists of 10 chapters and basically deals with the development of a sustainable and economically viable bioprocess for wastewater treatment and biomass production. Chapter 1 provides a brief introduction to wastewater; domestic wastewater composition, generation and treatment in developing nations and in the country and review of the various techniques for treatment of domestic wastewaters, advantages of algal processes in nutrient removal (C, N and P) and production of valued by-product such as lipid generation, for its use as biofuel. Chapter 2 is based on primary field investigations in a wastewater fed urban water body/pond systems involving monthly sampling and analysis of various physico-chemical and biological parameters. Assessment of treatment capabilities of the continuous systems through detailed characterisation of treatment parameters is explained in the second chapter. Chapter 3 discusses the role of the major biotic (algae and macrophytes) and abiotic factors in nutrient transformations, the diurnal variations in parameters especially dissolved oxygen, multivariate spatio-temporal analysis of functional abilities for zoning, the activities in the sludge/sediment and transitions in the CN ratio as a function of residence time. Chapter 4 involves studies in C, N and P quantification and budgeting in such pond systems and partitioning of the nutrients and their distribution in various biotic and abiotic subsystems. This chapter also highlights the major nutrient losses from the system and un-utilised nutrient stocks, paving way for beneficial use of nutrients from such man made lagoon wastewater systems. Chapter 5 discusses the mechanisms and efficacies of algal pond based treatment systems through a detailed study and highlight its advantages over the mechanical ASP based systems. This has been done through a comparative assessment of treatment efficiency, economics and environmental externalities. This study also provides necessary insights and potential of wastewater algal species such as Euglena for its abilities in nutrient removal and biomass generation. This provides insights to algal treatment options for optimal resource recovery and utilisation from wastewaters. Chapter 6 focuses on testing the growth, biomass and lipid production of various wastewater algae isolated from treatment ponds. The chapter identifies suitable cell disruption and extraction routes for efficient lipid extraction and assesses the potential of these wastewater grown algae for regional and national biofuel production. Chapter 7 discusses the effectiveness of wastewater grown Euglena sp. and algal consortia in nutrient removal and as a source of lipids for biofuel generation. Chapter 8 involves the design and operation of a continuous algal (uni-algal/algal consortia) bioreactor devised taking insights from earlier field based studies and their potential as efficient urban wastewater treatment systems. Chapter 9 discusses the present nutrient levels in the city wastewaters and also an analysis of the temporal and spatial variation of nutrients in city sewers and elaborates the scope for integration of the algal modules i.e. continuous algal bioreactors (designed in the previous chapter) into existing STP’s. Chapter 10 elaborates significant contributions and outcome of the research.

New federal regulations with regards to ammonia in wastewater effluent discharge will require over 1000 existing wastewater treatment facilities to be upgraded. Although biological treatment is the most common and economical means of wastewater ammonia removal, nitrification rates can be completely impeded at cold temperatures. Moving bed biofilm reactors (MBBR) have shown promise as an upgrade nitrifying unit at pilot-scale and full-scale applications with respect to low temperature nitrification. MBBR technologies offfer the advantages of less space requirement, utilizing the whole tank volume, no sludge recycling, and no backwashing, over other attached growth systems. Two laboratory MBBRs were used in this study to investigate MBBR nitrification rates at 20deg.C, after long-term exposure to 1deg.C, and at the kinetic threshold temperature of 5deg.C. Furthermore, the biologically produced solids from the MBBR system 20deg.C and after long-term exposure to 1deg.C, and the Arrhenius temperature correction models used to predict nitrification rates after long-term exposure to 1deg.C. The nitrification rates at 1deg.C over a four month exposure period as compared to the rate at 20deg.C were 18.7 + 5.5% and 15.7 + 4.7% for the two reactors. The nitrification rate at 5deg.C was 66.2 + 3.9% and 64.4 + 3.7% compared to the rate measured at 20deg.C for reactors 1 and 2, respectively, and as such was identified as the kinetic temperature threshold. The quantity of solids detached from the nitrifying MBBR biocarriers was low and did not vary significantly at 20deg.C and after long-term exposure to 1deg.C. Lastly, a temperature correction model based on exposure time to cold temperatures, developed by Delatolla et al. (2009) showed a strong correlation to the calculated ammonia removal rates relative to 20deg.C following a gradual acclimatization period to cold temperatures. Biofilm morphology along with biomass viability at various depths in the biofilm were investigated using variable pressure electron scanning microscope imaging (VPSEM) and confocal laser scanning microscope (CLSM) imaging in combination with viability live/dead staining. The biofilm thickness along with the number of viable cells showed significant increases after long-term exposure to 1deg.C while the dead cell coverage did not show significant increases after long-term exposure to 1deg.C while the dead cell coverage did not show significant changes. Hence, this study observed higher cell activities at warm temperatures and a slightly greater quantity of biomass with lower activities at cold temperatures in nitrifying MBBR biofilms. Using DNA sequencing analysis, 'Nitrosomonas' and 'Nitrosospira' (ammonia oxidizers)as well as 'Ntrospira' (nitrite oxidizer) were identified in which no population shift was observed during 20deg.C and after long-term exposure to 1deg.C. Furthermore, a number of non-nitrifiers were identified int he biofilm during warm and cold temperatures presenting the possibility that their presence may have provided some form of protection to the nitrifiers during long-term temperature exposure.

The increasing population with its associated rising food demand requires more agricultural fertilizers to maintain the harvest for food security. However, the natural calcium carbonate phosphate mineral (carbonate apatite) used to produce phosphorus (P) fertilizer is a non- renewable ore. Therefore, in this study, the objective is to extract the inorganic polymeric phosphate (polyphosphate: polyP) P-component in waste activated sewage sludge (WAS) from Ottawa’s municipal wastewater plant (ROPEC). Once extracted, the goal was to break down the polyP to inorganic phosphate (Pi) to produce carbonate apatite. PolyP is a P-component in WAS because a group of wastewater microorganisms called polyphosphate-accumulating organisms uptake phosphate and generate intracellular polyP stores during aerobic digestion in municipal wastewater treatment plant processes. The total acidic, oxidative P content of WAS was measured. PolyP was extracted and quantified to estimate the fraction of total P as polyP in WAS. Different polyP extraction methods were undertaken. It was determined that the complicated composition and weight fractions of TWAS, including iron phosphate, complicated polyP extraction and Pi measurement. Lessons learned were applied towards preliminary batch and continuous precipitation of carbonate apatite with the product slurry from the anaerobic digestion process at ROPEC. Limestone was tested as an inexpensive calcium carbonate source for carbonate apatite precipitation. The dissolution of calcium and carbonate from limestone was assessed, and it was determined that further optimization is required. Preliminary work indicated that the calcium- carbonate solution from limestone could precipitate synthetic carbonate apatite from anaerobic digester material. This synthetic carbonate apatite product may lead to mitigating the impending limitations on natural carbonate apatite availability for P-fertilizer production.

Det senaste årtiondet har man uppmärksammat läkemedelsrester i den akvatiska miljön. Kommunala avloppsreningsverk är en av de viktigaste källorna till detta. Denna rapport behandlar frågan om att bygga ut avloppsreningsverk med teknik för att reducera läkemedel från kommunalt avloppsvatten. En telefonenkät har genomförts med personal på kommunala avloppsreningsverk. Med hjälp av den försöker rapporten sammanfatta läget för läkemedelsrening i svenska kommuner, hur långt man har kommit, vilka drivkrafter som kan stimulera arbetet och utmaningar som kan komma med det. Rapporten försöker också identifiera skillnader mellan kommuner som kan avgöra om man jobbar för att införa läkemedelsrening. Undersökningen visar att majoriteten av svenska kommuner ännu inte har börjat jobba med frågan; de som har börjat är främst stora kommuner. De flesta har dock hört talas om minst en reningsteknik för läkemedelsrening. I små kommuner är ekonomi och brist på kunskap en framtida utmaning. För de flesta kommuner skulle lagstiftning och lokala politiska beslut vara de viktigaste drivkrafterna för att börja jobba med frågan. Ungefär hälften av kommunerna uppgav att de trodde man skulle börja jobba med frågan inom 15 år. / Pharmaceutical residues in the aquatic environment has been a growing concern in the last decade, and municipal wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are an important source of pharmaceuticals to the aquatic environment. This paper treats the question of upgrading public WWTPs with technology for reducing pharmaceutical residues in wastewater. By means of a telephone survey directed at personnel at municipal WWTPs, this report tries to conclude the position of Swedish municipalities; what work has already been done in this area, what possible motives might propel upgrading WWTPs, and challenges that might follow with it. The report also investigates whether there are any differences between municipalities that might determine whether a municipality has engaged in this area. The investigation shows that the majority of Swedish municipalities has not yet started working towards upgrading WWTPs. Those that have are mainly large municipalities. However most have heard of treatment techniques. For small municipalities economy and a lack of knowledge pose a future challenge. For most of the municipalities, legislation and local political decisions would be the most important drives towards upgrading WWTPs. About half of the municipalities in the survey thought that they might start working towards upgrading WWTPs within 15 years.

Decolorization of Azo dyes in synthetic wastewater composition which is similar to real textile wastewater was carried out by microbial process. Experiments were performed in two continuous systems. Experiments were performed under anaerobic conditions in order to break the nitrogen bond of the azo group (-N=N-). A synthetic dye solution which contained 200 mg/L Reactive Black 5, 200 mg/L Procion Red MX-5B and 1 g/L yeast extract was prepared. In this study, living microorganisms were used to degrade the dyes in wastewater. Rice husks which contain bacteria and fungi were used in the reactors of continuous systems. The parameters tested on continuous system were wastewater composition, the number of reactors, the amount of yeast extract in wastewater composition, the wastewater flowrate, washing the system with wood chips solution, addition of yeast extract solution.  Results have shown that increasing the number of reactors, the retention time, the amount of yeast extract and washing the system with wood chips solution had positive effects for degradation of the dyes from wastewater. When the flowrate was increased the retention time has decreased so degradation of dyes has decreased but although the flowrate increased twice, % degradation hasn’t decreased as the same ratio. Therefore this result showed that this process can be worked for faster flowrates. Microbial process is a promising technology which might be used to treat wastewater containing azo dyes with good performance.

Orientadores: Telma Teixeira Franco, Eduardo Jacob-Lopes / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Engenharia Química / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-24T13:35:37Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Francisco_ErikaCristina_D.pdf: 1584353 bytes, checksum: 7fa11e2a9de2d170e12cddabf84ac647 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014 / Resumo: O objetivo do estudo foi avaliar a produção de biomassa e o acúmulo lipídico da cianobactéria Phormidium sp. a partir do cultivo heterotrófico com diferentes fontes de carbono orgânico, estudar diferentes estratégias de cultivo empregando a manipueira (água residual do processo para obtenção da farinha de mandioca) e avaliar o acúmulo lipídico a partir de diferentes fontes de nitrogênio. Primeiramente avaliou-se a capacidade da cianobactéria Phormidium sp. em se desenvolver a partir de 15 diferentes fontes de carbono orgânico exógeno. Os resultados indicaram o amido de mandioca e a maltodextrina como as fontes com maior potencial de exploração para a produção de biomassa e lipídeos. Em um segundo momento, foi realizada a intensificação do processo de produção de biomassa a partir do amido de mandioca empregando-se um planejamento experimental. Os resultados indicaram que relação C/N de 68 e temperatura de 30ºC são as condições operacionais ideais. A extrapolação do cultivo em Erlenmeyers para as operações em batelada e batelada com alimentação descontínua em biorreatores resultou em produtividades de biomassa de 50,72 mg/L.h e 42,13 mg/L.h, respectivamente. A terceira etapa do projeto contemplou o estudo do cultivo heterotrófico da cianobactéria empregando diferentes modos de cultivo utilizando manipueira como substrato, inicialmente através de diferentes concentrações (v/v) de manipueira em água (5, 10, 20, 40, 60, 80 e 100%). Os resultados demonstraram que a melhor concentração da manipueira foi a de 60% (v/v). Em seguida, iniciou-se cultivos em biorreator, nos modos de batelada (Sistema A) e batelada com alimentação descontínua, empregando-se manipueira como meio de cultivo e diferentes soluções de alimentação. No primeiro sistema alimentado (Sistema B), empregou-se uma solução de amido de mandioca concentrado, e no segundo (Sistema C), o biorreator foi alimentado com manipueira não diluída. As alimentações foram efetuadas assim que a concentração de DQO no biorreator atingisse uma concentração de 6000mg/L. A extrapolação para cultivos em biorreator resultou em maiores produtividades em biomassa (53,12mg/L.h) e lipídica (7,45mg/L.h) sob batelada (sistema A). A última etapa do projeto contemplou o estudo de diferentes fontes de nitrogênio (extrato de levedura, nitrato de sódio, nitrito de sódio, molibidato de amônio e ureia) no cultivo heterotrófico da Phormidium sp. empregando amido de mandioca como fonte de carbono orgânico. A partir dos resultados obtidos selecionou-se o nitrato de sódio sob razão C/N de 60 como a fonte com maior potencial na produção de lipídeos, resultando na quantidade de lipídeos, produtividades lipídica e de biomassa de 20,58%, 7,62mg/L.h e 37,02mg/L.h, respectivamente. O processo de depleção do nitrato de sódio resultou em um aumento na quantidade de lipídeos (25,07%) e na produtividade lipídica (10,47mg/L.h) / Abstract: The aim of the study was to evaluate the production of biomass and lipid accumulation of cyanobacteria Phormidium sp. from heterotrophic cultivation with different sources of organic carbon, study diferente strategies of cultures employing cassava wastewater and analyse the lipid accumulation from different nitrogen sources. First we assessed the ability of the cyanobacterium Phormidium sp. to growth in 15 different exogenous sources of organic carbon. Results indicated that the cassava starch and maltodextrin as those with the highest potential for exploitation for the production of biomass and lipids. In a second step, the increase in biomass production process was made from cassava starch employing an experimental design. The results indicated that the C/N of 68 and temperature of 30ºC are the optimal operating conditions. Extrapolation of cultivation in flasks for batch and batch with fed discontinuous operations in bioreactors resulted in biomass productivity of 50.72 mg/L.h and 42.13mg/L.h, respectively. The third stage of the project involved the study of the heterotrophic system of cyanobacteria using different modes of cultivation using cassava wastewater as substrate, initially through different concentrations (v/v) of wastewater in water (5, 10, 20, 40, 60, 80 and 100%). The results showed that the best concentration of cassava was 60%. Then, in a bioreactor cultivation was started in batch mode (System A), and batch with descontinuous feeds, using the culture medium as wastewater and different feed solutions. In the first feed system (System B) used a concentrated solution of cassava starch, and in second (System C), the bioreactor was fed with undiluted wastewater. The feeds were made so that the concentration of COD in the bioreactor to achieve a concentration of 6000mg/L. The extrapolation to cultivations in bioreactor resulted in productivity of biomass (53.12 mg/L.h) and lipid (7.45 mg/L.h) under simple batch (System A). The last stage of the project involved the study of different nitrogen sources (ammonium molybdate, sodium nitrate, sodium nitrite, urea and yeast extract) in heterotrophic cultures of Phormidium sp. using cassava starch as a source of organic carbon. From the results obtained, we selected sodium nitrate under C/N ratio of 60 as the source with the highest potential in the production of lipids, resulting in the amount of lipids, productivity of lipid and biomass of 20.58%, 7.62 mg/L.h and 37.02 mg/L.h, respectively. The process of depletion of sodium nitrate resulted in an increase in the amount of lipids (25.07%) and the lipid productively (10.47mg/L.h) / Doutorado / Engenharia de Processos / Doutora em Engenharia Quimica