The use of treated wastewater (TWW) for crop irrigation is how many governments are looking to feed their large population due to urbanisation. Here, we outline and analyse the benefits of using TWW and the drawbacks of such practices in line with existing regulations. The review begins by highlighting the history of wastewater reuse in agriculture. The approach used in the write-up is outlined after the background. There is an in-depth look at three main areas: the uptake of heavy metals and pharmaceuticals on crop irrigation, plant yield, and the impact of regulations on these practices. Results demonstrate the presence of several pharmaceuticals, triclosan, acetaminophen, diazepam in lettuce, meprobamate, atenolol in celery, and carbamazepine, triclosan, and triclocarbon in soybean. Trace metals (Cd, Pb) are present in the edible part of the vegetable and arsenic is found in the ryegrass roots and maise. Some benefits derived from using TWW in crop irrigation include nutrient supply, water resource protection and food security, whereas the drawbacks are exposure of contaminants to food and humans.

The Gulf of Bothnia consists of two sub-basins in the northern Baltic Sea: the Bothnian Sea (salinity 4-5‰) and Bothnian Bay (salinity 2-3‰). Changing nutrient concentrations and signs of eutrophication has recently been observed in the Gulf of Bothnia. Many rivers enter this sea area, and potentially river inflows constitute a source of nutrient pollution via waste-water emissions. The aim of this study was to elucidate effects of waste-water emissions in four rivers in northern Sweden, Luleå, Skellefteå, Umeå and Söderhamn. My approach was to compare nutrient concentrations at upstream and downstream sampling stations related to the position of waste-water treatment plants. Temporal data from 2006 to 2021 were used and statistically analyzed using non-parametric tests to establish spatial and temporal patterns for nutrient discharged to the coast. The results showed that there are statistically differences in dissolved inorganic phosphorus (DIP) in the form of phosphate (PO4), ammonia (NH4) and total nitrogen (TotN) between the upstream and downstream of Luleå and Umeå wastewater treatment plants. No statistically significant differences were observed in the upstream and downstream data for Söderhamn and Skellefteå. This suggest that better management and mitigation of nutrient loading from wastewater treatment plants that serve higher populations is paramount to achieve the zero-eutrophication goal in the Gulf of Bothnia.

No description available.

Many pharmaceuticals are found in municipal wastewater effluents due to their persistence in the human body as well as in conventional wastewater treatment processes. This discharge to the environment can lead to adverse effects in aquatic species, such as feminization of male fish. During the past decade, these findings have spawned investigations and research into suitable treatment technologies that could severely limit the discharge. Adsorption onto activated carbon has been identified as one of the two main technologies for implementation of (future) full-scale treatment. Recent research has put a closer focus on adsorption with powdered activated carbon (PAC) than on granular activated carbon (GAC). Studies where both methods are compared in parallel operation are thus still scarce and such evaluation in pilot-scale was therefore a primary objective of this thesis. Furthermore, recirculation of PAC can be used to optimize the treatment regarding the carbon consumption. Such a setup was evaluated as a separate treatment stage to comply with Swedish wastewater convention. Additionally, variation of a set of process parameters was evaluated. During successive operation at three different wastewater treatment plants an overall pharmaceutical removal of 95% could consistently be achieved with both methods. Furthermore, treatment with GAC was sensitive to a degraded effluent quality, which severely reduced the hydraulic capacity. Both treatment methods showed efficient removal of previously highlighted substances, such as carbamazepine and diclofenac, however in general a lower adsorption capacity was observed for GAC. By varying the input of process parameters, such as the continuously added dose or the contact time, during PAC treatment, a responsive change of the pharmaceutical removal could be achieved. The work in this thesis contributes some valuable field experience towards wider application of these treatment technologies in full-scale. / <p>QC 20161124</p> / MistraPharma

During the past three years, we assisted to the rise of a new pathogen that afflicted the world with a global pandemic. Working in an era of rapid change has posed important challenges and the focus of research has shifted more and more toward topics of greater social utility. However, this period has also brought a new role for wastewater highlighting how it can provide insight into the health of a community. This is the approach of Wastewater-based Epidemiology (WBE). The work presented here aimed to deepen this approach not only at the theoretical level but also contributing with an ongoing monitoring of about 30 months. The main objectives were (i) to collect information on the recently discovered SARS-CoV-2 virus, its biology, transmission mechanism, and role in wastewater treatment plants (WWTP); (ii) set up a surveillance system that would allow to monitor SARS-CoV-2 infections over time, obtaining early information on its spread among the population to support the Health Authority. Starting from a detailed study of the shedding mechanisms of SARS-CoV-2 in the feces of infected patients, we moved on to the evaluation of the viral concentrations in the sewage system and the wastewater entering the WWTP. The possibility of a faecal-oral transmission route of the virus was investigated by evaluating the data about viability and infectivity in wastewater. The natural processes of decay of the virus in wastewater and the reduction of its concentration in the different treatment stages of WWTPs were explored in literature and with experimental data. At the same time, we developed a SARS-CoV-2 surveillance system in wastewater by applying different detection methods. Some practical and scientific aspects of the analysis protocol have been studied in depth such as the choice of the type of sample, the storage temperatures, and the pre-heat treatments aimed at making the analysis safer for the operator. The choice of the concentration method was evaluated to comply with the low concentration of the viral titer and therefore the crucial importance of this phase of the protocol. During the monitoring campaign, we further investigated aspects related to data processing and developed normalization approaches. Samples from WWTPs in the province of Trento were analysed weekly and sampling frequencies and curve smoothing methods deriving from those data were evaluated. The trend curves thus obtained were compared with those deriving from clinical data provided by the local Health Authority and signals of early warnings of virus diffusion trends in the population were highlighted. With the alternation of the different variants of the virus and the evidence of their importance in the development of new waves of infection, a PCR based genotyping method has been devised to rapidly identify the already known variants. In conclusion, this research project addressed a broad spectrum of aspects related to the WBE approach in contrasting the COVID-19 emergency and confirmed that wastewater could be a valuable source of information and management support for this and other emerging pathogens or micropollutants.

No description available.

No description available.

The composition of gut microbes affects host weight, immune function, and disease status, and is sensitive to diet, environment, and pharmaceutical exposure. The gut microbiome modulates the toxicity and bioavailability of chemical stressors, however the effects of chemicals on the gut microbiome of aquatic biota are largely unknown. The Waterloo and Kitchener wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) release effluents containing antibiotics, pharmaceuticals, and other contaminants into the Grand River (ON) that may negatively affect the gut microbiome of downstream organisms. In this study done in Fall 2018, I collected freshwater mussels (Lasmigona costata), several species of insect larvae, and riparian spiders (Tetragnathidae) from sites upstream and downstream of these WWTPs. The gut microbiome was analyzed following the extraction, PCR amplification, and sequencing of bacterial DNA using the V3-V4 hypervariable regions of the 16S rRNA genetic barcode. Changes in the relative abundance of major gut microbiome phyla were observed in all targeted aquatic organisms downstream of WWTPs except Hydropsychidae. Shannon alpha diversity, a measure of bacterial abundance and evenness, differed significantly among sites for mussels (one-way ANOVA: F=7.894, p=0.001), spiders (F=4.788, p=0.01), Perlidae (F=3.1, p=0.0056), Hydropsychidae (F=3.674, p=0.0014), and Heptageniidae (F=2.715, p=0.0143), but not for Baetidae and Ephemerellidae. In sites downstream of the Waterloo WWTP, alpha diversity decreased in spiders, while in sites downstream of the Kitchener WWTP diversity decreased in mussels and Perlidae, while increasing for spiders. Bray-Curtis beta diversity, a measure of dissimilarity between bacterial communities, was significantly dissimilar among sites in all invertebrate taxa (Permanova: p<0.02). Upstream sites differed from downstream Waterloo sites in spiders, Perlidae, and Hydropsychidae (Adonis pairwise: p<0.05), while upstream mussels, spiders, Perlidae, and Hydropsychidae differed from downstream Kitchener sites (p<0.05). Additionally, effluent-derived bacteria were found in the microbiomes of aquatic invertebrates downstream of the WWTPs and not upstream. Taxa was also a significant driver of bacterial composition and diversity in invertebrates. These results indicate that the gut microbiome of downstream organisms differed from the bacterial composition observed in the same invertebrate taxa upstream of the WWTPs, potentially leading to altered host health. This adds to our understanding of how chemical stressors impact the gut microbiome of aquatic and riparian biota; however, future studies are needed to investigate linkages between the gut microbiome and health of these species. / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc)

High costs for aeration, greenhouse-gas emissions and excess sludge disposal have entailed a paradigm shift in the wastewater treatment. Microalgal-bacterial-based wastewater treatments have gained increasing attention because of their potential in energy demand reduction and biomass resource recovery. In particular, photosynthetic oxygenation is combined with bacterial activity to treat wastewater avoiding external artificial aeration. To optimize the technology in order to become more competitive than activated sludge, an in-depth investigation about the treatment performance and the microbiology interactions under real operational condition is needed. This work focused on the study of wastewater-borne microalgal-bacterial consortia treating real municipal wastewater. The main objectives were to: (i) Understand the removal mechanisms and the influence of operational conditions to optimize the process; (ii) Analyze the microbial community. At first, a photo-sequencing batch reactor (PSBR), called Pilot, was started up and continuously monitored for two years to analyze the evolution of the treatment performance and of the biomass composition. At the same time, other two lab-scale PSBRs were installed to evaluate if microalgal inoculation is essential to start up a consortium. Samples of these consortia were collected over a period of one year and analyzed through microscopic observations, flow cytometry and metagenomics, to investigate the microbial structure and diversity.A second part of the research focused on the optimization of the Pilot to explore its limit in view of the scale-up of the system. In addition, respirometry was adapted to test microalgal-bacterial consortia to estimate the removal kinetic parameters for future modelling. To conclude, the research project addressed many aspects and lay the foundation to apply a methodological research approach to scale-up this promising technology.

Phosphorus (P) is one of the fundamental chemical elements and one of the building blocks of life. In nature, there are two major P flows. One P flow is natural, where P over thousands and millions of years gets mobilised from P rock and circulates, “changing hands” many times before it gets deposited and biologically unavailable. The second is the anthropogenic flow, three times larger than the natural P cycle. To feed the anthropogenic flow, P is mined from the P rock and processed towards the final product - phosphoric acid. From here, P is used in chemical industry, food and beverage industry, pharmacy, but mostly in agriculture as a fertiliser. Because fertilisers are applied on farmlands on a yearly basis, the turnover of P in agriculture, the largest consumer of the man-made P circle, occurs only once, therefore, it can be considered a primarily linear flow. From the man-made P flow, P leaches into the natural cycle. The consequence of this can be seen in the environment through eutrophication, and the formation of dead zones in lakes and the ocean, causing environmental damage. The importance of P and the danger it poses for the environment were recognised in EU regulations as well as in member states laws. Today, P is classified as a critical raw material at the EU level, and legal incentives are in place on both levels to reduce P emissions into the environment and to begin recovering P from human-made waste streams. There are several possible sources of P in human waste streams, including agricultural runoff, animal manures, food and food processing waste, wastewater and wastewater sludge, sewage sludge ash, but also already existing, immobilised, and unavailable P in the soil. This research focuses on wastewater and wastewater sludge for P recovery. It is estimated that if all the P in wastewater were recovered, this would cover 20% of the world's annual fertiliser needs. In wastewater treatment plants (WWTP), P recovery is usually done using chemically based P recovery technologies. The application of biologically based technologies from the wastewater focuses solely on P removal. Biological P recovery technologies are currently demonstrated only on a laboratory-scale. Here, a research gap was recognised. Based on available laboratory-scale work regarding P recovery using brewer's yeast, a new pilot-scale process was proposed for biological P recovery (BioP-Rec module) from WWTP process streams. A BioP-Rec module was installed in the full-scale WWTP, where successful biological P recovery was demonstrated with three different process stages. In stage 1, in anaerobic conditions, a free P-rich substrate was created using return sludge. In stage 2, starved brewer's yeast was used to recover the P by its accumulation in the cells. In stage 3, yeast was filtered to produce yeast sludge as a fertiliser. While working with the BioP-Rec module, an effort was made to work within or above the free P concentration of 0.05 kg/m3, which is considered economically feasible for P recovery. In addition, an effort was made for the BioP-Rec module to be compliant with the German Sewage Sludge Ordinance (GSSO) P content in dry matter (DM) threshold of 20 gP/kgDM in biosolids. From 2029, the GSSO will demand that WWTP with P content in DM above previously stated, in Germany, will need to mandatory recover the P in their process. If the BioP-Rec module as a technology can already demonstrate that it can fulfil defined thresholds, this would be a strong argument for its future development. In addition, economics of the current pilot-scale BioP-Rec process is explored, and further ideas were given towards its upgrade and possible further adoption. This work can be used as a stepping stone in the further development of environmentally friendly, biologically based P recovery processes towards further scale-up.:Content Summary 8 Zusammenfassung 10 1 Introduction 13 1.1 Phosphorus (P) 13 1.2 Wastewater P sources, P removal and recovery 16 1.2.1 Wastewater P sources 16 1.2.2 Wastewater P removal and recovery 19 1.2.2.1 Biological P removal 20 1.2.2.2 Chemical P removal 23 1.2.2.3 Biological P recovery 25 1.2.2.4 Biological P recovery with yeast 26 1.2.2.5 Chemical P recovery 31 1.3 Economically feasible P recovery 33 1.4 Legal framework for P recovery 34 1.5 Aim of this study 37 2 Publications 41 2.1 List of publications 41 2.2 Published articles 43 2.2.1 New developments in biological phosphorus accessibility and recovery approaches from soil and waste streams 45 2.2.2 A framework for P-cycle assessment in wastewater treatment plants 57 2.2.3 Biological recovery of phosphorus (BioP-Rec) from wastewater streams using brewer's yeast on pilot-scale 71 3 Discussion 91 3.1 WWTP P balance for P recovery 91 3.2 WWTP design impacting free P availability 93 3.3 Free P hot spots for biological P recovery 95 3.4 BioP-Rec module P recovery 97 3.4.1 BioP-Rec module version 1 97 3.4.2 BioP-Rec module development concept 98 3.4.3 BioP-Rec module work concept 100 3.4.3.1 Stage 1 101 3.4.3.2 Stage 2 104 3.4.3.3 Stage 3 108 3.4.4 P enriched yeast as a fertiliser 108 3.5 Process economics 110 3.6 Steps to consider towards optimisation of the process economics 112 3.6.1 Process parameter optimisation 114 3.6.1.1 Different acid for higher free P release in stage 1 114 3.6.1.2 Different flocculant 115 3.6.1.3 Sucrose to yeast ration for stage 2a (starvation) and stage 2b (free P uptake) 115 3.6.1.4 Reuse some of the BioP-Rec module waste streams 117 3.6.1.5 Process aeration optimisation 117 3.6.2 Technology optimisation 117 3.6.3 Possible positive effects of the optimisation steps 118 3.6.4 Secondary value adding effects that can offset development costs 119 3.6.5 Directions for future BioP-Rec development 120 3.7 Future prospects and conclusion 123 3.7.1 Future prospects of the BioP-Rec module application 123 3.7.2 Further yeasts P uptake research 123 4 References 125 Declaration of authorship and independent work 147 Curriculum vitae 151 List of publications and conference contributions 153 5 Appendix 5-1 5.1 Supplementary information on Publication 2 5-3 5.2 Supplementary information on Publication 3 5-23 5.3. Unpublished data connected to Publication 3: Original brewer's yeast phosphorus uptake without and with sucrose as a carbon source 5-45 6 Acknowledgements 6-54 / Phosphor (P) ist eines der grundlegenden chemischen Elemente und einer der Bausteine des Lebens. In der Natur gibt es zwei große P-Ströme. Ein P-Strom ist natürlich, wenn P über Tausende und Millionen von Jahren aus P-Gestein mobilisiert und zirkuliert, dabei „durch mehrere Hände wandert“, bevor es abgelagert und biologisch unverfügbar wird. Der zweite ist der anthropogene Strom, der dreimal größer ist als der natürliche P-Kreislauf. Um den anthropogenen Strom zu speisen, wird P aus dem P-Gestein abgebaut und zum Endprodukt - Phosphorsäure - verarbeitet. Dieser P wird in der chemischen, in der Lebensmittel- und Getränkeindustrie, in der Medizin, aber hauptsächlich in der Landwirtschaft als Düngemittel verwendet. Da Düngemittel jährlich auf landwirtschaftlichen Flächen ausgebracht wird, findet der Umsatz von P in der Landwirtschaft, nur einmal statt und kann daher als überwiegend linearer Fluss betrachtet werden. Aus dem anthropogenen P-Fluss gelangt P in den natürlichen Kreislauf. Die Folgen davon sind in der Umwelt durch Eutrophierung und die Bildung von Todeszonen in Seen und im Ozean zu sehen, was Umweltschäden zur Folge hat. Die Bedeutung von P und die Gefahr, die es für die Umwelt darstellt, wurden in EU-Verordnungen sowie in den Gesetzen der Mitgliedstaaten anerkannt. Heute ist P auf EU-Ebene als kritischer Rohstoff eingestuft und es bestehen rechtliche Anreize auf beiden Ebenen, um die P-Emissionen in die Umwelt zu reduzieren und die Rückgewinnung von P aus anthropogenen Abfallströmen zu beginnen. Es gibt mehrere mögliche Quellen von P in anthropogenen Abfallströmen, einschließlich landwirtschaftlicher Abflüsse, tierischer Exkremente, Lebensmittel- und Lebensmittelverarbeitungsabfälle, Abwasser und Klärschlamm, Klärschlammasche, aber auch bereits vorhandenes, immobilisiertes und nicht verfügbares P im Boden. Diese Forschung konzentriert sich auf die P-Rückgewinnung aus Abwasser und Abwasserschlamm. Schätzungen ergaben, dass eine erfolgreiche P-Rückgewinnung aus dem Abwasser 20% des jährlichen weltweiten Düngerbedarfs decken würde. In Kläranlagen (KA) erfolgt die P-Rückgewinnung in der Regel mit chemischen P-Rückgewinnungstechnologien. Der Einsatz von biologischen Technologien konzentriert sich ausschließlich auf die P-Entfernung aus dem Abwasser und nicht auf die P-Rückgewinnung. Biologische P-Rückgewinnungstechnologien werden derzeit nur im Labormaßstab demonstriert. Hier wurde eine Forschungslücke erkannt. Basierend auf den verfügbaren Laborarbeiten zur P-Rückgewinnung mit Brauereihefe wurde ein neuer Pilotmaßstab-Prozess für die biologische P-Rückgewinnung (BioP-Rec-Modul) aus KA-Prozessströmen vorgeschlagen. Ein BioP-Rec-Modul wurde auf einer kommunalen KA installiert, wo die erfolgreiche biologische P-Rückgewinnung mit drei verschiedenen Prozessstufen demonstriert wurde. In der Stufe 1 wurde unter anaeroben Bedingungen ein freies P-reiches Substrat mit Rücklaufschlamm erzeugt. In Stufe 2 wurden ausgehungerter Brauereihefen eingesetzt, um das P durch Akkumulation in den Zellen zurückzugewinnen. In Stufe 3 wurde die Hefe filtriert, um Hefeschlamm als Dünger zu produzieren. Bei der Arbeit mit dem BioP-Rec-Modul wurde versucht, innerhalb oder oberhalb der freien P-Konzentration von 0,05 kg/m3 zu arbeiten, die als wirtschaftlich rentabel für die P-Rückgewinnung betrachtet wird. Außerdem wurde darauf geachtet, dass das BioP-Rec-Modul den Grenzwert, festgelegt in der deutschen Klärschlammverordnung (AbfKlärV), für den P-Gehalt in der Trockensubstanz (DM) von 20 gP/kgDM in Klärschlämmen einhält. Ab 2029 wird die AbfKlärV in Deutschland fordern, dass Kläranlagen mit einem P-Gehalt in DM, der über den zuvor genannten Werten liegt, zwingend den P in ihrem Prozess zurückgewinnen müssen. Wenn das BioP-Rec-Modul als Technologie bereits demonstrieren kann, dass es die definierten Grenzwerte erfüllen kann, wäre das ein starkes Argument für seine zukünftige Entwicklung. Darüber hinaus wird die Wirtschaftlichkeit des derzeitigen BioP-Rec-Verfahrens im Pilotmaßstab untersucht, und es werden weitere Ideen zu seiner Verbesserung und möglichen weiteren Einführung vorgestellt. Diese Arbeit kann als Sprungbrett für die weitere Entwicklung von umweltfreundlichen, biologisch basierten P-Rückgewinnungsprozessen in größerem Maßstab genutzt werden.:Content Summary 8 Zusammenfassung 10 1 Introduction 13 1.1 Phosphorus (P) 13 1.2 Wastewater P sources, P removal and recovery 16 1.2.1 Wastewater P sources 16 1.2.2 Wastewater P removal and recovery 19 1.2.2.1 Biological P removal 20 1.2.2.2 Chemical P removal 23 1.2.2.3 Biological P recovery 25 1.2.2.4 Biological P recovery with yeast 26 1.2.2.5 Chemical P recovery 31 1.3 Economically feasible P recovery 33 1.4 Legal framework for P recovery 34 1.5 Aim of this study 37 2 Publications 41 2.1 List of publications 41 2.2 Published articles 43 2.2.1 New developments in biological phosphorus accessibility and recovery approaches from soil and waste streams 45 2.2.2 A framework for P-cycle assessment in wastewater treatment plants 57 2.2.3 Biological recovery of phosphorus (BioP-Rec) from wastewater streams using brewer's yeast on pilot-scale 71 3 Discussion 91 3.1 WWTP P balance for P recovery 91 3.2 WWTP design impacting free P availability 93 3.3 Free P hot spots for biological P recovery 95 3.4 BioP-Rec module P recovery 97 3.4.1 BioP-Rec module version 1 97 3.4.2 BioP-Rec module development concept 98 3.4.3 BioP-Rec module work concept 100 3.4.3.1 Stage 1 101 3.4.3.2 Stage 2 104 3.4.3.3 Stage 3 108 3.4.4 P enriched yeast as a fertiliser 108 3.5 Process economics 110 3.6 Steps to consider towards optimisation of the process economics 112 3.6.1 Process parameter optimisation 114 3.6.1.1 Different acid for higher free P release in stage 1 114 3.6.1.2 Different flocculant 115 3.6.1.3 Sucrose to yeast ration for stage 2a (starvation) and stage 2b (free P uptake) 115 3.6.1.4 Reuse some of the BioP-Rec module waste streams 117 3.6.1.5 Process aeration optimisation 117 3.6.2 Technology optimisation 117 3.6.3 Possible positive effects of the optimisation steps 118 3.6.4 Secondary value adding effects that can offset development costs 119 3.6.5 Directions for future BioP-Rec development 120 3.7 Future prospects and conclusion 123 3.7.1 Future prospects of the BioP-Rec module application 123 3.7.2 Further yeasts P uptake research 123 4 References 125 Declaration of authorship and independent work 147 Curriculum vitae 151 List of publications and conference contributions 153 5 Appendix 5-1 5.1 Supplementary information on Publication 2 5-3 5.2 Supplementary information on Publication 3 5-23 5.3. Unpublished data connected to Publication 3: Original brewer's yeast phosphorus uptake without and with sucrose as a carbon source 5-45 6 Acknowledgements 6-54