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This study evaluated the kinetics of acrylamide (AM) biodegradation by mixed culture bacteria and Enterobacter aerogenes (E. aerogenes) in sequencing batch reactor (SBR) systems with AQUASIM and linear regression. The zero-order, first-order, and Monod kinetic models were used to evaluate the kinetic parameters of both autotrophic and heterotrophic nitrifications and both AM and chemical oxygen demand (COD) removals at different AM concentrations of 100, 200, 300, and 400 mg AM/L. The results revealed that both autotrophic and heterotrophic nitrifications and both AM and COD removals followed the Monod kinetics. High AM loadings resulted in the transformation of Monod kinetics to the first-order reaction for AM and COD removals as the results of the compositions of mixed substrates and the inhibition of the free ammonia nitrogen (FAN). The kinetic parameters indicated that E. aerogenes degraded AM and COD at higher rates than mixed culture bacteria. The FAN from the AM biodegradation increased both heterotrophic and autotrophic nitrification rates at the AM concentrations of 100-300 mg AM/L. At higher AM concentrations, the FAN accumulated in the SBR system inhibited the autotrophic nitrification of mixed culture bacteria. The accumulation of intracellular polyphosphate caused the heterotrophic nitrification of E. aerogenes to follow the first-order approximation.

Wastewater generated by the industry manufacturing detergents and various kinds of consumer products normally contains very high contents of mixed surfactants, organic matters expressed as chemical oxygen demand (COD), and phosphates that must be treated prior to discharge to the aquatic environment. In this study, jar-test experiments were conducted to evaluate the waste activated sludge (WAS) as a coagulation aid in the coagulation-flocculation process with ferric chloride or aluminum sulfate as a coagulant for the treatment of wastewater collected from the aforementioned industry. The WAS was selected because of its adsorption capability of anionic surfactants and its availability from the wastage stream of biological wastewater treatment process. The effective dosages of both coagulants with and without the WAS additions were determined in this study. Without the WAS addition, the concentrations of 800 mg/L aluminum sulfate at the optimum pH value of 8 and 2208 mg/L ferric chloride at the optimum pH value of 12 were the optimum chemical dosages. It appears that aluminum sulfate was more effective than ferric chloride based on the chemical dosage and removal efficiency. The turbidity, suspended particles, anionic surfactants, COD, and phosphates removal efficiencies of aluminum sulfate and ferric chloride under the optimum dosage were 95.6, 88.2, 78.4, 73.5, 47.3% and 98.8, 92.0, 72.7, 67.5, 53.1%, respectively. The addition of 200 mg/L WAS was sufficient to reduce the optimum dosages of both chemicals by 200 mg/L. The cationic surfactant existing in the wastewater worked as a flocculating agent leading to the flocculation of waste activated sludge resulting in the enmeshment of the suspended particles and colloids on which the COD, anionic surfactants, and phosphates were adsorbed. However, the substances removal efficiencies of ferric chloride and aluminum sulfate were slightly enhanced and reduced, respectively. It is possibly explained that the settling time is insufficient to settle the aluminum hydroxide floc when it is compared to the ferric hydroxide floc because the iron floc is normally heavier than the alum floc.

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