Engineering application of membrane bioreactor for wastewater treatment in China: Current state and future prospect

Abstract

China has been the forerunner of large-scale membrane bioreactor (MBR) application. Since the first large-scale MBR (≥10 000 m 3 $d -1 ) was put into operation in 2006, the engineering implementation of MBR in China has attained tremendous development. This paper outlines the commercial application of MBR since 2006 and provides a variety of engineering statistical data, covering the fields of municipal wastewater, industrial wastewater, and polluted surface water treatment. The total treatment capacity of MBRs reached 1 Â 10 6 m 3 $d -1 in 2010, and has currently exceeded 4.5 Â 10 6 m 3 $d -1 with~75% of which pertaining to municipal wastewater treatment. The anaerobic/anoxic/aerobic-MBR and its derivative processes have been the most popular in the large-scale municipal application, with the process features and typical ranges of parameters also presented in this paper. For the treatment of various types of industrial wastewater, the configurations of the MBR-based processes are delineated with representative engineering cases. In view of the significance of the cost issue, statistics of capital and operating costs are also provided, including cost structure and energy composition. With continuous stimulation from the environmental stress, political propulsion, and market demand in China, the total treatment capacity is expected to reach 7.5 Â 10 6 m 3 $d -1 by 2015 and a further expansion of the market is foreseeable in the next five years. However, MBR application is facing several challenges, such as the relatively high energy consumption. Judging MBR features and seeking suitable application areas should be of importance for the long-term development of this technology.

In-situ combined dual-layer CNT/PVDF membrane for electrically-enhanced fouling resistance

“…To simulate practical feed solutions (e.g., supernatant in an MBR [39]), three types of model foulants and several inorganic matter were selected to prepare a synthetic foulant solution (Table 1) on the basis of an extensive investigation [40,41].…”

Effects of naturally occurring grit on the reactor performance and microbial community structure of membrane bioreactors

“…A membrane bioreactor (MBR) is one of the most promising processes used for the efficient treatment of wastewater [9][10][11][12] and recovery of energy or resources [13,14]. To mitigate membrane fouling, particulate compounds such as colloidal particles [15][16][17] and activated carbon [18] were added into the mixed liquor.…”

Identify driving forces of MBR applications in China

“…Additionally, the development of membrane materials has been outlined in the 12th National Five-Year Plan (2011 to 2015), such as Strategy of Accelerating Cultivation and Development of Emerging Strategic Industries, from both aspects of environmental protection and technological development. These national policies provided enormous opportunity for MBR applications (Huang et al, 2010;Abass et al, 2015;Xiao et al, 2014;Wang et al, 2013). In general, public policy in China increase the demand on MBR application as it often Table 1 Representative MBR applications in hospitals .…”

“…MBR applications in China started as early as 1990 (Zheng et al, 2003;Zheng et al, 2010;Huang et al, 2010;Abass et al, 2015;Xiao et al, 2014). In 1999, the first pilot scale membrane bioreactor (MBR) application in China was tested, which was used to treat industrial wastewater with a scale of only 10 m 3 /d (Zheng et al, 2003).…”