Nitrate removal and greenhouse gas production of woodchip denitrification walls under a humid subtropical climate

Manca, Fabio; Rosa, Daniele De; Reading, Lucy; Rowlings, David; Scheer, Clemens; Layden, Ian; Irvine-Brown, Stuart; Schipper, Louis A.; Grace, Peter R.

doi:10.1016/j.ecoleng.2020.105988

Cited by 13 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 59 publications

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“…Total ammonia nitrogen production, and specifically DNRA, has been shown to be influenced by pH, substrate availability, nitrate scarcity, and anaerobic conditions (Mohan and Cole, 2007). In bioreactors, DNRA is most likely to occur when there are low levels of NO 3 –N and high levels of available carbon (Kiani et al., 2020; Aalto et al., 2020; Grießmeier et al., 2017; Manca et al., 2020).…”

Section: Role Of the Microbial Community On Woodchip Bioreactor Perfo...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Insignificant differences in N 2 O emissions from tile drainage and denitrification walls have been observed; treatment of tile drainage through a woodchip bioreactor also corresponds to reduced NO 3 –N loading downstream and subsequent N 2 O emissions from downstream denitrification (Moorman et al., 2010). In addition, research has shown that the N 2 O emissions can peak toward the beginning of bioreactors and be reduced to similar levels as in the incoming tile drainage at the outlet of the bioreactor as the denitrification process continues across the bioreactor length (Fenton et al., 2016; Manca et al., 2020). Therefore, N 2 O emissions from denitrifying bioreactors have been identified to be minimal in the overall nitrogen budget and when compared with row crop production (Table 2).…”

Section: Role Of the Microbial Community On Woodchip Bioreactor Perfo...mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Denitrifying bioreactor microbiome: Understanding pollution swapping and potential for improved performance

et al. 2021

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Denitrifying woodchip bioreactors are a best management practice to reduce nitrate–nitrogen (NO3–N) loading to surface waters from agricultural subsurface drainage. Their effectiveness has been proven in many studies, although variable results with respect to performance indicators have been observed. This paper serves the purpose of synthesizing the current state of the science in terms of the microbial community, its impact on the consistency of bioreactor performance, and its role in the production of potential harmful by‐products including greenhouse gases, sulfate reduction, and methylmercury. Microbial processes other than denitrification have been observed in these bioreactor systems, including dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonia (DNRA) and anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox). Specific gene targets for denitrification, DNRA, anammox, and the production of harmful by‐products are identified from bioreactor studies and other environmentally relevant systems for application in bioreactor studies. Lastly, cellulose depletion has been observed over time via increasing ligno‐cellulose indices, therefore, the microbial metabolism of cellulose is an important function for bioreactor performance and management. Future work should draw from the knowledge of soil and wetland ecology to inform the study of bioreactor microbiomes.

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Section: Role Of the Microbial Community On Woodchip Bioreactor Perfo...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Role Of the Microbial Community On Woodchip Bioreactor Perfo...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Denitrifying bioreactor microbiome: Understanding pollution swapping and potential for improved performance

et al. 2021

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“…Many treatment designs use denitrification, conversion of dissolved nitrate to dinitrogen gas via microbial activity, to accomplish reductions. Designs include constructed/treatment wetlands (Bachand and Horne, 2000;Crumpton, 2001), denitrification walls (Manca et al, 2020), and woodchip denitrification beds (Schipper et al, 2010;Addy et al, 2016;Christianson et al, 2021).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Carbon supplementation and bioaugmentation to improve denitrifying woodchip bioreactor performance under cold conditions

Feyereisen

Wang

et al. 2022

Preprint

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Cold temperatures limit nitrate-N load reductions of woodchip bioreactors in higher-latitude climates. This two-year, on-farm (Willmar, Minnesota, USA) study was conducted to determine whether field-scale nitrate-N removal of woodchip bioreactors can be improved by the addition of cold-adapted, locally isolated bacterial denitrifying strains (bioaugmentation) or dosing with a carbon (C) source (biostimulation). In Spring 2017, biostimulation removed 66% of the nitrate-N load, compared to 21% and 18% for bioaugmentation and control, respectively. The biostimulation nitrate-N removal rate (NRR) was also significantly greater, 15.0 g N m-1 d-1, versus 5.8 and 4.4 g N m-1 d-1, for bioaugmentation and control, respectively. Bioclogging of the biostimulation beds limited dosing for the remainder of the experiment; NRR was greater for biostimulation in Fall 2017, but in Spring 2018 there were no differences among treatments. Carbon dosing did not increase outflow dissolved organic C concentration. The abundance of one of the inoculated strains, Cellulomonas sp. strain WB94, increased over time, while another, Microvirgula aerodenitrificans strain BE2.4, increased briefly, returning to background levels after 42 days. Eleven days after inoculation in Spring 2017, outflow nitrate-N concentrations of bioaugmentation were sporadically reduced compared to the control for two weeks but were insignificant over the study period. The study suggests that biostimulation and bioaugmentation are promising technologies to enhance nitrate removal during cold conditions. A means of controlling bioclogging is needed for biostimulation, and improved means of inoculation and maintaining abundance of introduced strains is needed for bioaugmentation. In conclusion, biostimulation showed greater potential than bioaugmentation for increasing nitrate removal in a woodchip bioreactor, whereas both methods need improvement before implementation at the field scale.

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“…A NO 3 − plume in shallow groundwater from a cattle feedlot has also been successfully treated in Western Australia [33] under a Mediterranean climate. In 2017, two denitrification walls filled with contrasting woodchip (softwood vs hardwood) were installed on a pineapple farm in southeast Queensland, an area subject to a humid subtropical climate, and proved effective at removing NO 3 − [34]. In 2017, the Queensland Reef Water Quality Program funded the first trials of bioreactors in the GBR catchments to investigate the effectiveness of bioreactors in reducing NO 3…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nitrate Removal Performance of Denitrifying Woodchip Bioreactors in Tropical Climates

Manca

Wegscheidl²,

Robinson³

et al. 2021

Water

Self Cite

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In Australia, declining water quality in the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) is a threat to its marine ecosystems and nitrate (NO3−) from sugar cane-dominated agricultural areas in the coastal catchments of North Queensland is a key pollutant of concern. Woodchip bioreactors have been identified as a potential low-cost remediation technology to reduce the NO3− runoff from sugar cane farms. This study aimed to trial different designs of bioreactors (denitrification walls and beds) to quantify their NO3− removal performance in the distinct tropical climates and hydrological regimes that characterize sugarcane farms in North Queensland. One denitrification wall and two denitrification beds were installed to treat groundwater and subsurface tile-drainage water in wet tropics catchments, where sugar cane farming relies only on rainfall for crop growth. Two denitrification beds were installed in the dry tropics to assess their performance in treating irrigation tailwater from sugarcane. All trialled bioreactors were effective at removing NO3−, with the beds exhibiting a higher NO3− removal rate (NRR, from 2.5 to 7.1 g N m−3 d−1) compared to the wall (0.15 g N m−3 d−1). The NRR depended on the influent NO3− concentration, as low influent concentrations triggered NO3− limitation. The highest NRR was observed in a bed installed in the dry tropics, with relatively high and consistent NO3− influent concentrations due to the use of groundwater, with elevated NO3−, for irrigation. This study demonstrates that bioreactors can be a useful edge-of-field technology for reducing NO3− in runoff to the GBR, when sited and designed to maximise NO3− removal performance.

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Nitrate removal and greenhouse gas production of woodchip denitrification walls under a humid subtropical climate

Cited by 13 publications

References 59 publications

Denitrifying bioreactor microbiome: Understanding pollution swapping and potential for improved performance

Denitrifying bioreactor microbiome: Understanding pollution swapping and potential for improved performance

Carbon supplementation and bioaugmentation to improve denitrifying woodchip bioreactor performance under cold conditions

Nitrate Removal Performance of Denitrifying Woodchip Bioreactors in Tropical Climates

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