The use of Archaea in the bioaugmentation of activated sludge as a method for the biological removal of nitrogen compounds

Abstract

The use of Archaea in the bioaugmentation of activated sludge as a method for the biological removal of nitrogen compounds Wykorzystanie archaea w bioaugmentacji osadu czynnego jako metody biologicznego usuwania związków azotu Abstract This paper examines the effect of Archaea on wastewater treatment in sequencing biological reactors (SBR).The research was carried out in two SBR reactors: a reactor with activated sludge bioaugmented with Archaea (microorganisms which constitute a third domain besides Bacteria and Eukaryotes); a reactor with conventional activated sludge was used as a control. Archaea were incubated in laboratory conditions as recommended by Archaea Solutions Inc. The research revealed that the time period required for the acclimation of the activated sludge in the presence of Archaea was twice as long as in the case of regular nitrifying activated sludge. The observed nitrogen and phosphorous removal from wastewater was achieved to a higher extent in sludge with Archaea and the sludge itself settled faster. The required concentration of oxygen in the reactor with Archaea was lower than in the classic set-up -this resulted in lowering the operating costs of the treatment plant. Furthermore, the denitrification process was significantly shorter and did not require nitrate nitrogen (V).

The Influence of COD Fraction Forms and Molecules Size on Hydrolysis Process Developed by Comparative OUR Studies in Activated Sludge Modelling

“…Additionally, other studies regarding the development of wastewater treatment technologies and the optimization of the processes have been carried out and implemented. They have concerned issues related to the development of technologies that use activated sludge in various forms [7][8][9][10][11]; the bioaugmentation of reactors [12,13], biofilm, and hybrid techniques [14,15]; and the preliminary preparation and pre-treatment of sewage sludge and back-side waters [16,17]. New research has also covered alternative technologies, e.g., sorption which may be used for the removal of a big amount of organic and inorganic pollutants and which can be used in conjunction with several techniques (such as flocculation-coagulation) [18][19][20].…”