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Huang Q, Liu Y, Ranjan Dhar B. Boosting resilience of microbial electrolysis cell-assisted anaerobic digestion of blackwater with granular activated carbon amendment. BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY 2023; 381:129136. [PMID: 37169203 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2023.129136] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2023] [Revised: 05/01/2023] [Accepted: 05/04/2023] [Indexed: 05/13/2023]
Abstract
Poor hydrolysis and methanogenesis efficiencies remain the main challenges for blackwater anaerobic digestion. This study investigated the performance of a granular activated carbon (GAC) amended microbial electrolysis cell-assisted anaerobic digester (MEC-AD) treating blackwater. Due to hydrolysis limitation, both MEC-AD and control reactors experienced performance declines as the organic loading rate increased from 3.0 to 4.5 g COD/L-d. Then, adding GAC without mixing formed GAC-sludge aggregates that improved methane yield to 38.3% and 32.3% in the MEC-AD and control reactor, respectively, and enhanced hydrolysis efficiency. The amended MEC-AD also successfully overcame the performance deterioration due to a temperature drop. Biomarker identification revealed the crucial roles of GAC biofilms and settled sludge in promoting methanogenesis and hydrolysis, respectively. This study demonstrated the GAC addition and the electrochemical environment could have a reciprocal influence, leading to more robust syntrophic microbial interactions, which could guide the future application of conductive materials in MEC-AD systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qi Huang
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Alberta, 9211-116 Street NW, Edmonton, AB, T6G 1H9, Canada
| | - Yang Liu
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Alberta, 9211-116 Street NW, Edmonton, AB, T6G 1H9, Canada.
| | - Bipro Ranjan Dhar
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Alberta, 9211-116 Street NW, Edmonton, AB, T6G 1H9, Canada
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Zhuo Y, Yang P, Zhou M, Zhu J, Wen T, Peng D, Han Y. Performance and methane potential of up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket treating thermal hydrolyzed sludge dewatering liquor. WASTE MANAGEMENT (NEW YORK, N.Y.) 2022; 154:209-216. [PMID: 36257180 DOI: 10.1016/j.wasman.2022.10.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2022] [Revised: 10/02/2022] [Accepted: 10/04/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Thermal hydrolysis pretreatment could release organic sufficiently from solid into liquid phase to accelerate the high solid sludge anaerobic digestion. Thus, up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) could be a promising energy recovery process to treat thermal hydrolyzed sludge dewatering liquor with significantly augmented the organic loading rate (OLR). In this study, its performance was investigated using a lab-scale UASB to treat sludge dewatering liquor after 165 °C, 30 min thermal hydrolysis pretreatment. The results show that 85.57% of the organic in thermal hydrolyzed sludge dewatering liquor could be converted to methane. The UASB adapts to high OLR stably, and the COD removal efficiency was 71.98 ± 1.95% at OLR of 18.35 ± 0.78 kgCOD·(m3·d)-1, and the gap between the maximum potential and experimental methane production yields could be observed during different OLRs. It could be explained as the methanogenesis rate decreased due to the shift of dominant pathway from acetoclastic methanogenesis to syntrophic acetate oxidation following hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis. Methanospirillum became the dominant methanogen with the increase of OLR. In addition, the methane production yield and rate would be hindered till the ammonia nitrogen concentration exceeds 4 g·L-1. Direct interspecies electron transfer could be promising methods to improve UASB performance treating thermal hydrolyzed dewatering liquor.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yang Zhuo
- School of Municipal and Environmental Engineering, Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology, Xi'an 710055, China
| | - Peizhen Yang
- School of Municipal and Environmental Engineering, Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology, Xi'an 710055, China
| | - Mengyu Zhou
- School of Municipal and Environmental Engineering, Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology, Xi'an 710055, China
| | - Junzhao Zhu
- School of Municipal and Environmental Engineering, Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology, Xi'an 710055, China
| | - Tianxiang Wen
- School of Municipal and Environmental Engineering, Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology, Xi'an 710055, China
| | - Dangcong Peng
- School of Municipal and Environmental Engineering, Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology, Xi'an 710055, China
| | - Yun Han
- School of Municipal and Environmental Engineering, Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology, Xi'an 710055, China
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Xu J, Kumar Khanal S, Kang Y, Zhu J, Huang X, Zong Y, Pang W, Surendra KC, Xie L. Role of interspecies electron transfer stimulation in enhancing anaerobic digestion under ammonia stress: Mechanisms, advances, and perspectives. BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY 2022; 360:127558. [PMID: 35780934 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2022.127558] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2022] [Revised: 06/26/2022] [Accepted: 06/27/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Ammonia stress is a commonly encountered issue in anaerobic digestion (AD) process when treating proteinaceous substrates. The enhanced relationship between syntrophic bacteria and methanogens triggered by interspecies electron transfer (IET) stimulation is one of the potential mechanisms for an improved methane yield from the AD plant under ammonia-stressed condition. There is, however, lack of synthesized information on the mechanistic understanding of IET facilitation in the ammonia-stressed AD processes. This review critically discusses recovery of AD system from ammonia-stressed condition, focusing on H2 transfer, redox compound-mediated IET, and conductive material-induced direct IET. The effects and the associated mechanisms of IET stimulation on mitigating ammonia stress and promoting methanogenesis were elucidated. Finally, prospects and challenges of IET stimulation were critically discussed. This review highlights, for the first time, the critical role of IET stimulation in enhancing AD process under ammonia-stressed condition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jun Xu
- Key Laboratory of Yangtze River Water Environment, Ministry of Education, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, 1239 Siping Road, Shanghai 200092, PR China
| | - Samir Kumar Khanal
- Department of Molecular Biosciences and Bioengineering, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, 1955 East-West Road, Agricultural Science Building 218, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA
| | - Yurui Kang
- Key Laboratory of Yangtze River Water Environment, Ministry of Education, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, 1239 Siping Road, Shanghai 200092, PR China
| | - Jiaxin Zhu
- Key Laboratory of Yangtze River Water Environment, Ministry of Education, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, 1239 Siping Road, Shanghai 200092, PR China
| | - Xia Huang
- Key Laboratory of Yangtze River Water Environment, Ministry of Education, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, 1239 Siping Road, Shanghai 200092, PR China
| | - Yang Zong
- Key Laboratory of Yangtze River Water Environment, Ministry of Education, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, 1239 Siping Road, Shanghai 200092, PR China
| | - Weihai Pang
- Key Laboratory of Yangtze River Water Environment, Ministry of Education, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, 1239 Siping Road, Shanghai 200092, PR China
| | - K C Surendra
- Department of Molecular Biosciences and Bioengineering, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, 1955 East-West Road, Agricultural Science Building 218, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA; Global Institute for Interdisciplinary Studies, 44600 Kathmandu, Nepal
| | - Li Xie
- Key Laboratory of Yangtze River Water Environment, Ministry of Education, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, 1239 Siping Road, Shanghai 200092, PR China; Shanghai Institute of Pollution Control and Ecological Security, 1239 Siping Road, Shanghai 200092, PR China.
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Huang Q, Liu Y, Dhar BR. Pushing the organic loading rate in electrochemically assisted anaerobic digestion of blackwater at ambient temperature: Insights into microbial community dynamics. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2021; 781:146694. [PMID: 33812109 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.146694] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2021] [Revised: 03/17/2021] [Accepted: 03/19/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Decentralized blackwater treatment by anaerobic digestion is being considered as a sustainable sanitation concept. However, the low biodegradability and complex composition restrictedly limited the treatability of blackwater, resulting in requirements of low operational organic loading rates (OLRs). In this study, a microbial electrolysis cell assisted anaerobic digester (MEC-AD) treating vacuum toilet blackwater was successfully operated for 420 days at OLRs ranging from 0.77 to 3.03 g COD/L-d in 6 stages (including an open-circuit Stage 5) at ambient temperature. Based on the steady-state results from different stages, the highest methane yield (42.4% out of 45% biochemical methane potential value) was achieved in Stage 1 with an OLR of 0.77 g COD/L-d. At the same OLR of ~3.0 g COD/L-d, Stage 4 (32.4%) and Stage 6 (35.2%) showed significantly higher methane yield (p < 0.01) than open-circuit Stage 5 (24.1%). The lowest COD removal efficiency of 31.8% was observed in Stage 5 with short-chain volatile fatty acids (SCVFAs) accumulated to ~1000 mg/L, which was more than double the values of Stage 4 and 6. The microbial community analysis revealed that the applied potential did not significantly affect archaeal diversity but largely increased the archaeal abundance on the cathode, and led the bacterial community shift with the enrichment of specific electroactive bacteria. Microbial co-occurrence network analysis further confirmed the positive correlations between known electroactive bacteria and electrotrophic methanogens. Moreover, electric energy consumed by the MEC-AD system was fully recovered as biomethane.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qi Huang
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Alberta, 9211-116 Street NW, Edmonton, AB T6G 1H9, Canada
| | - Yang Liu
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Alberta, 9211-116 Street NW, Edmonton, AB T6G 1H9, Canada.
| | - Bipro Ranjan Dhar
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Alberta, 9211-116 Street NW, Edmonton, AB T6G 1H9, Canada
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Wang W, Lee DJ. Direct interspecies electron transfer mechanism in enhanced methanogenesis: A mini-review. BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY 2021; 330:124980. [PMID: 33743275 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2021.124980] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2021] [Revised: 03/08/2021] [Accepted: 03/09/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
The role of direct interspecies electron transfer (DIET) on enhancement of methanogenesis has been studied. This mini-review updated the current researches on the potential role of DIET on enhanced performance for anaerobic digestion of organic substrates with effective strategies implemented. Since most experimental observations correlated with the DIET mechanism are yet to be consolidated, this article categorized and discussed the current experimental observations supporting DIET mechanism for methanogenesis, mainly based on those with supplement of carbon materials, from which the prospects and challenges for further studies to confirm the role of DIET in anaerobic digestion processes were highlighted.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei Wang
- Department of Chemical Engineering, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Duu-Jong Lee
- Department of Chemical Engineering, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan; Department of Mechanical Engineering, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong.
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Coupling Microbial Electrolysis Cell and Activated Carbon Biofilter for Source-Separated Greywater Treatment. Processes (Basel) 2021. [DOI: 10.3390/pr9020281] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Reclamation and reuse of wastewater are increasingly viewed as a pragmatic tool for water conservation. Greywater, which includes water from baths, washing machines, dishwashers, and kitchen sinks, is a dilute wastewater stream, making it an attractive stream for extraction of non-potable water. However, most previous studies primarily focused on passively aerated biological and physicochemical treatment processes for greywater treatment. Here, we investigated an integrated process of a microbial electrochemical cell (MEC) followed by granular activated carbon (GAC) biofilter for greywater treatment. The integrated system could achieve 99.3% removal of total chemical oxygen demand (TCOD) and 98.7% removal of the anionic surfactants (linear alkylbenzene sulphonates) from synthetic greywater at a total hydraulic residence time (HRT) of 25 h (1 day for MEC and 1 h for GAC biofilter). For one-day HRT, the maximum peak volumetric current density from MEC was 0.65 A/m3, which was comparable to that achieved at four-day HRT (0.66 A/m3). The adsorption by GAC was identified as a key mechanism for the removal of organics and surfactants. In addition, recirculation of liquid within the GAC biofilter was identified as a critical factor in achieving high-rate treatment. Although results indicated that GAC biofilter could be a standalone process for greywater, MEC can provide an opportunity for potential energy recovery from greywater. However, further studies should focus on developing high-rate MECs with higher energy recovery potential for practical operation.
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