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Kumar R, Dalvi V, Pant KK, Malik A. Microalgal biochar assisted simultaneous removal of particulate matter, formaldehyde, and total volatile organic compounds (TVOC's) from indoor air. CHEMOSPHERE 2024; 355:141866. [PMID: 38565375 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2024.141866] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2023] [Revised: 02/23/2024] [Accepted: 03/29/2024] [Indexed: 04/04/2024]
Abstract
Biochar-based materials for air treatment have gained significant attention for removing health-detrimental volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and particulate matter (PM) in indoor air settings. However, high turnaround time, multiple pretreatment processes involved, and high pore size and low surface area (>10 μm, <100 m2 g-1) of lignocellulosic feedstocks demand alternative biochar feedstock material. Considering this, we designed a simple first-of-its-kind indoor air scrubbing material using diatoms-enriched microalgae biochar. In the present study, the microalgae were cultivated on waste anaerobic digestate (biogas slurry) and were pyrolyzed at three different temperatures: 300 °C (BC300), 500 °C (BC500), and 700 °C (BC700). The BC500 and BC700 showed the highest removal efficiencies (99 %) for total volatile organic carbons (TVOCs) and formaldehyde (HCHO) at concentrations of 1.22 mg m-3 HCHO and 8.57 mg m-3 TVOC compared to 50% efficiency obtained with commercially available surgical, cloth, and N95 masks. The biochar obtained showed a high Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area of 238 m2 g-1 (BC500) and 480 m2 g-1 (BC700) and an average pore size of 9-11 nm due to the mesoporous characteristic of diatom frustules. The comparatively poor performance of BC300 was due to lower surface area (150 m2 g-1) arising from incomplete organic removal, as evidenced by FESEM-EDX and FTIR. The high removal efficiencies in BC500 and BC700 were also attributed to the presence of reactive functional groups such as -OH and R-NH2. Concurrently, the average particulate matter (PM10, PM2.5, and PM1) removal efficiency for BC500 and BC 700 ranged between 66 and 82.69 %. The PM removal performance of BC500 and BC700 was lower (15-20%) than commercially available masks. Overall, the present study highlights the importance of diatoms (reactive Si) present inside the pores of microalgal biochar for enhanced removal of PM, TVOCs, and HCHO at temperatures above 500 °C. This complete approach signifies a step towards establishing a self-sustainable and circular process characterized by minimal waste generation for indoor air treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rahul Kumar
- Applied Microbiology Laboratory, Centre for Rural Development and Technology, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, Hauz Khas, New Delhi, 110016, India.
| | - Vivek Dalvi
- Applied Microbiology Laboratory, Centre for Rural Development and Technology, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, Hauz Khas, New Delhi, 110016, India.
| | - Kamal Kishore Pant
- Catalytic Reaction Engineering Laboratory, Department of Chemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, Hauz Khas, New Delhi, 110016, India; Current Affiliation: Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Roorkee, Roorkee, Uttarakhand 247667, India.
| | - Anushree Malik
- Applied Microbiology Laboratory, Centre for Rural Development and Technology, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, Hauz Khas, New Delhi, 110016, India; Present Affiliation: Fulbright-Kalam (Climate) Academic & Professional Excellence Scholar, Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Princeton University, NJ, USA.
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Bhatt A, Sahu N, Dada AC, Kumar Prajapati S, Arora P. Assessing sustainability of microalgae-based wastewater treatment: Environmental considerations and impacts on human health. JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT 2024; 354:120435. [PMID: 38402790 DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.120435] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/28/2023] [Revised: 02/11/2024] [Accepted: 02/19/2024] [Indexed: 02/27/2024]
Abstract
An integrated life cycle assessment (LCA) and quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA) were conducted to assess microalgae-mediated wastewater disinfection (M-WWD). M-WWD was achieved by replacing ultraviolet disinfection with a microalgal open raceway pond in an existing sewage treatment plant (STP) in India. Regarding impacts on human health, both M-WWD and STP yielded comparable life cycle impacts, around 0.01 disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) per person per year. However, QMRA impacts for M-WWD (0.053 DALYs per person per year) were slightly lower than that for STP while considering exposure to E. coli O157:H7 and adenovirus. Additionally, a comparative LCA resolved the dilemma about the appropriate utilization of microalgal biomass. Among biodiesel, biocrude, and biogas production, the lowest impacts of 0.015 DALYs per person per year were obtained for biocrude for 1 m3 water treated by M-WWD. Electricity consumption in microalgae cultivation was a major environmental hotspot. Overall, M-WWD, followed by production of microalgal biocrude, emerged as a sustainable alternative from environmental and public health perspectives. These findings set the foundation for pilot-scale M-WWD system development, testing, and economic evaluation. Such comprehensive investigations, encompassing LCA, QMRA, and resource recovery scenarios, offer crucial insights for stakeholders and decision-makers in wastewater treatment and environmental management.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ankita Bhatt
- Department of Hydro and Renewable Energy, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, Roorkee, Uttarakhand, India
| | - Nitin Sahu
- Department of Hydro and Renewable Energy, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, Roorkee, Uttarakhand, India
| | | | - Sanjeev Kumar Prajapati
- Department of Hydro and Renewable Energy, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, Roorkee, Uttarakhand, India
| | - Pratham Arora
- Department of Hydro and Renewable Energy, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, Roorkee, Uttarakhand, India.
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Bhatt A, Dada AC, Prajapati SK, Arora P. Integrating life cycle assessment with quantitative microbial risk assessment for a holistic evaluation of sewage treatment plant. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2023; 862:160842. [PMID: 36509266 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.160842] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2022] [Revised: 11/12/2022] [Accepted: 12/07/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
An integrated approach was employed in the present study to combine life cycle assessment (LCA) with quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA) to assess an existing sewage treatment plant (STP) at Roorkee, India. The midpoint LCA modeling revealed that high electricity consumption (≈ 576 kWh.day-1) contributed to the maximum environmental burdens. The LCA endpoint result of 0.01 disability-adjusted life years per person per year (DALYs pppy) was obtained in terms of the impacts on human health. Further, a QMRA model was developed based on representative sewage pathogens, including E. coli O157:H7, Giardia sp., adenovirus, norovirus, and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The public health risk associated with intake of pathogen-laden aerosols during treated water reuse in sprinkler irrigation was determined. A cumulative health risk of 0.07 DALYs pppy was obtained, where QMRA risks contributed 86 % of the total health impacts. The annual probability of illness per person was highest for adenovirus and norovirus, followed by SARS-CoV-2, E. coli O157:H7 and Giardia sp. Overall, the study provides a methodological framework for an integrated LCA-QMRA assessment which can be applied across any treatment process to identify the hotspots contributing maximum environmental burdens and microbial health risks. Furthermore, the integrated LCA-QMRA approach could support stakeholders in the water industry to select the most suitable wastewater treatment system and establish regulations regarding the safe reuse of treated water.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ankita Bhatt
- Department of Hydro and Renewable Energy, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, Uttarakhand, India
| | | | - Sanjeev Kumar Prajapati
- Department of Hydro and Renewable Energy, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, Uttarakhand, India
| | - Pratham Arora
- Department of Hydro and Renewable Energy, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, Uttarakhand, India.
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Dhiman S, Balakrishnan M, Naddeo V, Ahsan N. Performance of Anaerobic Membrane Bioreactor (AnMBR) with Sugarcane Bagasse Ash-based Ceramic Membrane treating Simulated Low-strength Municipal Wastewater: Effect of Operation Conditions. WATER, AIR, AND SOIL POLLUTION 2023; 234:141. [PMID: 36811124 PMCID: PMC9933834 DOI: 10.1007/s11270-023-06173-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2022] [Accepted: 02/09/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
UNLABELLED This study assesses the performance of waste sugarcane bagasse ash (SBA)-based ceramic membrane in anaerobic membrane bioreactor (AnMBR) treating low-strength wastewater. The AnMBR was operated in sequential batch reactor (SBR) mode at hydraulic retention time (HRT) of 24 h, 18 h, and 10 h to understand the effect on organics removal and membrane performance. Feast-famine conditions were also examined to evaluate system performance under variable influent loadings. An average removal of >90% chemical oxygen demand (COD) was obtained at each HRT and starvation periods up to 96 days did not significantly affect removal efficiency. However, feast-famine conditions affected extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) production and consequently the membrane fouling. EPS production was high (135 mg/g MLVSS) when the system was restarted at 18 h HRT after shutdown (96 days) with corresponding high transmembrane pressure (TMP) build-up; however, the EPS content stabilized at ~60-80 mg/g MLVSS after a week of operation. Similar phenomenon of high EPS and high TMP was experienced after other shutdowns (94 and 48 days) as well. Permeate flux was 8.8±0.3, 11.2±0.1 and 18.4±3.4 L/m2 h at 24 h, 18 h and 10 h HRT, respectively. Filtration-relaxation (4 min - 1 min) and backflush (up to 4 times operating flux) helped control fouling rate. Surface deposits (that significantly attributed to fouling) could be effectively removed by physical cleaning, resulting in nearly complete flux recovery. Overall, SBR-AnMBR system equipped with waste-based ceramic membrane appears promising for treatment of low-strength wastewater with disruptions in feeding. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11270-023-06173-3.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sourbh Dhiman
- Department of Civil Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Technology, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, 110025 India
| | - Malini Balakrishnan
- The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), Darbari Seth Block, IHC Complex, Lodhi Road, New Delhi, 110003 India
| | - Vincenzo Naddeo
- Sanitary Environmental Engineering Division (SEED), Department of Civil Engineering, University of Salerno, via Giovanni Paolo II, 132, 84084 Fisciano, SA Italy
| | - Naved Ahsan
- Department of Civil Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Technology, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, 110025 India
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Shekhawat SS, Kulshreshtha NM, Saini P, Upadhyay A, Gupta AB, Jenifer M H, Subramanian V, Kumari A, Pareek N, Vivekanand V. Antibiotic resistance genes and bacterial diversity: A comparative molecular study of treated sewage from different origins and their impact on irrigated soils. CHEMOSPHERE 2022; 307:136175. [PMID: 36030942 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.136175] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2022] [Revised: 07/27/2022] [Accepted: 08/20/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Present study aims to investigate how is soil affected following irrigation with treated effluents of different origins by analysing the bacterial diversity, metabolic diversity and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). Comparative analysis with previously reported ARGs in effluents was performed to understand the mobility of ARGs from treated wastewater to the irrigated soil with respect to the control soil regimen. Acinetobacter, Burkholderia and Pseudomonas were observed as the most abundant genera in all the samples. The metabolic gene abundance of all the samples suggests a prominent contribution to natural mineral recycling. Most abundant ARGs observed encode resistance for clindamycin, kanamycin A, macrolides, paromomycin, spectinomycin and tetracycline. Treated effluent reuse did not appear to enhance the ARG levels in soils in most cases except for institutional treatment site (M), where the ARGs for aminoglycosides, β-lactams and sulfonamides were found to be abundantly present in both treated effluent and the irrigated soil. This study finds the importance of wastewater treatment from different origins and the impact of treated wastewater reuse in irrigation. This study also emphasises on the better understanding of ARGs mobility from water to soil.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sandeep Singh Shekhawat
- Centre for Energy and Environment, Malaviya National Institute of Technology Jaipur, JLN Marg, Jaipur, 302017, India; Jaipur National University Jaipur-Agra Bypass, Near New RTO Office, Jagatpura, Jaipur, 302017, India
| | - Niha Mohan Kulshreshtha
- Department of Civil Engineering, Malaviya National Institute of Technology Jaipur, JLN Marg, Jaipur, 302017, India
| | - Pankaj Saini
- Department of Civil Engineering, Malaviya National Institute of Technology Jaipur, JLN Marg, Jaipur, 302017, India
| | - Aparna Upadhyay
- Department of Civil Engineering, Malaviya National Institute of Technology Jaipur, JLN Marg, Jaipur, 302017, India
| | - Akhilendra Bhushan Gupta
- Department of Civil Engineering, Malaviya National Institute of Technology Jaipur, JLN Marg, Jaipur, 302017, India
| | | | | | - Ankita Kumari
- Biokart India Private Limited, Bengaluru, 560043, India
| | - Nidhi Pareek
- Department of Microbiology, School of Life Sciences, Central University of Rajasthan Bandarsindri, Ajmer, Kishangarh, Rajasthan, 305801, India
| | - Vivekanand Vivekanand
- Centre for Energy and Environment, Malaviya National Institute of Technology Jaipur, JLN Marg, Jaipur, 302017, India.
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Pekkoh J, Chaichana C, Thurakit T, Phinyo K, Lomakool S, Ruangrit K, Duangjan K, Suwannarach N, Kumla J, Cheirsilp B, Srinuanpan S. Dual-bioaugmentation strategy to enhance the formation of algal-bacteria symbiosis biofloc in aquaculture wastewater supplemented with agricultural wastes as an alternative nutrient sources and biomass support materials. BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY 2022; 359:127469. [PMID: 35700898 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2022.127469] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2022] [Revised: 06/09/2022] [Accepted: 06/10/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
This study performs an integrated evaluation of the formation and distribution of algal-bacterial bioflocs in aquaculture wastewater supplemented with agricultural waste, together with an assessment of their behavior in the microbial community and of the water quality of the system in which a new bioaugmentation strategy was applied. Results indicated that the dual bioaugmentation strategy via the consortium addition of bacteria and microalgae had the highest formation performance, providing the most compact biofloc structure (0.59 g/L), excellent settleability (71.91%), and a large particle diameter (4.25 mm). The fed-batch supplementation of molasses and rice bran, in terms of changes in the values of COD, NH4+, NO3-, and PO43-, stimulated the formation of biofloc through algal-bacterial bioflocs and microbe-rice bran complexes within a well-established microbial community. These findings provide new insight into the influence of bioaugmentation on the formation of an innovative algal-bacterial biofloc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeeraporn Pekkoh
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand; Science and Technology Research Institute, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
| | - Chatchawan Chaichana
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
| | - Theera Thurakit
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
| | - Kittiya Phinyo
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
| | - Sureeporn Lomakool
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
| | - Khomsan Ruangrit
- Science and Technology Research Institute, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
| | - Kritsana Duangjan
- Science and Technology Research Institute, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
| | - Nakarin Suwannarach
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand; Research Center of Microbial Diversity and Sustainable Utilization, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
| | - Jaturong Kumla
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand; Research Center of Microbial Diversity and Sustainable Utilization, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
| | - Benjamas Cheirsilp
- Center of Excellence in Innovative Biotechnology for Sustainable Utilization of Bioresources, Faculty of Agro-Industry, Prince of Songkla University, Hat Yai, Songkhla 90110, Thailand
| | - Sirasit Srinuanpan
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand; Research Center of Microbial Diversity and Sustainable Utilization, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand.
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Nigam H, Jain R, Malik A, Singh V. Comparative Life-Cycle assessment of microalgal biomass production in conventional growth media versus newly developed nanoemulsion media. BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY 2022; 352:127069. [PMID: 35367603 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2022.127069] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2022] [Revised: 03/20/2022] [Accepted: 03/23/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Microalgae biomass is a potential feedstock for biodiesel, animal feed, biofertilizer, and other products such as bioactive compounds. Most of the reported studies describe microalgae as a green process, however, the impacts associated with its growth media and cultivation have seldom been studied. With an aim to analyze the environmental impacts, the present study compares the life-cycle assessment of microalgal cultivation in two growth media. The data used was obtained from the experimental sets where microalgaeC. pyrenoidosawas cultivated in BG11 (control or SC-1) and silicone oil nanoemulsion (previously developed medium or SC-2) on a lab scale. The environmental impacts were evaluated using the ReCiPe midpoint and endpoint method using Sima Pro 9.0 software based on a "cradle-to-gate" approach. The total environmental score for 1 kg microalgal biomass production was 99.25Pt in SC-1, and 53.39Ptin SC-2, concluding greater environmental burden by SC-1. The photobioreactor construction material along with the operation led to maximum emissions, human toxicity, and resource depletion. In summary, the newly developed nanoemulsion medium was found to be eco-friendly that has the potential to minimize the usage of conventional nutrients and resources.
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Affiliation(s)
- Harshita Nigam
- Applied Microbiology Laboratory, Centre for Rural Development and Technology, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, Hauz Khas New Delhi 110016, India.
| | - Rahul Jain
- Applied Microbiology Laboratory, Centre for Rural Development and Technology, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, Hauz Khas New Delhi 110016, India.
| | - Anushree Malik
- Applied Microbiology Laboratory, Centre for Rural Development and Technology, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, Hauz Khas New Delhi 110016, India.
| | - Vikram Singh
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, Hauz Khas New Delhi 110016, India.
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Kilbane JJ. Shining a Light on Wastewater Treatment with Microalgae. ARABIAN JOURNAL FOR SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 2022; 47:45-56. [PMID: 35036288 PMCID: PMC8752175 DOI: 10.1007/s13369-021-06444-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2021] [Accepted: 11/25/2021] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
Microalgae can produce biofuels, nutriceuticals, pigments and many other products, but commercialization has been limited by the cost of growing, harvesting and processing algal biomass. Nutrients, chiefly nitrogen and phosphorus, are a key cost for growing microalgae, but these nutrients are present in abundance in municipal wastewater where they pose environmental problems if not removed. This is not a traditional review article; rather, it is a fact-based set of suggestions that will have to be investigated by scientists and engineers. It is suggested that if microalgae were grown as biofilms rather than as planktonic cells, and if internal illumination rather than external illumination were employed, then the use of microalgae may provide useful improvements to the wastewater treatment process. The use of microalgae to remove nutrients from wastewater has been demonstrated, but has not yet been widely implemented due to cost, and because microalgae derived from wastewater treatment has not yet been demonstrated as a commercial source for value-added products. Future facilities are likely to be called Municipal Resource Recovery Facilities as wastewater will increasingly be viewed as a resource for water, biofuels, fertilizer, monitoring public health and value-added products. Advances in photonics will accelerate this transition.
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