Study of catalyzed ozonation for advanced treatment of pulp and paper mill effluents

Ozonation and catalytic ozonation (TOCCATA process) were used as tertiary treatments of wastewaters from three different pulp and paper mills. Laboratory batch experiments were conducted to assess the efficiency of each oxidation system for removal of organic matter. The investigations measured ozone consumption rate, variations in chemical oxygen demand (COD), total organic carbon (TOC), suspended solids (SS) and molecular weight distribution with contact time. For conventional ozonation, ozone consumption rate was dependent on the nature of the effluent. Organic matter elimination occurred both by oxidation and precipitation. Precipitation played a major role on TOC removal varying with the effluent, and was responsible for production of high final SS concentrations. However, the effluent type did not affect the ozone consumption rate for TOCCATA-catalyzed reactions. Using TOCCATA, it was shown that organic matter was removed through steady conversion of organic carbon to carbon dioxide. Finally the two oxidation systems were compared with respect to their impact on molecular weight distribution. A total removal of the two initial fractions of compounds (high and low molecular weights) was observed with two effluents. With the third effluent, only the initial fraction of low molecular weight compounds was removed by the two oxidizing systems. The results showed that ozonation and TOCCATA-catalyzed ozonation could achieve removals of COD of 36-76%. Depending on the effluent type, the amount of ozone consumed per gram of COD removed was lower for conventional or for catalytic ozonation.

Simulation of pulp mill wastewater recycling after tertiary treatment

The aim of this work is to study the possibilities of effluent recycling in a bleached Kraft pulp mill, for a better water management. To avoid problems associated with effluent recycling (corrosion, odors, loss in pulp and paper quality), wastewaters have to be treated before recycling. This study is particularly focused on organic matter removal. Several treatments are applied on a biological secondary effluent: adsorption on activated carbon, coagulation with ferric chloride or alum sulfate, precipitation with lime, ozonation and catalytic ozonation. These techniques are compared in terms of COD (Chemical Oxygen Demand) removal. Catalytic ozonation is finally chosen as the most effective solution to achieve 50% of COD removal in the effluent. The characteristics of the effluent treated according to this technique are then used to simulate the impact of its reuse in the process for pulp production. The study is focused on the changes in these parameters in the various stages of bleaching and final washing when water is replaced by the wastewater treated or directly issued from the wastewater treatment plant. The simulation demonstrates the need of a tertiary treatment to eliminate COD in order to avoid possible reactant overconsumption and decrease in pulp brightness. Chloride and sulfate ions which could cause corrosion should also be removed.

Improved Agrobacterium-mediated transformation of sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.): assessment of macerating enzymes and sonication

Agrobacterium -mediated transformation of shoot apices of sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) was evaluated following wounding by cell-wall-digesting enzymes and sonication. The frequency of explants with regenerated shoots expressing GUS (beta-glucuronidase) or GFP (green fluorescent protein) increased following treatment with the macerating enzymes cellulase Onozuka R-10 and pectinase Boerozym M5, whereas treatment with macerozyme R-10 had a negative effect. When a combination of cellulase (0.1%) and pectinase (0.05%) was used, the rate of explants with uniformly GUS-positive shoots increased at least twofold. The transient expression of reporter genes was also enhanced using sonication (50 MHz; 2, 4 and 6 s), but stable expression in regenerated shoots following 4 weeks of selection did not increase with this treatment. Enzyme treatment alone (0.1% cellulase and 0.05% pectinase) was superior to a combined treatment of sonication and enzymes with respect to stable transformation. Polymerase chain reaction analyses of shoots recovered by grafting from transformation experiments using GFP as the reporter gene demonstrated the stable integration of the transgene. Regenerated plants were fertile and seeds could be harvested.

Use of green fluorescent protein for detection of transformed shoots and homozygous offspring

 Using tobacco as a model system, the data obtained demonstrated that the green fluorescent protein (GFP) can be used as a visual selection marker for transformed tissues. Based on differences in the intensity of GFP fluorescence, homozygous and hemizygous states could be easily visualized in seeds and seedlings of the T1 generation. These results were confirmed by genetic analysis. Optimized conditions for GFP analysis of stable transformants are presented.