Simultaneous nitrification-denitrification using baffled osmotic membrane bioreactor-microfiltration hybrid system at different oxic-anoxic conditions for wastewater treatment

Nirenkumar Pathak; Sherub Phuntsho; Van Huy Tran; M A H Johir; Noreddine Ghaffour; TorOve Leiknes; Takahiro Fujioka; Ho Kyong Shon

doi:10.1016/j.jenvman.2019.109685

Simultaneous nitrification-denitrification using baffled osmotic membrane bioreactor-microfiltration hybrid system at different oxic-anoxic conditions for wastewater treatment

J Environ Manage. 2020 Jan 1:253:109685. doi: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2019.109685. Epub 2019 Oct 22.

Authors

Nirenkumar Pathak¹, Sherub Phuntsho², Van Huy Tran¹, M A H Johir¹, Noreddine Ghaffour³, TorOve Leiknes³, Takahiro Fujioka⁴, Ho Kyong Shon⁵

Affiliations

¹ School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Technology, Sydney (UTS), Post Box 129, Broadway, NSW, 2007, Australia.
² School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Technology, Sydney (UTS), Post Box 129, Broadway, NSW, 2007, Australia. Electronic address: Sherub.Phuntsho@uts.edu.au.
³ King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Water Desalination and Reuse Center (WDRC), Biological & Environmental Science & Engineering Division (BESE), Thuwal, 23955-6900, Saudi Arabia.
⁴ Graduate School of Engineering, Nagasaki University, 1-14 Bunkyo-machi, Nagasaki, 852-8521, Japan.
⁵ School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Technology, Sydney (UTS), Post Box 129, Broadway, NSW, 2007, Australia. Electronic address: Hokyong.Shon-1@uts.edu.au.

PMID: 31654928
DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2019.109685

Abstract

The efficacy of a baffled osmotic membrane bioreactor-microfiltration (OMBR-MF) hybrid system equipped with thin film forward osmosis membrane for wastewater treatment was evaluated at laboratory scale. The novel OMBR-MF hybrid system involved baffles, that separate oxic and anoxic zones in the aerobic reactor for simultaneous nitrification and denitrification (SND), and a bioreactor comprised of thin film composite-forward osmosis (TFC-FO) and polyether sulfone-microfiltration (PES-MF) membranes. The evaluation was conducted under four different oxic-anoxic cycle patterns. Changes in flux, salinity build-up, and microbial activity (e.g., extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) were assessed. Over the course of a 34 d test, the OMBR-MF hybrid system achieved high removal of total organic carbon (TOC) (86-92%), total nitrogen (TN) (63-76%), and PO₄-P (57-63%). The oxic-anoxic cycle time of 0.5-1.5 h was identified to be the best operating condition. Incorporation of MF membrane effectively alleviated salinity build-up in the reactor, allowing stable system operation.

Keywords: Microfiltration (MF); Osmotic membrane bioreactor (OMBR); Salinity build-up; Simultaneous nitrification-denitrification (SND).

MeSH terms

Bioreactors
Denitrification
Membranes, Artificial
Nitrification
Nitrogen
Osmosis
Wastewater*
Water Purification*

Substances

Membranes, Artificial
Waste Water
Nitrogen