Green synthesis of Fe3O4@ceramsite from sludge improving anaerobic digestion performance of waste activated sludge

Pengqu Zhang; Dongsheng Shen; Jinyang Shao; Xiaoyu He; Jianjun Zeng; Shu-Lin Wu; Yuyang Long; Wei Wei; Bing-Jie Ni

doi:10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.121085

Green synthesis of Fe₃O₄@ceramsite from sludge improving anaerobic digestion performance of waste activated sludge

J Environ Manage. 2024 May:359:121085. doi: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.121085. Epub 2024 May 9.

Authors

Pengqu Zhang¹, Dongsheng Shen¹, Jinyang Shao¹, Xiaoyu He², Jianjun Zeng¹, Shu-Lin Wu³, Yuyang Long¹, Wei Wei⁴, Bing-Jie Ni⁵

Affiliations

¹ School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Solid Waste Treatment and Recycling, Zhejiang Engineering Research Center of Non-ferrous Metal Waste Recycling, Zhejiang Gongshang University, Hangzhou, 310018, Zhejiang Province, China.
² Hangzhou Guotai Environmental Protection Technology Co., Ltd, China.
³ School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Solid Waste Treatment and Recycling, Zhejiang Engineering Research Center of Non-ferrous Metal Waste Recycling, Zhejiang Gongshang University, Hangzhou, 310018, Zhejiang Province, China. Electronic address: slwutg@126.com.
⁴ Centre for Technology in Water and Wastewater, School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, NSW, 2007, Australia.
⁵ School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, The University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia.

PMID: 38728986
DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.121085

Abstract

Anaerobic digestion (AD) is a promising technique for waste management, which can achieve sludge stabilization and energy recovery. This study successfully prepared Fe₃O₄@ceramsite from WAS and applied it as an additive in sludge digestion, aiming to improve the conversion of organics to biomethane efficiency. Results showed that after adding the Fe₃O₄@ceramsite, the methane production was enhanced by 34.7% compared with the control group (88.0 ± 0.1 mL/g VS). Further mechanisms investigation revealed that Fe₃O₄@ceramsite enhanced digesta stability by strong buffering capacity, improved sludge conductivity, and promoted Fe (III) reduction. Moreover, Fe₃O₄@ceramsite has a larger surface area and better porous structure, which also facilitated AD performance. Microbial community analysis showed that some functional anaerobes related to AD such as Spirochaeta and Smithella were enriched with Fe₃O₄@ceramsite treatment. Potential syntrophic metabolisms between syntrophic bacteria (Syntrophomonas, associated with DIET) and methanogens were also detected in the Fe₃O₄@ceramsite treatment AD system.

Keywords: Anaerobic digestion; Biomethane; Dissimilatory iron reduction; Fe(3)O(4)@ceramsite; Waste activated sludge.

MeSH terms

Anaerobiosis
Ferric Compounds
Methane* / metabolism
Sewage*
Waste Disposal, Fluid / methods