Wood and sulfur-based cyclic denitrification filters for treatment of saline wastewaters

Qiaochong He; Erica A Dasi; Zhang Cheng; Emmanuel Talla; Kevan Main; Chuanping Feng; Sarina J Ergas

doi:10.1016/j.biortech.2021.124848

Wood and sulfur-based cyclic denitrification filters for treatment of saline wastewaters

Bioresour Technol. 2021 May:328:124848. doi: 10.1016/j.biortech.2021.124848. Epub 2021 Feb 14.

Authors

Qiaochong He¹, Erica A Dasi², Zhang Cheng², Emmanuel Talla³, Kevan Main⁴, Chuanping Feng⁵, Sarina J Ergas⁶

Affiliations

¹ School of Environmental Engineering, Henan University of Technology, Zhengzhou 450001, China; Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, University of South Florida, 74202 E. Fowler Ave, ENB 118, Tampa, FL 33620, USA; School of Water Resources and Environment, China University of Geosciences (Beijing), Beijing 100083, China.
² Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, University of South Florida, 74202 E. Fowler Ave, ENB 118, Tampa, FL 33620, USA.
³ Aix Marseille Univ, CNRS, LCB, Laboratoire de Chimie Bactérienne, F-13009 Marseille, France.
⁴ Directorate of Fisheries and Aquaculture, Mote Marine Laboratory, 1600 Ken Thompson Parkway, Sarasota, FL 34236, USA.
⁵ School of Water Resources and Environment, China University of Geosciences (Beijing), Beijing 100083, China.
⁶ Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, University of South Florida, 74202 E. Fowler Ave, ENB 118, Tampa, FL 33620, USA. Electronic address: sergas@usf.edu.

PMID: 33611020
DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2021.124848

Abstract

This study investigated the performance and microbiome of cyclic denitrification filters (CDFs) for wood and sulfur heterotrophic-autotrophic denitrification (WSHAD) of saline wastewater. Wood-sulfur CDFs integrated into two pilot-scale marine recirculating aquaculture systems achieved high denitrification rates (103 ± 8.5 g N/(m³·d)). The combined use of pine wood and sulfur resulted in lower SO₄^2- accumulation compared with prior saline wastewater denitrification studies with sulfur alone. Although fish tank water quality parameters, including ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and sulfide, were below the inhibitory levels for marine fish production, lower survival rates of Poecilia sphenops were observed compared with prior studies. Heterotrophic denitrification was the dominant removal mechanism during the early operational stages, while sulfur autotrophic denitrification increased as readily biodegradable organic carbon released from wood chips decreased over time. 16S rRNA-based analysis of the CDF microbiome revealed that Sulfurimonas, Thioalbus, Defluviimonas, and Ornatilinea as notable genera that contributed to denitrification performance.

Keywords: Electron donor; Microbiome analysis; Mixotrophic denitrification; Nitrogen balance; Saline wastewater; Sulfate accumulation.

MeSH terms

Animals
Autotrophic Processes
Bioreactors
Denitrification*
Nitrates
Nitrogen
RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / genetics
Sulfur
Wastewater*
Wood

Substances

Nitrates
RNA, Ribosomal, 16S
Waste Water
Sulfur
Nitrogen