Insights into the effects of operating parameters on sulfate reduction performance and microbial pathways in the anaerobic sequencing batch reactor

Jianliang Xue; Yuehong Yao; Weisi Li; Ke Shi; Guanbao Ma; Yanlu Qiao; Dongle Cheng; Qing Jiang

doi:10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.137134

Insights into the effects of operating parameters on sulfate reduction performance and microbial pathways in the anaerobic sequencing batch reactor

Chemosphere. 2023 Jan;311(Pt 2):137134. doi: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.137134. Epub 2022 Nov 4.

Authors

Jianliang Xue¹, Yuehong Yao², Weisi Li³, Ke Shi², Guanbao Ma², Yanlu Qiao¹, Dongle Cheng⁴, Qing Jiang⁵

Affiliations

¹ College of Safety and Environmental Engineering, Shandong University of Science and Technology, Qingdao, Shandong, 266590, China; Institute of Yellow River Delta Earth Surface Processes and Ecological Integrity, Shandong University of Science and Technology, China; Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Eco-Environmental Science for Yellow River Delta, Binzhou University, Binzhou, Shandong, 256600, China.
² College of Safety and Environmental Engineering, Shandong University of Science and Technology, Qingdao, Shandong, 266590, China.
³ Shandong Ecological Environment Monitoring Center, Jinan, Shandong, 250102, China.
⁴ Centre for Technology in Water and Wastewater, School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, NSW, 2007, Australia.
⁵ College of Safety and Environmental Engineering, Shandong University of Science and Technology, Qingdao, Shandong, 266590, China; Institute of Yellow River Delta Earth Surface Processes and Ecological Integrity, Shandong University of Science and Technology, China; Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Eco-Environmental Science for Yellow River Delta, Binzhou University, Binzhou, Shandong, 256600, China. Electronic address: qingjiang2021@126.com.

PMID: 36343737
DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.137134

Abstract

Sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB)-based anaerobic process has aroused wide concern in the treatment of sulfate-containing wastewater. Chemical oxygen demand-to-sulfate ratio (COD/SO₄^2-) and HRT are two key factors that affect not only the anaerobic treatment performance but also the activity of SRB. In this study, an anaerobic sequencing batch reactor was constructed, and the effects of different operating parameters (COD/SO₄^2-, HRT) on the relationship of sulfate (SO₄^2-) reduction performance, microbial communities, and metabolic pathways were comprehensively investigated. The results indicated that the SO₄^2- removal rates could achieve above 95% under different operating parameters. Bioinformatics analysis revealed that microbial community changed with reactor operation. At the genus level, the enrichment of Propionicclava and Peptoclostridium contributed to the establishment of a homotrophic relationship with Desulfobulbus, the dominant SRB in the reactor, which indicated that they took vital part in maintaining the structural and functional stability of the bacterial community under different operating parameters. In particular, an increasing trend of the relative abundance of functional genes encoding dissimilatory sulfate reduction was detected with the increase of COD/SO₄^2-, which indicated high SO₄^2- reduction potentials. This knowledge will help to reveal the mechanism of the effect of operating parameters on the anaerobic sulfate removal process, thus providing effective guidance for the targeted regulation of anaerobic sequencing batch bioreactors treating SO₄^2--containing wastewater.

Keywords: Chemical oxygen demand-to-sulfate ratio; Hydraulic retention time; Microbial community; Sulfate-containing wastewater; Sulfate-reducing bacteria.

MeSH terms

Anaerobiosis
Bacteria / metabolism
Bioreactors / microbiology
Desulfovibrio* / metabolism
Sulfates / chemistry
Waste Disposal, Fluid / methods
Wastewater*

Substances

Wastewater
Sulfates