Insights on pretreatment technologies for partial nitrification/anammox processes: A critical review and future perspectives

• Published in: Bioresource Technology Vol. 384; p. 129351
• Main Authors: Zhang, Yixuan, Deng, Jiayuan, Xiao, Xiangmin, Li, Yu-You, Liu, Jianyong
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 01.09.2023; Elsevier BV
• Subjects: ammonium; Ammonium Compounds; Anaerobic Ammonia Oxidation; anaerobic ammonium oxidation; Anaerobic digestion; Bioreactors; Denitrification; energy; Energy recovery; Inhibitory substances; municipal wastewater; Nitrification; Nitrogen; Oxidation-Reduction; Partial nitrification-anammox; Pretreatment; research and development; Sewage; Wastewater; wastewater treatment; Partial nitrification-anammox; Energy recovery; Inhibitory substances; Pretreatment; Anaerobic digestion
• ISSN: 0960-8524; 1873-2976; 1873-2976
• DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2023.129351

[Display omitted] •The pretreatment technologies of PN/A are systematically summarized and analyzed.•Comprehensive discussion on PN/A pretreatment selection from multiple perspectives.•Two preferable PN/A processes for municipal and high NH4+ wastewater are proposed.•Advanced AD + PN/A for high COD & NH4+ wastewaters is preferable for carbon neutral.•LCA is very helpful to PN/A pretreatment selection and whole process optimization. For almost 20 years, partial nitrification-anammox (PN/A) has been the subject of intensive study and development. Pretreatment of wastewater for PN/A is crucial because the inhibitory substances in the influent may reduce the performance of PN/A. In this review, the current PN/A pretreatment technologies are comprehensively summarized. The selection of pretreatment technology for PN/A depending on the source of the wastewater and its main characteristics (high-strength wastewater or municipal wastewater, organic matters, suspended solids). Comparison of pretreatment technologies through multiple perspectives including wastewater characteristics, the objectives of the wastewater treatment (treating requirement, energy and resource recovery demand), reactor configuration of PN/A. Based on the discussion, two integrated processes, HRAS + one-stage PN/A and advanced AD + two-stage PN/A, are recommended as the preferred processes for treating municipal wastewater and wastewater with a high-strength ammonium, respectively. This review aims to provide guidance for future research and development of PN/A.