Removal and fate of micropollutants in a sponge-based moving bed bioreactor

• Published in: Bioresource technology Vol. 159; pp. 311 - 319
• Main Authors: Luo, Yunlong, Guo, Wenshan, Ngo, Huu Hao, Nghiem, Long Duc, Hai, Faisal Ibney, Kang, Jinguo, Xia, Siqing, Zhang, Zhiqiang, Price, William Evan
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Kidlington Elsevier Ltd 01.05.2014; Elsevier
• Subjects: Activated sludge process; Attached-growth; Batch Cell Culture Techniques; Biodegradation; Biodegradation, Environmental; Biological and medical sciences; Bioreactors; Biotechnology; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Ibuprofen; Methods. Procedures. Technologies; Micropollutants removal; Moving bed bioreactor (MBBR); Naproxen; Nitrogen - isolation & purification; Organic Chemicals - isolation & purification; Pentachlorophenol; Phosphorus - isolation & purification; Polyurethane resins; Sewage - chemistry; Sludge; Sponge; Sponges; Various methods and equipments; Water Pollutants, Chemical - isolation & purification; Water Purification - instrumentation; Water Purification - methods; Biodegradation; Sponge; Micropollutants removal; Moving bed bioreactor (MBBR); Attached-growth; Bioreactor; Moving bed; Micropollutant
• ISSN: 0960-8524; 1873-2976
• DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2014.02.107

•Polyurethane sponge showed varying sorption capacities for micropollutants.•Compound-specific variation in removal (25.9–96.8%) was observed in the MBBR.•Biodegradation was the major removal mechanism during the MBBR treatment.•Sorption was important for the removal of persistent compounds. This study investigated the removal of micropollutants using polyurethane sponge as attached-growth carrier. Batch experiments demonstrated that micropollutants could adsorb to non-acclimatized sponge cubes to varying extents. Acclimatized sponge showed significantly enhanced removal of some less hydrophobic compounds (logD<2.5), such as ibuprofen, acetaminophen, naproxen, and estriol, as compared with non-acclimatized sponge. The results for bench-scale sponge-based moving bed bioreactor (MBBR) system elucidated compound-specific variation in removal, ranging from 25.9% (carbamazepine) to 96.8% (β-Estradiol 17-acetate) on average. In the MBBR system, biodegradation served as a major removal pathway for most compounds. However, sorption to sludge phase was also a notable removal mechanism of some persistent micropollutants. Particularly, carbamazepine, ketoprofen and pentachlorophenol were found at high concentrations (7.87, 6.05 and 5.55μg/g, respectively) on suspended biosolids. As a whole, the effectiveness of MBBR for micropollutant removal was comparable with those of activated sludge processes and MBRs.