The impact of ultrasonic treatment on activity of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria and nitrite-oxidizing bacteria in activated sludge

doi:10.1007/s11783-019-1166-8

Front. Environ. Sci. Eng.

2019, Vol. 13

Issue (6) : 82 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11783-019-1166-8

RESEARCH ARTICLE

The impact of ultrasonic treatment on activity of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria and nitrite-oxidizing bacteria in activated sludge

Siqi Li¹, Min Zheng^1,², Shuang Wu^1,³, Yu Xue¹, Yanchen Liu¹(

), Chengwen Wang¹, Xia Huang¹

¹. State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
². Advanced Water Management Centre, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia QLD 4072, Australia
³. China Academy of Urban Planning & Design, Beijing 100084, China

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Abstract

Conditions for ultrasonic treatment to achieve partial nitritation are optimized.

Ultrasound reduces metabolic activity and releases intracellular metabolites.

Mechanical shearing is essential to inhibit nitrite oxidation.

The ultrasonic treatment of sludge has been considered as an effective method to facilitate the partial nitritation of municipal sewage. This study aims to reveal the effects of ultrasound on ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) and nitrite-oxidizing bacteria (NOB). The impact factors including ultrasonic irradiation time and intensity, sludge concentration, thermal effect and released free radicals were studied. The maximized difference between the changes in AOB and NOB activities were obtained with 10 g mixed liquor suspended solids (MLSS)/L, using 0.9 kJ/mL ultrasonic energy density and 12 h interval time. The increased ultrasonic intensity destroyed the floc structure of activated sludge, increased the microbial death, and decreased the cellular ATP level. Further, the mechanism exploration indicated that the mechanical shearing could be a critical factor in achieving the nitritation with inhibitory effect on nitrite oxidation.

Keywords Ultrasonic treatment Optimal control Nitrifying bacteria Mechanism analysis

Corresponding Author(s): Yanchen Liu

Issue Date: 30 October 2019

Cite this article:

Siqi Li,Min Zheng,Shuang Wu, et al. The impact of ultrasonic treatment on activity of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria and nitrite-oxidizing bacteria in activated sludge[J]. Front. Environ. Sci. Eng., 2019, 13(6): 82.

URL:

https://academic.hep.com.cn/fese/EN/10.1007/s11783-019-1166-8
https://academic.hep.com.cn/fese/EN/Y2019/V13/I6/82

Tab.1 Experimental conditions for studying the combined effects of ultrasonic treatment conditions on AOB and NOB activities

Fig.1 Change in specific AOB and NOB activities with different time (a) and MLSS (b) of ultrasonic treatment.

Fig.2 The recovery of AOB and NOB activity after ultrasonic treatment.

Fig.3 Effluent NH₄⁺–N, NO₂^-–N and NO₃^-–N concentrations of ultrasonic treatment with different time intervals of 0 h (a), 4 h (b), 12 h (c), and 24 h (d).

Fig.4 The change of grain size (a) and release of various materials (b), (c) and (d) from treated sludge.

Fig.5 The concentration of free radicals generated (a) and the temperature increase (b) after ultrasonic treatment; effect of free radicals and temperature on the activity of AOB and NOB (c).

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