Title Details

ETIENNE PAUL, PhD, is a professor in the Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering at the National Institute of Applied Sciences. He has more than fifteen years of experience in the field of biological treatment of water, wastewater, and waste.

YU LIU, PhD, is an associate professor in the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Nanyang Technological University. He has authored or edited six books, four book chapters, and over ninety journal articles.

Preface xvii

Contributors xxi

1 Fundamentals of Biological Processes for Wastewater Treatment 1
Jianlong Wang

1.1 Introduction, 1

1.2 Overview of Biological Wastewater Treatment, 2

1.2.1 The Objective of Biological Wastewater Treatment, 2

1.2.2 Roles of Microorganisms in Wastewater Treatment, 3

1.2.3 Types of Biological Wastewater Treatment Processes, 4

1.3 Classification of Microorganisms, 4

1.3.1 By the Sources of Carbon and Energy, 4

1.3.2 By Temperature Range, 6

1.3.3 Microorganism Types in Biological Wastewater Treatment, 7

1.4 Some Important Microorganisms in Wastewater Treatment, 8

1.4.1 Bacteria, 8

1.4.2 Fungi, 12

1.4.3 Algae, 15

1.4.4 Protozoans, 16

1.4.5 Rotifers and Crustaceans, 18

1.4.6 Viruses, 20

1.5 Measurement of Microbial Biomass, 21

1.5.1 Total Number of Microbial Cells, 21

1.5.2 Measurement of Viable Microbes on Solid Growth Media, 22

1.5.3 Measurement of Active Cells in Environmental Samples, 23

1.5.4 Determination of Cellular Biochemical Compounds, 24

1.5.5 Evaluation of Microbial Biodiversity by Molecular Techniques, 24

1.6 Microbial Nutrition, 24

1.6.1 Microbial Chemical Composition, 25

1.6.2 Macronutrients, 27

1.6.3 Micronutrients, 28

1.6.4 Growth Factor, 29

1.6.5 Microbial Empirical Formula, 31

1.7 Microbial Metabolism, 31

1.7.1 Catabolic Metabolic Pathways, 32

1.7.2 Anabolic Metabolic Pathway, 38

1.7.3 Biomass Synthesis Yields, 39

1.7.4 Coupling Energy-Synthesis Metabolism, 41

1.8 Functions of Biological Wastewater Treatment, 42

1.8.1 Aerobic Biological Oxidation, 42

1.8.2 Biological Nutrients Removal, 45

1.8.3 Anaerobic Biological Oxidation, 50

1.8.4 Biological Removal of Toxic Organic Compounds and Heavy Metals, 55

1.8.5 Removal of Pathogens and Parasites, 58

1.9 Activated Sludge Process, 59

1.9.1 Basic Process, 60

1.9.2 Microbiology of Activated Sludge, 61

1.9.3 Biochemistry of Activated Sludge, 66

1.9.4 Main Problems in the Activated Sludge Process, 67

1.10 Suspended- and Attached-Growth Processes, 69

1.10.1 Suspended-Growth Processes, 69

1.10.2 Attached-Growth Processes, 70

1.10.3 Hybrid Systems, 71

1.10.4 Comparison Between Suspended- and Attached-Growth Systems, 72

1.11 Sludge Production, Treatment and Disposal, 74

1.11.1 Sludge Production, 74

1.11.2 Sludge Treatment Processes, 76

1.11.3 Sludge Disposal and Application, 78

References, 79

2 Sludge Production: Quantification and Prediction for Urban Treatment Plants and Assessment of Strategies for Sludge Reduction 81
Mathieu Spe´randio, Etienne Paul, Yolaine Bessie`re, and Yu Liu

2.1 Introduction, 81

2.2 Sludge Fractionation and Origin, 82

2.2.1 Sludge Composition, 82

2.2.2 Wastewater Characteristics, 83

2.3 Quantification of Excess Sludge Production, 88

2.3.1 Primary Treatment, 88

2.3.2 Activated Sludge Process, 90

2.3.3 Phosphorus Removal (Biological and Physicochemical), 97

2.4 Practical Evaluation of Sludge Production, 99

2.4.1 Sludge Production Yield Variability with Domestic Wastewater, 99

2.4.2 Influence of Sludge Age: Experimental Data Versus Models, 100

2.4.3 ISS Entrapment in the Sludge, 103

2.4.4 Example of Sludge Production for a Different Case Study, 104

2.5 Strategies for Excess Sludge Reduction, 106

2.5.1 Classification of Strategies, 106

2.5.2 Increasing the Sludge Age, 107

2.5.3 Model-Based Evaluation of Advanced ESR Strategies, 109

2.6 Conclusions, 111

2.7 Nomenclature, 112

References, 114

3 Characterization of Municipal Wastewater and Sludge 117
Etienne Paul, Xavier Lefebvre, Mathieu Sperandio, Dominique Lefebvre, and Yu Liu

3.1 Introduction, 117

3.2 Definitions, 119

3.3 Wastewater and Sludge Composition and Fractionation, 120

3.3.1 Wastewater COD Fractions, 121

3.3.2 WAS COD Fractions, 122

3.3.3 ADS Organic Fractions, 122

3.4 Physical Fractionation, 123

3.4.1 Physical State of Wastewater Organic Matter, 123

3.4.2 Methods for Physical Fractionation of Wastewater Components, 123

3.5 Biodegradation Assays for Wastewater and Sludge Characterization, 124

3.5.1 Background, 124

3.5.2 Methods Based on Substrate Depletion, 125

3.5.3 Methods Based on Respirometry, 125

3.5.4 Anaerobic Biodegradation Assays, 128

3.6 Application to Wastewater COD Fractionation, 131

3.6.1 Global Picture of Fractionation Methods and Wastewater COD Fractions, 131

3.6.2 Application of Physical Separation for Characterization of Wastewater COD Fractions, 132

3.6.3 Biodegradable COD Fraction, 133

3.6.4 Relation Between Physical and Biological Properties of Organic Fractions, 136

3.6.5 Unbiodegradable Particulate COD Fractions, 137

3.7 Assessment of the Characteristics of Sludge and Disintegrated Sludge, 143

3.7.1 Physical Fractionation of COD Released from Sludge Disintegration Treatment, 143

3.7.2 Biological Fractionation of COD Released from Sludge Disintegration Treatment, 145

3.7.3 Biodegradability of WAS in Anaerobic Digestion, 145

3.7.4 Unbiodegradable COD in Anaerobic Digestion, 146

3.8 Nomenclature, 147

References, 149

4 Oxic-Settling-Anaerobic Process for Enhanced Microbial Decay 155
Qingliang Zhao and Jianfang Wang

4.1 Introduction, 155

4.2 Description of the Oxic-Settling-Anaerobic Process, 156

4.2.1 Oxic-Settling-Anaerobic Process, 156

4.2.2 Characteristics of the OSA Process, 157

4.3 Effects of an Anaerobic Sludge Tank on the Performance of an OSA System, 158

4.3.1 Fate of Sludge Anaerobic Exposure in an OSA System, 158

4.3.2 Effect of Sludge Anaerobic Exposure on Biomass Activity, 160

4.4 Sludge Production in an OSA System, 161

4.5 Performance of an OSA System, 162

4.5.1 Organic and Nutrient Removal, 162

4.5.2 Sludge Settleability, 163

4.6 Important Influence Factors, 164

4.6.1 Influence of the ORP on Sludge Production, 164

4.6.2 Influence of the ORP on Performance of an OSA System, 164

4.6.3 Influence of SAET on Sludge Production, 166

4.6.4 Influence of SAET on the Performance of an OSA System, 166

4.7 Possible Sludge Reduction in the OSA Process, 166

4.7.1 Slow Growers, 167

4.7.2 Energy Uncoupling Metabolism, 167

4.7.3 Sludge Endogenous Decay, 169

4.8 Microbial Community in an OSA System, 171

4.8.1 Staining Analysis, 172

4.8.2 FISH Analysis, 173

4.9 Cost and Energy Evaluation, 174

4.10 Evaluation of the OSA Process, 175

4.11 Process Development, 176

4.11.1 Sludge Decay Combined with Other Sludge Reduction Mechanisms, 176

4.11.2 Improved Efficiency in Sludge Anaerobic Digestion, 177

4.11.3 Combined Minimization of Excess Sludge with Nutrient Removal, 178

References, 179

5 Energy Uncoupling for Sludge Minimization: Pros and Cons 183
Bo Jiang, Yu Liu, and Etienne Paul

5.1 Introduction, 183

5.2 Overview of Adenosine Triphosphate Synthesis, 184

5.2.1 Electron Transport System, 184

5.2.2 Mechanisms of Oxidative Phosphorylation, 185

5.3 Control of ATP Synthesis, 187

5.3.1 Diversion of PMF from ATP Synthesis to Other Physiological Activities, 187

5.3.2 Inhibition of Oxidative Phosphorylation, 187

5.3.3 Uncoupling of Electron Transport and Oxidative Phosphorylation, 188

5.4 Energy Uncoupling for Sludge Reduction, 189

5.4.1 Chemical Uncouplers Used for Sludge Reduction, 189

5.4.2 Uncoupling Activity, 198

5.5 Modeling of Uncoupling Effect on Sludge Production, 200

5.6 Sideeffects of Chemical Uncouplers, 202

5.7 Full-Scale Application, 204

References, 204

6 Reduction of Excess Sludge Production Using Ozonation or Chlorination: Performance and Mechanisms of Action 209
Etienne Paul, Qi-Shan Liu, and Yu Liu

6.1 Introduction, 209

6.2 Significant Operational Results for ESP Reduction with Ozone, 210

6.2.1 Options for Combining Ozonation and Biological Treatment, 210

6.2.2 ESP Reduction Performance, 212

6.2.3 Assessing Ozone Efficiency for Mineral ESP Reduction, 215

6.3 Side Effects of Sludge Ozonation, 216

6.3.1 Outlet SS and COD, 216

6.3.2 N Removal, 218

6.4 Cost Assessment, 221

6.5 Effect of Ozone on Sludge, 222

6.5.1 Synergy Between Ozonation and Biological Treatment, 222

6.5.2 Some Fundamentals of Ozone Transfer, 222

6.5.3 Sludge Composition, 224

6.5.4 Effect of Ozone on Activated Sludge: Batch Tests, 226

6.5.5 Effect of Ozone on Biomass Activity, 228

6.5.6 Competition for Ozone in Mixed Liquor, 231

6.6 Modeling Ozonation Effect, 233

6.7 Remarks on Sludge Ozonation, 236

6.8 Chlorination in Water and Wastewater Treatment, 236

6.8.1 Introduction, 236

6.8.2 Chlorination-Assisted Biological Process for Sludge Reduction, 237

6.8.3 Effect of Chlorine Dosage on Sludge Reduction, 239

6.8.4 Chlorine Requirement, 240

6.9 Nomenclature, 242

References, 244

7 High-Dissolved-Oxygen Biological Process for Sludge Reduction 249
Zhi-Wu Wang

7.1 Introduction, 249

7.2 Mechanism of High-Dissolved-Oxygen Reduced Sludge Production, 251

7.2.1 High-Dissolved-Oxygen Decreased Specific Loading Rate, 251

7.2.2 High-Dissolved-Oxygen Uncoupled Microbial Metabolism Pathway, 252

7.2.3 High-Dissolved-Oxygen Shifted Microbial Population, 254

7.3 Limits of High-Dissolved-Oxygen Process for Reduced Sludge Production, 255

References, 256

8 Minimizing Excess Sludge Production Through Membrane Bioreactors and Integrated Processes 261
Philip Chuen-Yung Wong

8.1 Introduction, 261

8.2 Mass Balances, 262

8.3 Integrated Processes Based on Lysis-Cryptic Growth, 266

8.3.1 Mass Balance Incorporating Sludge Disintegration and Solubilization, 268

8.3.2 Thermal and Thermal-Alkaline Treatment, 274

8.3.3 Ozonation, 276

8.3.4 Sonication, 279

8.4 Predation, 283

8.5 Summary and Concluding Remarks, 285

References, 286

9 Microbial Fuel Cell Technology for Sustainable Treatment of Organic Wastes and Electrical Energy Recovery 291
Shi-Jie You, Nan-Qi Ren, and Qing-Liang Zhao

9.1 Introduction, 291

9.2 Fundamentals, Evaluation, and Design of MFCs, 293

9.2.1 Principles, 293

9.2.2 Performance Evaluation, 293

9.2.3 MFC Configurations, 294

9.3 Performance of Anodes, 295

9.3.1 Electrode Materials, 295

9.3.2 Microbial Electron Transfer, 296

9.3.3 Electron Donors, 298

9.4 Cathode Performances, 299

9.4.1 Electron Acceptors, 300

9.4.2 Electrochemical Fundamentals of the Oxygen Reduction Reaction, 302

9.4.3 Air-Cathode Structure and Function, 303

9.4.4 Electrocatalyst, 304

9.5 Separator, 306

9.6 pH Gradient and Buffer, 307

9.7 Applications of MFC-Based Technology, 309

9.7.1 Biosensors, 309

9.7.2 Hydrogen Production, 310

9.7.3 Desalination, 310

9.7.4 Hydrogen Peroxide Synthesis, 312

9.7.5 Environmental Remediation, 312

9.8 Conclusions and Remarks, 314

References, 315

10 Anaerobic Digestion of Sewage Sludge 319
Kuan-Yeow Show, Duu-Jong Lee, and Joo-Hwa Tay

10.1 Introduction, 319

10.2 Principles of Anaerobic Digestion, 320

10.2.1 Hydrolysis and Acidogenesis, 321

10.2.2 Methane Formation, 323

10.3 Environmental Requirements and Control, 324

10.3.1 pH, 324

10.3.2 Alkalinity, 325

10.3.3 Temperature, 326

10.3.4 Nutrients, 326

10.3.5 Toxicity, 327

10.4 Design Considerations for Anaerobic Sludge Digestion, 329

10.4.1 Hydraulic Detention Time, 329

10.4.2 Solids Loading, 330

10.4.3 Temperature, 331

10.4.4 Mixing, 331

10.5 Component Design of Anaerobic Digester Systems, 331

10.5.1 Tank Configurations, 331

10.5.2 Temperature Control, 333

10.5.3 Sludge Heating, 333

10.5.4 Auxiliary Mixing, 334

10.6 Reactor Configurations, 336

10.6.1 Conventional Anaerobic Digesters, 336

10.6.2 Anaerobic Contact Processes, 338

10.6.3 Other Types of Configurations, 340

10.7 Advantages and Limitations of Anaerobic Sludge Digestion, 343

10.8 Summary and New Horizons, 344

References, 345

11 Mechanical Pretreatment-Assisted Biological Processes 349
He´le`ne Carre`re, Damien J. Batstone, and Etienne Paul

11.1 Introduction, 349

11.2 Mechanisms of Mechanical Pretreatment, 350

11.2.1 From Sludge Disintegration to Cell Lysis and Chemical Transformation, 350

11.2.2 Specific Energy, 350

11.2.3 Sonication, 351

11.2.4 Grinding, 353

11.2.5 Shear-Based Methods: High-Pressure and Collision Plate Homogenization, 353

11.2.6 Lysis Centrifuge, 353

11.3 Impacts of Treatment: Rate vs. Extent of Degradability, 353

11.3.1 Grinding, 354

11.3.2 Ultrasonication, 354

11.4 Equipment for Mechanical Pretreatment, 354

11.4.1 Sonication, 355

11.4.2 Grinding, 357

11.4.3 Shear-Based Methods: High-Pressure and Collision Plate Homogenization, 358

11.4.4 Lysis Centrifuge, 359

11.5 Side Effects, 359

11.6 Mechanical Treatment Combined with Activated Sludge, 360

11.7 Mechanical Treatment Combined with Anaerobic Digestion, 361

11.7.1 Performances, 361

11.7.2 Dewaterability, 363

11.7.3 Full-Scale Performance and Market Penetration, 364

11.7.4 Energy Balance, 365

11.7.5 Nutrient Release and Recovery/Removal, 366

11.8 Conclusion, 367

References, 368

12 Thermal Methods to Enhance Biological Treatment Processes 373
Etienne Paul, He´le`ne Carre`re, and Damien J. Batstone

12.1 Introduction, 373

12.2 Mechanisms, 374

12.2.1 Effects of Heating on Cells, 374

12.2.2 Effect of Heating on Sludge, 376

12.2.3 Mechanisms of Thermal Pretreatment, 388

12.3 Devices for Thermal Treatment, 388

12.3.1 Low-Temperature Pretreatment, 389

12.3.2 High-Temperature Pretreatment, 390

12.4 Applications of Thermal Treatment, 390

12.4.1 Thermal Treatment Combined with Activated Sludge, 390

12.4.2 Thermal Pretreatment to Anaerobic Digestion, 394

12.5 Conclusions, 398

References, 399

13 Combustion, Pyrolysis, and Gasification of Sewage Sludge for Energy Recovery 405
Yong-Qiang Liu, Joo-Hwa Tay, and Yu Liu

13.1 Introduction, 405

13.2 Characteristics and Dewatering of Sewage Sludge, 406

13.3 Energy Recovery from Sludge, 408

13.3.1 Incineration, 408

13.3.2 Pyrolysis and Gasification, 416

13.3.3 Wet Oxidation, 419

13.3.4 Thermal Plasma Pyrolysis and Gasification, 420

References, 421

14 Aerobic Granular Sludge Technology for Wastewater Treatment 429
Bing-Jie Ni and Han-Qing Yu

14.1 Introduction, 429

14.2 Technological Starting Points: Cultivating Aerobic Granules, 431

14.2.1 Substrate Composition, 431

14.2.2 Organic Loading Rate, 433

14.2.3 Seed Sludge, 433

14.2.4 Reactor Configuration, 433

14.2.5 Operational Parameters, 434

14.3 Mechanisms of the Aerobic Granulation Process, 436

14.3.1 Granulation Steps, 436

14.3.2 Selective Pressure, 437

14.4 Characterization of Aerobic Granular Sludge, 438

14.4.1 Biomass Yield and Sludge Reduction, 438

14.4.2 Formation and Consumption of Microbial Products, 440

14.4.3 Microbial Structure and Diversity, 441

14.4.4 Physicochemical Characteristics, 442

14.5 Modeling Granule-Based SBR for Wastewater Treatment, 447

14.5.1 Nutrient Removal in Granule-Based SBRs, 447

14.5.2 Multiscale Modeling of Granule-Based SBR, 450

14.6 Bioremediation of Wastewaters with Aerobic Granular Sludge Technology, 452

14.6.1 Organic Wastewater Treatment, 452

14.6.2 Biological Nutrient Removal, 452

14.6.3 Domestic Wastewater Treatment, 454

14.6.4 Xenobiotic Contaminant Bioremediation, 454

14.6.5 Removal of Heavy Metals or Dyes, 455

14.7 Remarks, 456

References, 457

15 Biodegradable Bioplastics from Fermented Sludge, Wastes, and Effluents 465
Etienne Paul, Elisabeth Neuhauser, and Yu Liu

15.1 Introduction, 465

15.1.1 Context of Poly(hydroxyalkanoate) Production from Sludge and Effluents, 465

15.1.2 Industrial Context for PHA Production, 467

15.2 PHA Structure, 469

15.3 Microbiology for PHA Production, 469

15.4 Metabolism of PHA Production, 471

15.4.1 PHB Metabolism, 472

15.4.2 Metabolism for Other PHA Production, 475

15.4.3 Nutrient Limitations, 476

15.4.4 PHA Metabolism in Mixed Cultures, 477

15.4.5 Effect of Substrate in Mixed Cultures, 478

15.5 PHA Kinetics, 479

15.6 PHA Storage to Minimize Excess Sludge Production in Wastewater Treatment Plants, 481

15.7 Choice of Process and Reactor Design for PHA Production, 482

15.7.1 Criteria, 482

15.7.2 Anaerobic–Aerobic Process, 483

15.7.3 Aerobic Dynamic Feeding Process, 485

15.7.4 Fed-Batch Process Under Nutrient Growth Limitation, 486

15.8 Culture Selection and Enrichment Strategies, 487

15.9 PHA Quality and Recovery, 489

15.10 Industrial Developments, 490

References, 492

Index 499