LOC 3

BIOREACTORS FOR
WASTEWATER
TREATMENT

Content
-

Biological processes for Industrial Effluent Treatment

Important Microorganisms
Bio-augmentation,
Use of genetically engineered organisms
Aerobic biological treatment
Anaerobic biological treatment
Membrane Bioreactors,
Use of Immobilized Enzymes and Microbial Cells.

BIOLOGICAL TREATMENT
Biological wastewater treatment - use of microbial
life processes in the breakdown of wastewater
pollutants.
Of the current water treatment technologies,
biological treatment has become the worlds
primary means of controlling water pollution

 Biological treatment using aerobic

activated sludge process has been in
practice for over a century.
Increasing pressure to meet more
stringent discharge standards has led
to implementation of a variety of
advanced biological treatment
processes in recent years

The main focus of wastewater treatment

plants is
to reduce the BOD (biochemical oxygen
demand) and COD (chemical oxygen
demand) in the effluent discharged to
natural waters

Important Microorganisms
Domestic sewage is biodegradable.
Microorganisms under favorable conditions
remove dissolved organic solids and colloidal
solids.

Important Microorganisms

 Bacteria are classified into two major groups as

heterotrophic or autotrophic.
Heterotrophs use organic matter as an energy
and a carbon source for synthesis.
These bacteria are further subdivided into three
groups, aerobic, anaerobic and facultative
anaerobes based on their action toward free
oxygen

 Autotrophic bacteria oxidize inorganic

compounds for energy and use carbon dioxide as
a carbon source.
Aerobes require free dissolved oxygen in
decomposing organic matter to gain energy for
growth and multiplication.

 Anaerobes oxidize organics in the absence of

dissolved oxygen by using oxygen bound in other
compounds, such as nitrate and sulphate.
Facultative anaerobes - organisms that can switch
between aerobic and anaerobic types of
metabolism.
Under anaerobic conditions (no O2) they grow by
fermentation or anaerobic respiration, but in the
presence of O2 they switch to aerobic respiration

Important microbes in the

sewage treatment plant
I) Nitrifying bacteria
Aerobes
Convert nitrogenous waste into nitrate
II) Denitrifying bacteria
Anaerobes
Convert nitrate to N2
III) Methanogens
Generate methane from acetate
Or uses H2 and CO2 to make methane
Mostly archaea

Specific Microorganisms
Sulfate reducing bacteria - Desulfovibrio,
Desulfotomachulum, Desulfobacter,
Desulfococcus, Desulfonema, and
Desulfosarcina
at metal removal from water by producing
hydrogen sulfide which precipitate these metals

Settling ponds inoculated with sulfate reducing bacteria

(Desulfovibrio, Desulfotomaculum), and sulfur oxidizing
thiobacilli (Thiobacilli thiooxidants, T. thiopiaus, T.
dentrijkans), and algae (Chara,Spirogyra, Oscillatoria) have
been effective in lowering the concentration of uranium,
selenium, and molybdenum in wastewater.

Desulfovibrio reduces sulfate to sulfide.

Chlorobion and Chromatium photosynthetically oxidize H,S

to elemental sulfur.

 Nitrogen, in its various forms, can

deplete dissolved oxygen levels in receiving
waters,
stimulate aquatic growth,
exhibit toxicity toward aquatic life,
affect chlorine disinfection efficiency,
present public health hazards,
affect the suitability of wastewater reuse.

 Activities that may increase quantities of nitrogen

added to the aquatic environment are from
fertilization of agricultural land
combustion of fossil fuels.
urban and livestock feedlot run-off,
municipal wastewater effluents,
subsurface drainage wastes

 Biological methods include nitrification in

suspended growth and attached growth systems.
The term nitrification is applied to the reaction in
nature of the biological oxidation of ammonium
(NH,) first to the nitrite (NO2), then to the nitrate
(NO3) form
The conversion of ammonium to nitrite is
caused by the bacteria Nitrosomonas as follows:
2NH4 + 302-------- 2N02 + 4H + 2H2O

 nitrite in turn are oxidized by the bacteria

Nitrobacter
2N02 + 02 ----2-N03
overall nitrification reaction is as follows :
NH4 + 202 -------- 4 NO3 + 2H + H2O

Bioaugmentation
Bioaugmentation - the application of
selected microorganisms to enhance the
microbial populations of an operating
waste treatment facility to improve water
quality or lower operating costs

 Assumption - the indigenous population, via

routes such as windblown solids, rain water always contains the best organisms
These bacteria generally are well-suited to handle
the contaminants in the waste influent and will
become acclimated, over time to provide the
desired results, assuming a steady state of
operation is approximated.
Unfortunately, few industrial waste treatment
plants ever achieve steady state

 Typical bioaugmentation products consist of

several strains of bacteria or fungi.
The organisms are isolated and selected based on
:
i) accelerated reproduction rates
ii) good floc forming capabilities to enhance
settling
iii) the ability to degrade specific compounds.
the microbiological population can be viewed as a
workforce

 A critical part of the success of a

bioaugmentation programme is proper
application.
Because every system is unique, it is essential
that products are properly applied.
Bioaugmentation programs should be
implemented with the help of surveying the total
system, assessing the best solution to the impact
of the program.

Benefits of bioaugmentation :
Enhanced BOD removal
Improved solids settling removes the need for
coagulants as organisms that are added are excellent
floc formers
Preferential degradation of specific compounds
adding organisms that can breakdown specific
compounds
Improved Nitrification adding nitrifying bacteria
Controlling faecal coliform levels Odour reduction, oil and grease removal, rapid system
startup and improved tolerance to toxic shocks

BIOLOGICAL TREATMENT
PROCESSES
The BIOLOGICAL treatment process is
categorized as suspended-growth systems,
attached-growth systems or combinations.
Suspended growth processes are the biological
treatment processes in which the microorganisms
are maintained in suspension within the liquid.
Attached-growth processes are the biological
treatment in which the microorganisms are
attached to some inert medium, such as rocks,
slag or specially designed ceramic or plastic
materials. Also known as fixed-film processes.

BIOLOGICAL TREATMENT PROCESSES

i) Aerobic stationary contact systems
)irrigation beds,
)irrigation sand filters, and
)trickling biomass
remains stationary in contact with the solid support
media (sand or rocks) and the wastewater flows
around it.

ii) Aerobic suspended contact systems

the activated sludge process, its variations and
aerobic lagoons comprise this group.
both biomass and substrate are in suspension or
motion.

iii) Anaerobic suspended contact systems anaerobic sludge digestion, anaerobic lagoons,
and later stages of landfills.

 Examples :
i) Aerobic suspended growth systems
activated sludge process
ii) Aerobic attached growth process trickling
filter

ANAEROBIC DIGESTION
Major applications of anaerobic digestion are in
the stabilization of concentrated sludges
produced from the treatment of wastewater and
in the treatment of some industrial wastes.
The digestion is a complex biochemical process in
which several groups of anaerobic and facultative
organisms simultaneously absorb and break down
organic matter.

It is a two-phase process:
i) Facultative, acid-forming organisms convert the
complex
organic substrate to volatile organic acids.
Acetic, propionic,
butyric, and other organic acids are formed.
Lowering of pH
results.
ii) Conversion of the volatile organic acids to
principally methane and carbon dioxide

 The anaerobic process is essentially controlled by the

methane producing bacteria.
Bacteria grow at a relatively low rate - generation times
from slightly less than 2 days to about 22 days.
Methane formers are very sensitive to pH, substrate
composition, and temperature.
If the pH drops below 6, methane formation stops, and
there is no decrease in organic content of the sludge.
The methane bacteria are highly active in the mesophilic
and
thermophilic ranges. The mesophilic range is 26-43C
and
the thermophilic range is 113-149F (45-65C).

 Anaerobic sludge digestion is a continuous process.

Fresh
sewage sludge is added continuously or at frequent
intervals.

The water separated from the sludge (supernatant) is

normally removed as the sludge is added.

Digested sludge is removed at less frequent intervals.

Gas formed during digestion is removed continuously

Membrane BioReactor
Membrane Bioreactor (MBR) is the latest technology
for
biological degradation of soluble organic impurities.
MBR technology has been in extensive usage for
treatment of
domestic sewage.
The MBR process is very similar to the conventional
activated sludge process, in that both have mixed
liquor solids in suspension in an aeration tank.
The difference in the two processes lies in the
method of separation of bio-solids.

 bio-solids are separated by means of a polymeric membrane

based on microfiltration or ultrafiltration unit, as against the
gravity settling process in the secondary clarifier in
conventional activated sludge process.
Therefore, the advantages of MBR system over conventional
activated sludge system are as listed below:
i) Membrane filtration provides a positive barrier to
suspended bio-solids that they cannot escape the
system
unlike gravity settling in activated sludge process, where
the bio-solids continuously escape the system along
with clarified
effluent

ii) aeration tank size in the MBR system can be one-third to onefourth the size of the aeration tank in an activated sludge
system
iii) MBR system requires only 40-60% of the space required for
activated sludge system, therefore significantly reducing the
concrete work and overall foot-print.
iv) Due to membrane filtration (micro/ultrafiltration), the treated
effluent quality in case of MBR system is far superior compared
to
conventional activated sludge, so the treated effluent can be
directly reused as cooling tower make-up or for gardening

 Biotechnology research for the future is striving to

develop new strains of microorganisms and
processes for destruction of organic toxics and
hazardous materials which are immune to
treatment and to shorten process and retention
time.

 Recent research and applications of wastes and

toxics, using biotechnology control :
i)

20 different bacteria are said to be capable of breaking

down polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) into water and carbon
dioxide. One of these organisms from the genus
Alcaliegenes is photoactivated by sunlight. Sunlight
enhances the speed of degradation of PCB by some 400%.
ii) A strain of genetically engineered microorganisms degrades
95% or more of the persistent 2,4,5-T within a week
iii) Scientists have isolated a strain of Pseudomonas that uses
2,4-D as a source of carbon.
iv) Formulation of bacterial mutants are commercially available
for a variety of wastewater treatment problems. Specially
formulated preparations are used for petroleum
refinery/chemical plant wastewater cleanups.
v) Grease eating bacteria having successfully been used in
cleaning clogged sewers