Browsing by Author "Kent, Jordan"

Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
  • Thumbnail Image
    ItemOpen Access
    Treatment of emerging contaminants in wastewater using an aerobic granular sludge sequencing batch reactor
    (2019-04-24) Kent, Jordan; Tay, Joohwa; Zhou, Qiangwei; Achari, Gopal
    Abstract (abridged): The presence of emerging contaminants in municipal wastewater is a concern since traditional biological technologies often have limited removal of micropollutants. This study evaluated the treatment capability of aerobic granular sludge for 17α-ethinylestradiol, 4-nonylphenol, and carbamazepine using a sequenced batch reactor. This study was comprised of two main stages. The first stage established and optimized the performance of an aerobic granular sludge bed… The second stage was divided into two experiments, the first quantified the amount of each contaminant adsorbed onto the aerobic granule sludge, the second introduced the contaminants into a sequenced batch reactor for a bioreactor operating study…. In summary this study found that aerobic granular sludge had good removal of 17α-ethinylestradiol and nonylphenol but poor removal of carbamazepine, a compound known to be resistant to biodegradation. Adsorption was an effective removal mechanism, but adsorption capacity was quickly saturated. At the lower concentrations commonly-detected adsorption could be a reliable and long-term means of removal. The macronutrient removal by the aerobic granular sludge was resilient and effluent quality did not deteriorate in the presence of these three emerging contaminants. Granule properties were not affected by the presence of the two emerging contaminants that are readily biodegradable. Carbamazepine, however, appeared to interfere with the mechanism of granulation leading to a decrease in the average particle size of the sludge. While the treatment of the emerging contaminants showed only slight increases in removal efficiency compared to conventional activated sludge, the reduced operating cost and facility footprint continue to make aerobic granular sludge an attractive option for municipal wastewater treatment.