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Denitrification is a microbially facilitated process where nitrate (NO3−) is reduced and ultimately produces molecular nitrogen (N2) through a series of intermediate gaseous nitrogen oxide products. Facultative anaerobic bacteria perform denitrification as a type of respiration that reduces oxidized forms of nitrogen in response to the oxidation of an electron donor such as organic matter. The preferred nitrogen electron acceptors in order of most to least thermodynamically favorable include nitrate (NO3−), nitrite (NO2−), nitric oxide (NO), nitrous oxide (N2O) finally resulting in the production of dinitrogen (N2) completing the nitrogen cycle. Denitrifying microbes require a very low oxygen concentration of less than 10%, as well as organic C for energy. Since denitrification can remove NO3−, reducing its leaching to groundwater, it can be strategically used to treat sewage or animal residues of high nitrogen content. Denitrification can leak N2O, which is an ozone-depleting substance and a greenhouse gas that can have a considerable influence on global warming.
Biological augmentation is the addition of archaea or bacterial cultures required to speed up the rate of degradation of a contaminant. Organisms that originate from contaminated areas may already be able to break down waste, but perhaps inefficiently and slowly.
Microbial fuel cell (MFC) is a type of bioelectrochemical fuel cell system also known as micro fuel cell that generates electric current by diverting electrons produced from the microbial oxidation of reduced compounds on the anode to oxidized compounds such as oxygen on the cathode through an external electrical circuit. MFCs produce electricity by using the electrons derived from biochemical reactions catalyzed by bacteria. Comprehensive Biotechnology MFCs can be grouped into two general categories: mediated and unmediated. The first MFCs, demonstrated in the early 20th century, used a mediator: a chemical that transfers electrons from the bacteria in the cell to the anode. Unmediated MFCs emerged in the 1970s; in this type of MFC the bacteria typically have electrochemically active redox proteins such as cytochromes on their outer membrane that can transfer electrons directly to the anode. In the 21st century MFCs have started to find commercial use in wastewater treatment.
Aerobic granular reactors (AGR) or Aerobic granular sludge (AGS) are a community of microbial organisms, typically around 0.5-3mm in diameter, that remove carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus and other pollutants in a single sludge system. It can also be used for wastewater treatments. Aerobic granular sludge is composed of bacteria, protozoa and fungi, which allows oxygen to follow in and biologically oxidize organic pollutants. AGS is a type of wastewater treatment process for sewages and/or industrial waste treatment. AGR was first discovered by UK engineers, Edward Ardern and W.T. Lockett who were researching better ways for sewage disposal. Another scientist by the name of Dr. Gilbert Fowler, who was at the University of Manchester working on an experiment based on aeration of sewage in a bottle coated with algae. Eventually, all three scientists were able to collaborate with one another to discover AGR/AGS.
King Abdullah University of Science and Technology is a public research university located in Thuwal, Saudi Arabia. Founded in 2009, the university provides research and graduate training programs in English as the official language of instruction. It is named after King Abdullah bin Abdulalziz, the ruler of Saudi Arabia from 2005 until 2015.
Sewage treatment is a type of wastewater treatment which aims to remove contaminants from sewage to produce an effluent that is suitable to discharge to the surrounding environment or an intended reuse application, thereby preventing water pollution from raw sewage discharges. Sewage contains wastewater from households and businesses and possibly pre-treated industrial wastewater. There are a high number of sewage treatment processes to choose from. These can range from decentralized systems to large centralized systems involving a network of pipes and pump stations which convey the sewage to a treatment plant. For cities that have a combined sewer, the sewers will also carry urban runoff (stormwater) to the sewage treatment plant. Sewage treatment often involves two main stages, called primary and secondary treatment, while advanced treatment also incorporates a tertiary treatment stage with polishing processes and nutrient removal. Secondary treatment can reduce organic matter from sewage, using aerobic or anaerobic biological processes. A so-called quarternary treatment step can also be added for the removal of organic micropollutants, such as pharmaceuticals. This has been implemented in full-scale for example in Sweden.
Membrane bioreactors are combinations of membrane processes like microfiltration or ultrafiltration with a biological wastewater treatment process, the activated sludge process. These technologies are now widely used for municipal and industrial wastewater treatment. The two basic membrane bioreactor configurations are the submerged membrane bioreactor and the side stream membrane bioreactor. In the submerged configuration, the membrane is located inside the biological reactor and submerged in the wastewater, while in a side stream membrane bioreactor, the membrane is located outside the reactor as an additional step after biological treatment.
The biological treatment of wastewater in the sewage treatment plant is often accomplished using conventional activated sludge systems. These systems generally require large surface areas for treatment and biomass separation units due to the generally poor settling properties of the sludge. Aerobic granules are a type of sludge that can self-immobilize flocs and microorganisms into spherical and strong compact structures. The advantages of aerobic granular sludge are excellent settleability, high biomass retention, simultaneous nutrient removal and tolerance to toxicity. Recent studies show that aerobic granular sludge treatment could be a potentially good method to treat high strength wastewaters with nutrients, toxic substances.
Shaheen is the name of a series of supercomputers owned and operated by King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Saudi Arabia. Shaheen is named after the Peregrine Falcon. The most recent model, Shaheen III, is the largest and most powerful supercomputer in the Middle East.
A Bioelectrochemical reactor is a type of bioreactor where bioelectrochemical processes are used to degrade/produce organic materials using microorganisms. This bioreactor has two compartments: The anode, where the oxidation reaction takes place; And the cathode, where the reduction occurs. At these sites, electrons are passed to and from microbes to power reduction of protons, breakdown of organic waste, or other desired processes. They are used in microbial electrosynthesis, environmental remediation, and electrochemical energy conversion. Examples of bioelectrochemical reactors include microbial electrolysis cells, microbial fuel cells, enzymatic biofuel cells, electrolysis cells, microbial electrosynthesis cells, and biobatteries.
Daniel Barton Oerther is an American professor. He is best known for leadership bridging engineering and nursing to advance environmental health practice through science diplomacy. Oerther uses 16S ribosomal RNA-targeted techniques for fundamental studies of the ecology of bacteria in engineered and natural systems. He promotes transdisciplinarity among engineers, nurses, and sanitarians to improve access to clean water, nutritious food, and efficient energy use in developing communities. Oerther practices innovation in the scholarship of teaching and learning, including modified mastery learning.
Reuse of human excreta is the safe, beneficial use of treated human excreta after applying suitable treatment steps and risk management approaches that are customized for the intended reuse application. Beneficial uses of the treated excreta may focus on using the plant-available nutrients that are contained in the treated excreta. They may also make use of the organic matter and energy contained in the excreta. To a lesser extent, reuse of the excreta's water content might also take place, although this is better known as water reclamation from municipal wastewater. The intended reuse applications for the nutrient content may include: soil conditioner or fertilizer in agriculture or horticultural activities. Other reuse applications, which focus more on the organic matter content of the excreta, include use as a fuel source or as an energy source in the form of biogas.
Kartik Chandran is an American environmental engineer at Columbia University, where he is a professor in the Department of Earth and Environmental Engineering. He primarily works on the interface between environmental molecular and microbiology, environmental biotechnology and environmental engineering. The focus of his research is on elucidating the molecular microbial ecology and metabolic pathways of the microbial nitrogen cycle. Applications of his work have ranged from energy and resource efficient treatment of nitrogen containing wastewater streams, development and implementation of sustainable approaches to sanitation to novel models for resource recovery. Under his stewardship, the directions of biological wastewater treatment and biological nutrient removal were established for the first ever time in the history of Columbia University.
A floc is a type of microbial aggregate that may be contrasted with biofilms and granules, or else considered a specialized type of biofilm. Flocs appear as cloudy suspensions of cells floating in water, rather than attached to and growing on a surface like most biofilms. The floc typically is held together by a matrix of extracellular polymeric substance (EPS), which may contain variable amounts of polysaccharide, protein, and other biopolymers. The formation and the properties of flocs may affect the performance of industrial water treatment bioreactors such as activated sludge systems where the flocs form a sludge blanket.
Cigdem Eskicioglu is a Turkish-Canadian engineer, and a professor at the University of British Columbia. She holds a Senior Industrial Research Chair in the School of Engineering at the University of British Columbia.
Linda Louise Blackall is an Australian microbiologist who has studied microbial communities and their applications in water management. She is professor of environmental microbiology at the University of Melbourne.
Microbial electrochemical technologies (METs) use microorganisms as electrochemical catalyst, merging the microbial metabolism with electrochemical processes for the production of bioelectricity, biofuels, H2 and other valuable chemicals. Microbial fuel cells (MFC) and microbial electrolysis cells (MEC) are prominent examples of METs. While MFC is used to generate electricity from organic matter typically associated with wastewater treatment, MEC use electricity to drive chemical reactions such as the production of H2 or methane. Recently, microbial electrosynthesis cells (MES) have also emerged as a promising MET, where valuable chemicals can be produced in the cathode compartment. Other MET applications include microbial remediation cell, microbial desalination cell, microbial solar cell, microbial chemical cell, etc.,.
Francis de los Reyes III is a Filipino-American environmental engineer, academic, and global sanitation advocate. He is the Glenn E. and Phyllis J. Futrell Distinguished Professor and Alumni Distinguished Undergraduate Professor in the Department of Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering at North Carolina State University.
References
- ↑ Bashraheel, Aseel (2020-01-21). "A Saudi Eco-friendly food waste startup brings value-added benefits". Arab News. Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Retrieved 2020-12-20.
- ↑ "Briny Pool Bacteria Can Clean Up and Power Up". R and D World. 2017-11-07. Retrieved 2020-12-20.
- ↑ "Serving the unserved population of Saudi Arabia with KAUST invented decentralized wastewater recycling system". Water Desalination and Reuse Center. 2020-06-04. Retrieved 2020-12-20.
- ↑ "ISMET Awards 2020". The International Society for Microbial Electrochemistry and Technology. 2020-10-12. Retrieved 2020-12-20.
- ↑ "KAUST team develops new chemolithoautotroph bioreactor to convert CO2 to chemicals". Green Car Congress. 2018-12-11. Retrieved 2020-12-20.
- ↑ "Bionic catalysts to produce clean energy". Phys.org. 2019-07-02. Retrieved 2020-12-20.
- ↑ "Scientists Are Considering Using Saltwater Instead Of Freshwater In Your Toilet, Here's Why". Moms.com. 2020-02-07. Retrieved 2020-12-20.
