Wood and sulfur-based cyclic denitrification filters for treatment of saline wastewaters

Qiaochong He (1) , Erica Dasi (2) , Zhang Cheng (2) , Emmanuel Talla (3) , Kevan Main (4) , Chuanping Feng (5) , Sarina Ergas (2)

1 Henan University of Science and Technology
2 USF - University of South Florida [Tampa]
3 LCB - Laboratoire de chimie bactérienne
4 Mote Marine Laboratory
5 China University of Geosciences [Beijing]

This study investigated the performance and microbiome of cyclic denitrification filters (CDFs) for wood and sulfur heterotrophic-autotrophic denitrification (WSHAD) of saline wastewater. Wood-sulfur CDFs integrated into two pilot-scale marine recirculating aquaculture systems achieved high denitrification rates (103 ± 8.5 g N/(m3·d)). The combined use of pine wood and sulfur resulted in lower SO42− accumulation compared with prior saline wastewater denitrification studies with sulfur alone. Although fish tank water quality parameters, including ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and sulfide, were below the inhibitory levels for marine fish production, lower survival rates of Poecilia sphenops were observed compared with prior studies. Heterotrophic denitrification was the dominant removal mechanism during the early operational stages, while sulfur autotrophic denitrification increased as readily biodegradable organic carbon released from wood chips decreased over time. 16S rRNA-based analysis of the CDF microbiome revealed that Sulfurimonas, Thioalbus, Defluviimonas, and Ornatilinea as notable genera that contributed to denitrification performance.

Keywords: Saline wastewater; Nitrogen balance; Mixotrophic denitrification; Electron donor; Sulfate accumulation; Microbiome analysis

Domains: Life Sciences [q-bio]

Qiaochong He, Erica Dasi, Zhang Cheng, Emmanuel Talla, Kevan Main, et al.. Wood and sulfur-based cyclic denitrification filters for treatment of saline wastewaters. Bioresource Technology, 2021, 328, pp.124848. ⟨10.1016/j.biortech.2021.124848⟩. ⟨hal-03599508⟩