Assessment of aerobic biodegradation of lower-chlorinated benzenes in contaminated groundwater using field-derived microcosms and compound-specific carbon isotope fractionation

Biodegradation of lower chlorinated benzenes(tri-, di-and monochlorobenzene) was assessed at a coastal aquifer contaminated with multiple chlorinated aromatic hydrocarbons. Field-derived microcosms, established with groundwater from the source zone and amended with a mixture of lower chlorinated benzenes, evidenced biodegradation of monochlorobenzene(MCB) and 1,4-dichlorobenzene(1,4-DCB) in aerobic microcosms,whereas the addition of lactate in anaerobic microcosms did not enhance anaerobic reductive dechlorination. Aerobic microcosms established with groundwater from the plume consumed several doses of MCB and concomitantly degraded the three isomers of dichlorobenzene with no observable inhibitory effect. In the light of these results, we assessed the applicability of compound stable isotope analysis to monitor a potential aerobic remediation treatment of MCB and 1,4-DCB in this site. The carbon isotopic fractionation factors(ε) obtained from field-derived microcosms were-0.7‰ ± 0.1 ‰ and-1.0‰ ± 0.2 ‰ for MCB and1,4-DCB, respectively. For 1,4-DCB, the carbon isotope fractionation during aerobic biodegradation was reported for the first time. The weak carbon isotope fractionation values for the aerobic pathway would only allow tracing of in situ degradation in aquifer parts with high extent of biodegradation. However, based on the carbon isotope effects measured in this and previous studies, relatively high carbon isotope shifts(i.e., Δδ13C > 4.0 ‰) of MCB or 1,4-DCB in contaminated groundwater would suggest that their biodegradation is controlled by anaerobic reductive dechlorination.

Elucidating the removal mechanism of N,N-dimethyldithiocarbamate in an anaerobic-anoxic-oxic activated sludge system

N,N-Dimethyldithiocarbamate （DMDTC） is a typical precursor of N-nitrosodimethylamine （NDMA）. Based on separate hydrolysis, sorption and biodegradation studies of DMDTC, a laboratory-scale anaerobic-anoxic-oxic （AAO） system was established to investigate the removal mechanism of DMDTC in this nutrient removal biological treatment system. DMDTC hydrolyzed easily in water solution under either acidic conditions or strong alkaline conditions, and dimethylamine （DMA） was the main hydrolysate. Under anaerobic, anoxic or oxic conditions, DMDTC was biodegraded and completely mineralized. Furthermore, DMA was the main intermediate in DMDTC biodegradation. In the AAO system, the optimal conditions for both nutrient and DMDTC removal were hydraulic retention time 8 hr, sludge retention time 20 day, mixed-liquor return ratio 3：1 and sludge return ratio 1：1. Under these conditions, the removal efficiency of DMDTC reached 99.5%; the removal efficiencies of chemical organic demand, ammonium nitrogen, total nitrogen and total phosphorus were 90%, 98%, 81% and 93%, respectively. Biodegradation is the dominant mechanism for DMDTC removal in the AAO system, which was elucidated as consisting of two steps： first, DMDTC is transformed to DMA in the anaerobic and anoxic units, and then DMA is mineralized to CO2 and NH3 in the anoxic and oxic units. The mineralization of DMDTC in the biological treatment system can effectively avoid the formation of NDMA during subsequent disinfection processes.

Application of high OLR-fed aerobic granules for the treatment of low-strength wastewater: Performance, granule morphology and microbial community

Aerobic granules, pre-cultivated at the organic loading rate （OLR） of 3.0 kg COD/（m3 ·day）, were used to treat low-strength wastewater in two sequencing batch reactors at low OLRs of 1.2 and 0.6 kg COD/（m3 ·day）, respectively. Reactor performance, evolution of granule morphology, structure and microbial community at low OLRs under long-term operation （130 days） were investigated. Results showed that low OLRs did not cause significant damage to granule structure as a dominant granule morphology with size over 540 μm was maintained throughout the operation. Aerobic granules at sizes of about 750 μm were finally obtained at the low OLRs. The granule reactors operated at low OLRs demonstrated effective COD and ammonia removals （above 90%）, smaller granule sizes and less biomass. The contents of extracellular polymeric substances in the granules were decreased while the ratios of exopolysaccharide/exoprotein were increased （above 1.0）. The granules cultivated at the low OLRs showed a smoother surface and more compact structure than the seeded granules. A significant shift in microbial community was observed but the microbial diversity remained relatively stable. Confocal Laser Scanning Microscopy observation showed that the live cells were spread throughout the whole granule, while the dead cells were mainly concentrated in the outer layer of the granule, and the proteins, polysaccharides and lipids were mainly located in the central regime of the granule. In conclusion, granules cultivated at high OLRs show potential for treating low-strength organic wastewater steadily under long-term operation.

Biodegradation of beet molasses vinasse by a mixed culture of micro organisms:Effect of aeration conditions and pH control

The effect of aeration conditions and pH control on the progress and efficiency of beet molasses vinasse biodegradation was investigated during four batch processes at 38°C with the mixed microbial culture composed of Bifidobacterium,Lactobacillus,Lactococcus,Streptococcus,Bacillus,Rhodopseudomonas,and Saccharomyces.The four processes were carried out in a shake flask with no pH control,an aerobic bioreactor without mixing with no pH control,and a stirred-tank reactor （STR） with aeration with and without pH control,respectively.All experiments were started with an initial pH 8.0.The highest efficiency of biodegradation was achieved through the processes conducted in the STR,where betaine （an organic pollutant occurring in beet molasses in very large quantities） was completely degraded by the microorganisms.The process with no pH control carried out in the STR produced the highest reduction in the following pollution measures：organic matter expressed as chemical oxygen demand determined by the dichromatic method ＋ theoretical COD of betaine （COD sum,85.5%）,total organic carbon （TOC,78.8%） and five-day biological oxygen demand （BOD 5,98.6%）.The process conditions applied in the shake flask experiments,as well as those used in the aerobic bioreactor without mixing,failed to provide complete betaine assimilation.As a consequence,reduction in COD sum,TOC and BOD 5 was approximately half that obtained with STR.