Advances in sulfur conversion-associated enhanced biological phosphorus removal in sulfate-rich wastewater treatment: A review

Differential mediation of biogeochemical processes through bioturbation by fiddler and sesarmid mangrove crabs

Macrobenthic bioturbation is vital to facilitate nutrient turnover in estuarine ecosystems and drives spatial heterogeneity in the sediment matrix. In this study, we compared the sediment physico-chemical properties, microbial community structure and functional genes in vertically-stratified sediment samples from bioturbated (burrows of Parasesarma bidens and Tubuca arcuata) and non-bioturbated area in mangrove ecosystems (the Hanjiang River Estuary, Southern China). The result indicated that bioturbation by P. bidens and T. arcuata had significantly different effects on sediment properties, with the action of P. bidens enhancing nutrient accumulation while T. arcuata promoted N2O emission. Burrow microhabitats harbored distinctive microbial communities although the dominant phylum and genera shared considerable similarity with the control sediment surface with Woeseia dominating in vertical profiles across different habitats. Co-occurrence network analysis revealed that crab bioturbation promoted formation of less complex but more functionally-specialized microbial communities. Crab bioturbation enhanced nutrient metabolism and separated clusters in dendrogram demonstrated the species-specific effect between P. bidens and T. arcuata. Our work verified the significance of bioturbators in regulating biogeochemical processes and highlighted the species-specific bioturbation effect between two dominant mangrove crabs (P. bidens vs. T. arcuata).

Characterization by 16S Amplicon Sequencing of Bacterial Communities Overall and During the Maturation Process of Peloids in Two Spas of an Italian Thermal Complex

Peloids are made by mixing clay materials with thermo-mineral waters, enriched with organic substances from microorganisms during maturation. Their beneficial properties may depend on clay minerals, water characteristics, and microbial components, although strong evidence is lacking. Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) allows a comprehensive approach to studying the entire microbial community, including cultivable and uncultivable bacteria. Our study aims to characterize, by NGS, the bacterial community overall and during the maturation process of thermal muds in two spas (A-B) of an Italian thermal complex. Peloids were produced from sulfurous-bromine-iodine thermal water and clay material: natural mud for spa A and sterile clay for spa B. Thermal waters and peloids at different maturation stages (2/4/6 months) were analyzed for microbiome characterization by 16S amplicon sequencing. Biodiversity profiles showed a low level of similarity between peloids and water used for their maturation. Peloids from spa A showed greater microbial richness than those from spa B, suggesting that natural mud with an existing bacterial community leads to greater biodiversity than sterile clay. Genera involved in sulfur metabolism were prevalent in both spas, as expected considering peloids matured in sulfide-rich water. For all three maturation stages, the prevalent genera were Thiobacillus and Pelobacter in spa A and Thiobacillus, Thauera, Pelobacter, and Desulfuromonas in spa B. Richness and diversity indices showed that the community seemed to stabilize after 2-4 months. The 16S amplicon sequencing to study bacterial communities enables the identification of a biological signature that characterizes a specific thermal matrix, defining its therapeutic and cosmetic properties. The bacterial composition of peloids is affected by the thermal water and the type of clay material used in their formulation and maturation.

Intertwining of the C-N-S cycle in passive and aerated constructed wetlands

The microbial processes occurring in constructed wetlands (CWs) are difficult to understand owing to the complex interactions occurring between a variety of substrates, microorganisms, and plants under the given physicochemical conditions. This frequently leads to very large unexplained nitrogen losses in these systems. In continuation of our findings on Anammox contributions, our research on full-scale field CWs has suggested the significant involvement of the sulfur cycle in the conventional C-N cycle occurring in wetlands, which might closely explain the nitrogen losses in these systems. This paper explored the possibility of the sulfur-driven autotrophic denitrification (SDAD) pathway in different types of CWs, shallow and deep and passive and aerated systems, by analyzing the metagenomic bacterial communities present within these CWs. The results indicate a higher abundance of SDAD bacteria (Paracoccus and Arcobacter) in deep passive systems compared to shallow systems and presence of a large number of SDAD genera (Paracoccus, Thiobacillus, Beggiatoa, Sulfurimonas, Arcobacter, and Sulfuricurvum) in aerated CWs. The bacteria belonging to the functional category of dark oxidation of sulfur compounds were found to be enriched in deep and aerated CWs hinting at the possible role of the SDAD pathway in total nitrogen removal in these systems. As a case study, the percentage nitrogen removal through SDAD pathway was calculated to be 15-20% in aerated wetlands. The presence of autotrophic pathways for nitrogen removal can prove highly beneficial in terms of reducing sludge generation and hence reducing clogging, making aerated CWs a sustainable wastewater treatment solution.

Optimization of a Novel Engineered Ecosystem Integrating Carbon, Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Sulfur Biotransformation for Saline Wastewater Treatment Using an Interpretable Machine Learning Approach

The denitrifying sulfur (S) conversion-associated enhanced biological phosphorus removal (DS-EBPR) process for treating saline wastewater is characterized by its unique microbial ecology that integrates carbon (C), nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and S biotransformation. However, operational instability arises due to the numerous parameters and intricates bacterial interactions. This study introduces a two-stage interpretable machine learning approach to predict S conversion-driven P removal efficiency and optimize DS-EBPR process. Stage one utilized the XGBoost regression model, achieving an R2 value of 0.948 for predicting sulfate reduction (SR) intensity from anaerobic parameters with feature engineering. Stage two involved the CatBoost classification and regression model integrating anoxic parameters with the predicted SR values for predicting P removal, reaching an accuracy of 94% and an R2 value of 0.93, respectively. This study identified key environmental factors, including SR intensity (20-45 mg S/L), influent P concentration (<9.0 mg P/L), mixed liquor volatile suspended solids (MLVSS)/mixed liquor suspended solids (MLSS) ratio (0.55-0.72), influent C/S ratio (0.5-1.0), anoxic reaction time (5-6 h), and MLSS concentration (>6.50 g/L). A user-friendly graphic interface was developed to facilitate easier optimization and control. This approach streamlines the determination of optimal conditions for enhancing P removal in the DS-EBPR process.

Enhanced reduction of sulfate by iron-carbon microelectrolysis: interaction mechanism between microelectrolysis and microorganisms

Sulfate wastewater has a wide range of sources and greatly harms water, soil, and plants. Iron-carbon microelectrolysis (IC-ME) is a potentially sustainable strategy to improve the treatment of sulfate (SO42-) wastewater by sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB). In this study, an iron-carbon mixed micro-electrolysis bioreactor (R1), iron-carbon layered bioreactor (R2), activated carbon bioreactor (R3), and scrap iron filing bioreactor (R4) were constructed by up-flow column experimental device. The performance and mechanism of removing high-concentration sulfate wastewater under different sulfate concentrations, hydraulic retention times (HRT), and chemical oxygen demand (COD)/SO42- were discussed. The results show that the iron-carbon microelectrolysis-enhanced SRB technology can remove high-concentration sulfate wastewater, and the system can still operate normally at low pH. In the high hydraulic loading stage (HRT = 12 h, COD/SO42-  = 1.4), the SO42- removal rate of the R1 reactor reached 98.08%, and the ORP value was stable between - 350 and - 450 mV, providing a good ORP environment for SRB. When HRT = 12 h and influent COD/SO42-  = 1.4, the R1 reactor sulfate removal rate reached 96.7%. When the influent COD/SO42-  = 0.7, the sulfate removal rate was 52.9%, higher than the control group. Biological community analysis showed that the abundance of SRB in the R1 reactor was higher than that in the other three groups, indicating that the IC-ME bioreactor could promote the enrichment of SRB and improve its population competitive advantage. It can be seen that the synergistic effect between IC-ME and biology plays a vital role in the treatment of high-concentration sulfate wastewater and improves the biodegradability of sulfate. It is a promising process for treating high-concentration sulfate wastewater.

Subtle magnesium liberation of self-fabricated functional filler actuates highly efficient phosphorus removal from source-separated urine by SBBR

Domestic wastewater source-separated treatment has attracted wide attention due to the efficiency improvement of sewage treatment systems, energy saving, resource reuse, and the construction and operation cost saving of pipeline networks. Nonetheless, the excess source-separated urine still demands further harmless treatment. Sequencing batch biofilm reactor (SBBR), a new type of composite biofilm reactor developed by filling different fillers into the sequential batch reactor (SBR) reactor, has higher pollutant removal performance and simpler operation and maintenance. However, the phosphorus removal ability of the SBBR filling with conventional fillers is still limited and needs further improvement. In this study, we developed two new fillers, the self-fabricated filler A and B (SFA/SFB), and compared their source-separated urine treatment performance. Long-term treatment experimental results demonstrated that the SBBR systems with different fillers had good removal performance on the COD and TN in the influent, and the removal rate increased with the increasing HRT. However, only the SBBR system with the SFA showed excellent PO43--P and TP removal performance, with the removal rates being 83.7 ± 11.9% and 77.3 ± 13.7% when the HRT was 1 d. Microbial community analysis results indicated that no special bacteria with strong phosphorus removal ability were present on the surface of the SFA. Adsorption experimental results suggested that the SFA had better adsorption performance for phosphorus than the SFB, but it could not always have stronger phosphorus adsorption and removal performance during long-term operation due to the adsorption saturation. Through a series of characterizations such as SEM, XRD, and BET, it was found that the SFA had a looser structure due to the use of different binder and production processes, and the magnesium in the SFA gradually released and reacted with PO43- and NH4+ in the source-separated urine to form dittmarite and struvite, thus achieving efficient phosphorus removal. This study provides a feasible manner for the efficient treatment of source-separated urine using the SBBR system with self-fabricated fillers.

Machine learning facilitated the conceptual design of an alum dosing system for phosphorus removal in a wastewater treatment plant

Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) face challenges in controlling total phosphorus (TP), given more stringent regulations on TP discharging. In particular, WWTPs that operate at a small scale lack resources for real-time monitoring of effluent quality. This study aimed to develop a conceptual alum dosing system for reducing TP concentration, leveraging machine learning (ML) techniques and data from a full-scale WWTP containing incomplete TP information. The proposed system comprises two ML models in series: an Alert model based on LightGBM with an accuracy of 0.92, and a Dosage model employing a voting algorithm through combining three ML algorithms (LightGBM, SGD, and SVC) with an accuracy of 0.76. The proposed system has demonstrated the potential to ensure that 88.1% of the effluent remains below the TP discharge limit, which outperforms traditional dosing methods and could reduce overdosing from 61.3 to 12.1%. Furthermore, the SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) analysis revealed that incorporating the output features from the previous cycle and utilizing the results of the Alert model as the input features for dosage prediction could be an effective method for data with limited information. The findings of this study have practical applications in improving the efficiency and effectiveness of TP control in small-scale WWTPs, providing a valuable solution for complying with stringent regulations and enhancing environmental sustainability.

Insight into the potentiality of nano zero-valent iron on enhancing the nitrite accumulation and phosphorus removal performance of endogenous partial denitrification systems

Endogenous partial denitrification (EPD) has drawn a lot of interest due to its abundant nitrite (NO2--N) accumulation capacity. However, the poor phosphate (PO43--P) removal rate of EPD restricts its promotion and application. In this study, the potentiality of various nano zero-valent iron (nZVI) concentrations (0, 20, 40, and 80 mg/L) on NO2--N accumulation and PO43--P removal in EPD systems had been investigated. Results showed that nZVI improved NO2--N accumulation and PO43--P removal, with the greatest nitrate-to-nitrite transformation ratio (NTR) and PO43--P removal rate of 97.74 % and 64.76 % respectively at the optimum nZVI level (80 mg/L). Microbial community analysis also proved that nZVI had a remarkable influence on the microbial community of EPD. Candidatus_Competibacter was contribute to NO2--N accumulation which was enriched from 24.74 % to 40.02 %. The enrichment of Thauera, Rhodobacteraceae, Pseudomonas were contributed to PO43--P removal. The chemistry of nZVI not only compensated for the deficiency of biological PO43--P removal, but also enhanced NO2--N enrichment. Therefore, nZVI had the huge potentiality to improve the operational performance of the EPD system.

Long-term effects of thiosulfate on the competition between sulfur-mediated bacteria and glycogen accumulating organisms in sulfate-rich carbon-deficient wastewater

Sewage nutrient (e.g., nitrogen and phosphorus) biological removal performance is often limited by the deficient carbon source and undesirable glycogen accumulating organisms (GAOs), even in sulfate-containing wastewater. Thiosulfate (S2O32-) as a bioavailable, environmentally-benign, metastable and cost-effective agent has been regarded as electron carriers that induces high sulfur-mediated bacterial activity for nutrient removal from wastewater. In this study, the long-term effects of thiosulfate on the competition between sulfur-mediated bacteria (SMB, including sulfur-reducing bacteria (SRB) and sulfur-oxidizing bacteria (SOB)) and GAOs were explored to further close the gap of our knowledge on the control of GAOs under carbon deficient wastewater. Three reactors were continuously operated for over 100 days and were fed with 200 mg acetate-COD/L and 20 (R1), 50 (R2) and 80 (R3) mg S/L thiosulfate respectively. The results revealed that adding thiosulfate at the beginning of the anoxic phase promoted sulfur metabolism and increased the proliferation of SRB (mainly Desulfobacter) and SOB (mainly Chromatiaceae). Correspondingly, the relative abundance of GAOs (mainly Candidatus_Competibacter) decreased. After the carbon source was reduced, the abundance of GAOs increased and the competitive activity of SRB was weakened, resulting in the reduced sulfate reduction, which could be attributed to the fact that GAOs had a higher carbon source competitiveness than SRB under low carbon source conditions. While SOB maintained a high abundance due to the addition of thiosulfate as an additional electron donor, which enhanced the denitrification efficiency. Additionally, the dominant SOB shifted from Thiobacillus to Chromatiaceae during the long-term operation, indicating that Chromatiaceae had a higher competitive advantage for reduced sulfur (e.g., S2O32-, Polysulfide (Poly-S)) and nitrate compared to Thiobacillus. Furthermore, microbial functional genes revealed that S metabolism was enhanced during long-term operation. The potential mechanism and optimization strategy regarding the competition between sulfur-mediated bacteria and GAOs were revealed.

Bacterial distinctions in practical rural sewage collection systems caused by the location, season, and system type

Bacteria in rural sewage collection systems have the important influences on operation and maintenance risks, such as sedimentation blockage and harmful gas accumulation, and pollutant pre-treatment ability. It is necessary to analyze and interpret the influence on bacterial communities caused by the location (sewage, biofilms, and deposits), season (winter and spring, summer and autumn), and system type (sewers and ditches) to better understand the bacterial characteristics in rural sewage collection systems. To achieve the above purpose, 96 samples obtained from practical rural sewage collection systems in eight villages were analyzed by 16S rRNA whole region sequencing methods. The results indicate that locations and seasons caused significant influences on the overall bacterial communities, which were mainly affected by temperature, sewage quality and bacterial survival preference, and 13 genera of sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB), 2 genera of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB), 2 genera of nitrite-oxidizing bacteria (NOB), and 9 genera of water-related pathogenic bacteria (WPB) were detected in rural sewage collection systems. SRB, AOB, NOB, and WPB tended to inhabit in biofilms or deposits rather than in sewage. The total relative abundance of SRB in summer and autumn (∼2.19%) was higher than in winter and spring (∼0.41%), and the WPB distribution in different seasons showed significant distinction. Additionally, some of SRB, AOB, NOB, and WPB also showed significant differences in sewers and ditches. Overall, this study provided a deeper understanding of bacteria in rural sewage collection systems and could further provide the basic parameter for the operation and maintenance risk control.

Investigate the anaerobic degradation of high-acetone latex wastewater with magnetite supplement

This study evaluated the effects of acetone on the anaerobic degradation of synthetic latex wastewater, which was simulated from the wastewater of the deproteinized natural rubber production process, including latex, acetate, propionate, and acetone as the main carbon sources, at a batch scale in 5 cycles of a total of 60 days. Fe3O4 was applied to accelerate the treatment performance from cycle 3. Acetone was added in concentration ranges of 0%, 0.05%, 0.1%, 0.15%-included latex, and 0.15%-free latex (w/v). In the Fe3O4-free cycles, for latex-added vials, soluble chemical oxygen demand (sCOD) was removed at 43.20%, 43.20%, and 12.65%, corresponding to the input acetone concentrations varying from 0.05% to 0.15%, indicating the interference of acetone for COD reduction. After adding Fe3O4, all flasks reported a significant increase in COD removal efficiency, especially for acetone-only and latex-only vials, from 36.9% to 14.30%-42.95% and 83.20%, respectively. Other highlighted results of COD balance showed that Fe3O4 involvement improved the degradation process of acetate, propionate, acetone, and the other COD parts, including the intermediate products of latex reduction. Besides, during the whole batch process, the order of reduction priority of the carbon sources in the synthetic wastewater was acetate, propionate and acetone. We also found that the acetate concentration appeared to be strongly related to reducing other carbon sources in natural rubber wastewater. Microbial community analysis revealed that protein-degrading bacteria Bacteroidetes vadinHA17 and Proteinniphilum and methylotrophic methanogens might play key roles in treating simulated deproteinized-natural-rubber wastewater.

Performance of fish sludge solubilization and phototrophic bioconversion by purple phototrophic bacteria for nutrient recovery in aquaponic system

Nutrient recovery from fish sludge in aquaponics is crucial to improve the economic output of a system sustainably and hygienically. Currently, fish sludge is treated using conventional anaerobic and aerobic mineralization, which does not allow the recovery of valuable nutrients in fish wastes. In this study, a two-stage approach (named as solubilization process and phototrophic bioconversion) is proposed to convert fish sludge into mineral nutrients and biomass nutrients using purple phototrophic bacteria (PPB), thereby promoting the growth of plants and fish simultaneously in aquaponics. Anaerobic and aerobic solubilization methods are tested to pretreat the fish sludge, generating substrates for PPB. Anaerobic solubilization yields 2.1 times more soluble chemical oxygen demand (SCOD) and 3.7 times more total volatile fatty acid (t-VFA) from fish sludge compared with aerobic solubilization. The anaerobic solubilization effluent indicates a CODt-VFA/SCOD of 60% and a VFA comprising 13.3% acetate and 49.0% propionate for PPB. The phototrophic bioconversion using anaerobic solubilization effluent under the light-anaerobic condition results in the highest biomass yield (0.94 g CODbiomass/g CODremoved) and the highest PPB dominance (Ectothiorhodospira, 58.7%). The anaerobic solubilization and light-anaerobic phototrophic bioconversion achieves 54.1% of carbon recovery efficiency (CRE) (in terms of COD), as well as 44.8% and 91.3% of nutrient recovery efficiency (NRE) for N and P. A novel multiloop aquaponic system combined with PPB-based nutrient recovery is proposed for the reuse of mineral nutrients and PPB biomass generated from fish sludge.

Simultaneous nitrogen and sulfur removal through synergy of sulfammox, anammox and sulfur-driven autotrophic denitrification in a modified bioreactor enhanced by activated carbon

Anaerobic ammonium (NH₄⁺ - N) oxidation coupled with sulfate (SO₄^2-) reduction (sulfammox) is a new pathway for the autotrophic removal of nitrogen and sulfur from wastewater. Sulfammox was achieved in a modified up-flow anaerobic bioreactor filled with granular activated carbon. After 70 days of operation, the NH₄⁺ - N removal efficiency almost reached 70%, with activated carbon adsorption and biological reaction accounting for 26% and 74%, respectively. Ammonium hydrosulfide (NH₄SH) was found in sulfammox by X-ray diffraction analysis for the first time, which confirmed that hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) was one of the sulfammox products. Microbial results indicated that NH₄⁺ - N oxidation and SO₄^2- reduction in sulfammox were carried out by Crenothrix and Desulfobacterota, respectively, in which activated carbon may operate as electron shuttle. In the ¹⁵NH₄⁺ labeled experiment, ³⁰N₂ were produced at a rate of 34.14 μmol/(g sludge·h) and no ³⁰N₂ was detected in the chemical control group, proving that sulfammox was present and could only be induced by microorganisms. The ¹⁵NO₃^- labeled group produced ³⁰N₂ at a rate of 88.77 μmol/(g sludge·h), demonstrating the presence of sulfur-driven autotrophic denitrification. In the adding ¹⁴NH₄⁺ and ¹⁵NO₃^- group, it was confirmed that NH₄⁺ - N was removed by the synergy of sulfammox, anammox and sulfur-driven autotrophic denitrification, where the main product of sulfammox was nitrite (NO₂^-) and anammox was the main cause of nitrogen loss. The findings showed that SO₄^2- as a non-polluting species to environment may substitute NO₂^- to create a new "anammox" process.

Integration of the sulfate reduction and anammox processes for enhancing sustainable nitrogen removal in granular sludge reactors

The Anammox and Sulfate Reduction Ammonium Oxidation processes were compared in two granular sequencing batch reactors operated for 160 days under anammox conditions. It was hypothesized that increasing the concentration of SO₄^2- may positively influence the rate of N removal under anaerobic conditions and it was tested whether SO₄^2- reduction and anammox occur independently or are related to each other. The cooperation of N-S cycles by increasing the concentration of influent SO₄^2- to 952 mg S/L in the second reactor, a higher ammonium utilization rate and sulfate utilization rate was achieved compared to the first reactor, i.e., 2.1-fold and 15-fold, respectively. Nitrosomonas played the dominant role in the N metabolism, while Thauera - in the S metabolism. This study highlights the benefits of linking the N-S cycles as an effective approach for the treatment of NH₄⁺ and SO₄^2- - rich wastewater, including lower substrate removal cost and reduced energy consumption.

Electron transfer routes in nitrate-pentavalent vanadium co-contaminated system of oligotrophic microbiology niche

Microbial techniques have been extensively used for the remediation of nitrate and V(V) co-contaminations, but the mechanisms of electron and substances transport and metabolism of co-contaminations under oligotrophic niche have been largely overlooked. This study quantified the electron transfer and consumption, substance transfer, and metabolic pathways in the nitrate and V(V) co-contamination system under oligotrophic condition to explore the underlying mechanisms by characterizing the products and elucidating conventional cognitive pathways. This study compared the composition of the precipitates under the conditions of sufficient and insufficient carbon sources using energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and discovered the re-oxidation process of the already reduced V(IV). Electronic evidence for the re-oxidation process of V(IV) was also provided by electron transfer and quantitative analysis. Besides, this study found that the electron contribution ratio of NO₃^--N → NO₂^--N and V(V) → V(IV) reduction was 40.2:1. In addition, based on the functional prediction of PICRUSt 2, it was found that the utilization of intracellular reserve carbon source and enzymes in the transport chain were enhanced in oligotrophic microbiology niche. These results provide new insights into the stability of co-contamination reduction in oligotrophic microbiology niche and demonstrate a new mobilization pathway for V(V) in oligotrophic systems.

Evaluation of selenite reduction under salinity and sulfate stress in anaerobic membrane bioreactor

Current microbial reduction technologies have been proven to be suitable for decontaminating industrial wastewaters containing high concentrations of selenium (Se) oxyanions, however, their application is strictly limited by the elemental Se (Se0) accumulation in the system effluents. In this work, a continuous-flow anaerobic membrane bioreactor (AnMBR) was employed for the first time to treat synthetic wastewater containing 0.2 mM soluble selenite (SeO3 2-). The SeO3 2- removal efficiency by the AnMBR was approachable to 100% in most of the time, regardless of the fluctuation in influent salinity and sulfate (SO4 2-) stress. Se0 particles were always undetectable in the system effluents, owing to their interception by the surface micropores and adhering cake layer of membranes. High salt stress led to the aggravated membrane fouling and diminished content ratio of protein to polysaccharide in the cake layer-contained microbial products. The results of physicochemical characterization suggested that the sludge-attached Se0 particles presented either sphere- or rod-like morphology, hexagonal crystalline structure and were entrapped by the organic capping layer. According to the microbial community analysis, increasing influent salinity led to the diminished population of non-halotolerant Se-reducer (Acinetobacter) and increased abundance of halotolerant sulfate reducing bacteria (Desulfomicrobium). In the absence of Acinetobacter, the efficient SeO3 2- abatement performance of the system could still be maintained, as a result of the abiotic reaction between SeO3 2- and S2- generated by Desulfomicrobium, which then gave rise to the production of Se0 and S0.

Efficient Wastewater Treatment and Removal of Bisphenol A and Diclofenac in Mesocosm Flow Constructed Wetlands Using Granulated Cork as Emerged Substrate

Constructed wetlands (CWs) are considered as low-cost and energy-efficient wastewater treatment systems. Media selection is one of the essential technical keys for their implementation. The purpose of this work was essentially to evaluate the removal efficiency of organic pollution and nitrogen from municipal wastewater (MWW) using different selected media (gravel/gravel amended with granulated cork) in mesocosm horizontal flow constructed wetlands (HFCWs). The results showed that the highest chemical oxygen demand (COD) and ammonium nitrogen removal of 80.53% and 42%, respectively, were recorded in the units filled with gravel amended with cork. The influence of macrophytes (Phragmites australis and Typha angustifolia) was studied and both species showed steeper efficiencies. The system was operated under different hydraulic retention times (HRTs) i.e., 6 h, 24 h, 30 h, and 48 h. The obtained results revealed that the COD removal efficiency was significantly enhanced by up to 38% counter to the ammonium rates when HRT was increased from 6 h to 48 h. Moreover, the removal efficiency of two endocrine-disrupting compounds (EDCs) namely, bisphenol A (BPA) and diclofenac (DCF) was investigated in two selected HFCWs, at 48 h HRT. The achieved results proved the high capacity of cork for BPA and DCF removal with the removal rates of 90.95% and 89.66%, respectively. The results confirmed the role of these engineered systems, especially for EDC removal, which should be further explored.

Roles, mechanism of action, and potential applications of sulfur-oxidizing bacteria for environmental bioremediation

Sulfur (S) is a crucial component in the environment and living organisms. This work is the first attempt to provide an overview and critical discussion on the roles, mechanisms, and environmental applications of sulfur-oxidizing bacteria (SOB). The findings reveal that key enzymes of SOB embarked on oxidation of sulfide, sulfite, thiosulfate, and elemental S. Conversion of reduced S compounds was oxidatively catalyzed by various enzymes (e.g. sulfide: quinone oxidoreductase, flavocytochrome c-sulfide dehydrogenase, dissimilatory sulfite reductase, heterodisulfide reductase-like proteins). Environmental applications of SOB discussed include detoxifying hydrogen sulfide, soil bioremediation, and wastewater treatment. SOB producing S⁰ engaged in biological S soil amendments (e.g. saline-alkali soil remediation, the oxidation of sulfide-bearing minerals). Biotreatment of H₂S using SOB occurred under both aerobic and anaerobic conditions. Sulfide, nitrate, and sulfamethoxazole were removed through SOB suspension cultures and S⁰-based carriers. Finally, this work presented future perspectives on SOB development, including S⁰ recovery, SOB enrichment, field measurement and identification of sulfur compounds, and the development of mathematical simulation.

Simultaneous nitrogen and phosphorus removal from municipal wastewater by Fe(III)/Fe(II) cycling mediated partial-denitrification/anammox

The efficient removal of nitrogen and phosphorus remains challenging for traditional wastewater treatment. In this study, the feasibility for enhancing the partial-denitrification and anammox process by Fe (III) reduction coupled to anammox and nitrate-dependent Fe (II) oxidation was explored using municipal wastewater. The nitrogen removal efficiency increased from 75.5 % to 83.0 % by adding Fe (III). Batch tests showed that NH₄⁺-N was first oxidized to N₂ or NO₂^--N by Fe (III), then NO₃^--N was reduced to NO₂^--N and N₂ by Fe (II), and finally, NO₂^--N was utilized by anammox. Furthermore, the performance of phosphorus removal improved by Fe addition and the removal efficiency increased to 78.7 %. High-throughput sequencing showed that the Fe-reducing bacteria Pseudomonas and Thiobacillus were successfully enriched. The abundance of anammox bacterial increased from 0.03 % to 0.22 % by multiple nitrite supply pathways. Fe addition presents a promising pathway for application in the anammox process.

The mechanism of C-N-S interconnection degradation in organic-rich sediments by Ca(NO3)2 - CaO2 synergistic remediation

The rebound of black-odorous occurred in organic-rich sediments has become a critical issue due to its great harm to the ecological environment. Elements such as S, C, and N play a crucial role in the biogeochemical cycle of black-odorous rivers. As electronic acceptors, Ca(NO₃)₂ and CaO₂ can effectively remove acidified volatile sulfide (AVS) and organic matter to control the black-odorous rebound. However, the remediation mechanisms in organic-rich sediments by Ca(NO₃)₂ and CaO₂ are unclear. The present study explored the mechanism of C-N-S interconnection degradation in organic-rich urban river sediments by adding different ratios and sequences of Ca(NO₃)₂ and CaO₂. The results showed that Ca(NO₃)₂ remediation followed by CaO₂ and the accepted electron ratio 1:1 of Ca(NO₃)₂ to CaO₂ is an effective method for controlling the rebound of black-odorous and reducing the accumulation NO₂^--N. Mainly attributed to that, CaO₂ enhanced the degradation of organic matter by stimulating enzymatic activities in the sediments, which is also the main reason for controlling the rebound of black-odorous. Since CaO₂ releases O₂ and •OH, which inhibit nosZgenes, NO₂^--N accumulates when remedied simultaneously with Ca(NO₃)₂ and CaO₂. Co-occurrence network analysis illustrated that sulfur-driven autotrophic denitrification bacteria, heterotrophic denitrifying bacteria, and sulfate-reducing bacteria interact strongly inside one module, clarifying a solid interaction of C-N-S substances among these bacteria. Our results reveal the C-N-S interconnection degradation mechanism and provide a new perspective on applying biochemical remediation in organic-rich urban river sediments.

Microbial behaviours inside alternating anaerobic-anoxic environment of a sulfur cycle-driven EBPR system: A metagenomic investigation

Denitrifying sulfur conversion-assisted enhanced biological phosphorus removal (DS-EBPR) was recently developed for saline wastewater treatment. However, the main functional bacteria and the interrelationship of functional bacteria of the DS-EBPR have not been defined and identified so far. This study used metagenomics and multivariate statistics to deduce the functional microbial community and distribution of functional genes associated with the critical metabolic pathways of carbon (C), nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and sulfur (S), particularly regarding how they would behave under the alternating anaerobic-anoxic conditions inside a long-term DS-EBPR system. An analysis of the metagenomics and metabolic functions identified 11 major microbial species which were classifiable into four groups: sulfate reducing bacteria (SRB, 0.8-2.2%), sulfur oxidizing bacteria (SOB, 31.9-37.7%), denitrifying phosphate accumulating organisms (DPAOs, 10.0-15.8%) and glycogen accumulating organisms (GAOs, 3.7-7.7%). The four groups of microorganisms performed their respective metabolisms synergistically. In terms of distribution of functional genes, SRB (Desulfococcus and Desulfobacter) and SOB (Chromatiaceae and Thiobacillus) are not only encoded by the related sulfur conversion genes (sqr, dsrAB, aprAB and sat), but also encoded by the necessary ppx and ppk1 gene for P removal that they can be considered as the potential S-related PAOs. Between the anaerobic and anoxic conditions, the metagenome-based microbial community remained structurally similar, but the functional genes, which encode various key enzymes for the P, N, and S pathways, changed in abundance. This study contributes to our understanding on the interactions and competition between the SRB, SOB, DPAOs, and GAOs in a DS-EBPR system.

Multi-Agent Evolutionary Game in the Recycling Utilization of Sulfate-Rich Wastewater

Current industrial development has led to an increase in sulfate-rich industrial sewage, threatening industrial ecology and the environment. Incorrectly treating high-concentration sulfate wastewater can cause serious environmental problems and even harm human health. Water with high sulfate levels can be treated as a resource and treated harmlessly to meet the needs of the circular economy. Today, governments worldwide are working hard to encourage the safe disposal and reuse of industrial salt-rich wastewater by recycling sulfate-rich wastewater (SRW) resources. However, the conflict of interests between the SRW production department, the SRW recycling department, and the governments often make it challenging to effectively manage sulfate-rich wastewater resources. This study aims to use the mechanism of evolutionary game theory (EGT) to conduct theoretical modelling and simulation analysis on the interaction of the behaviour of the above three participants. This paper focuses on the impact of government intervention and the ecological behaviour of wastewater producers on the behavioural decisions of recyclers. The results suggest that the government should play a leading role in developing the SRW resource recovery industry. SRW producers protect the environment in the mature stage, and recyclers actively collect and recover compliant sulfate wastewater resources. Governments should gradually deregulate and eventually withdraw from the market. Qualified recyclers and environmentally friendly wastewater producers can benefit from a mature SRW resources recovery industry.

A bibliometric analysis of research progress in sulfate-rich wastewater pollution control technology

Sustainable industrial development requires research on pollution control in industrial wastewater, particularly sulfate-rich wastewater, which poses a threat to the environment. This article differs from the previous sulfate wastewater treatment process and equipment review. Based on the quantitative analysis, this paper has determined some characteristics of the related literature on the pollution control technology of high-concentration sulfate wastewater to help researchers establish future research directions. From 1991-2020, the WoS database published 9473 articles related to high-concentration sulfate wastewater treatment technology. We used bibliometric analysis combined with social network analysis and s-curve technical analysis in this research. The United States was the first to start this type of research, Australia has insightful and instructive research articles in this area, and China is the most active in international cooperation. The keywords that appear most frequently in the dataset are degradation, adsorption, oxidation, reduction, and recovery. By S-curve fitting, it is known that biological treatment methods are closer to the maturity stage than physical and chemical treatment methods.

Advances in elemental sulfur-driven bioprocesses for wastewater treatment: From metabolic study to application

Elemental sulfur (S0) is known to be an abundant, non-toxic material with a wide range of redox states (-2 to +6) and may serve as an excellent electron carrier in wastewater treatment. In turn, S0-driven bioprocesses, which employ S0 as electron donor or acceptor, have recently established themselves as cost-effective therefore attractive solutions for wastewater treatment. Numerous related processes have, to date, been developed from laboratory experiments into full-scale applications, including S0-driven autotrophic denitrification for nitrate removal and S0-reducing organic removal. Compared to the conventional activated sludge process, these bioprocesses require only a small amount of organic matter and produce very little sludge. There have been great efforts to characterize chemical and biogenic S0 and related functional microorganisms in order to identify the biochemical pathways, upgrade the bioprocesses, and assess the impact of the operating factors on process performance, ultimately aiming to better understand and to optimize the processes. This paper is therefore a comprehensive overview of emerging S0-driven biotechnologies, including the development of S0-driven autotrophic denitrification and S0-based sulfidogenesis, as well as the associated microbiology and biochemistry. Also reviewed here are the physicochemical characteristics of S0 and the effects that environmental factors such as pH, influent sulfur/nitrate ratio, temperature, S0 particle size and reactor configurations have on the process. Research gaps, challenges of process applications and potential areas for future research are further proposed and discussed.

Coagulants put phosphate-accumulating organisms at a competitive disadvantage with glycogen-accumulating organisms in enhanced biological phosphorus removal system

Enhanced biological phosphorus removal (EBPR) process is susceptible to the changed operation condition, which results in an unstable treatment performance. In this work, long-term effect of coagulants addition, aluminum salt for the reactor R₁ and iron salt for the reactor R₂, on EBPR systems was comprehensively evaluated. Results showed that during the initial 30 days' coagulant addition, effluent chemical oxygen demand and phosphorus can be reduced below 25 and 0.5 mg·L^-1, respectively. Further supply of metal salts would stimulate microbial extracellular polymeric substance excretion and induce reactive oxygen species accumulation, which destroyed the cell membrane integrity and deteriorated the phosphorus removal performance. Moreover, coagulants would decrease the relative abundance of Candidatus Accumulibacter while increase the relative abundance of Candidatus Competibacter, leading phosphors accumulating organisms in a disadvantage position. The results of this work might be valuable for the operation of chemical assisted biological phosphorus removal bioreactor.

Microbial Communities Involved in Methane, Sulfur, and Nitrogen Cycling in the Sediments of the Barents Sea

A combination of physicochemical and radiotracer analysis, high-throughput sequencing of the 16S rRNA, and particulate methane monooxygenase subunit A (pmoA) genes was used to link a microbial community profile with methane, sulfur, and nitrogen cycling processes. The objects of study were surface sediments sampled at five stations in the northern part of the Barents Sea. The methane content in the upper layers (0-5 cm) ranged from 0.2 to 2.4 µM and increased with depth (16-19 cm) to 9.5 µM. The rate of methane oxidation in the oxic upper layers varied from 2 to 23 nmol CH4 L-1 day-1 and decreased to 0.3 nmol L-1 day-1 in the anoxic zone at a depth of 16-19 cm. Sulfate reduction rates were much higher, from 0.3 to 2.8 µmol L-1 day-1. In the surface sediments, ammonia-oxidizing Nitrosopumilaceae were abundant; the subsequent oxidation of nitrite to nitrate can be carried out by Nitrospira sp. Aerobic methane oxidation could be performed by uncultured deep-sea cluster 3 of gamma-proteobacterial methanotrophs. Undetectable low levels of methanogenesis were consistent with a near complete absence of methanogens. Anaerobic methane oxidation in the deeper sediments was likely performed by ANME-2a-2b and ANME-2c archaea in consortium with sulfate-reducing Desulfobacterota. Sulfide can be oxidized by nitrate-reducing Sulfurovum sp. Thus, the sulfur cycle was linked with the anaerobic oxidation of methane and the nitrogen cycle, which included the oxidation of ammonium to nitrate in the oxic zone and denitrification coupled to the oxidation of sulfide in the deeper sediments. Methane concentrations and rates of microbial biogeochemical processes in sediments in the northern part of the Barents Sea were noticeably higher than in oligotrophic areas of the Arctic Ocean, indicating that an increase in methane concentration significantly activates microbial processes.

Electrocatalytic deep dehalogenation of florfenicol using Fe-doped CoP nanotubes array for blocking resistance gene expression and microbial inhibition during biochemical treatment

Resistance gene expression and microbial inhibition by halogenated antibiotics is a major environmental concern. Although electrocatalytic dehalogenation can detoxify halogenated antibiotics, the effect of dehalogenation treatment on resistance gene expression and microbial inhibition is poorly understood. Herein, a novel electrocatalyst of Fe-doped CoP nanotubes array on nickel foam (Fe-CoP NTs/NiF) is prepared through a simple ultrasonication of Fe-doped CoP nanowires hydrothermally grown on NiF. The transformation from nanowires to nanotubes improves the crystallinity of CoP and fully exposes active sites, producing energetic atomic hydrogen for dehalogenation. Fe-CoP NTs/NiF exhibits a superior dehalogenation performance towards refractory florfenicol (FLO), achieving 100% removal within 20 min (‒1.2 V vs Ag/AgCl, C₀ = 20 mg L^‒1). The dechlorination ratio reaches nearly 100%, and the defluorination ratio achieves 36.8% within 50 min, showing the best electrocatalytic dehalogenation performance reported so far. Microbial community and correlation analysis show that Proteobacteria is the main potential host of FLO resistance gene. Electrocatalytic reductive dehalogenation pretreatment of FLO can reduce microbial inhibition, maintaining microbial richness and diversity in the subsequent biochemical treatment unit. The electrocatalytic reductive dehalogenation treatment can significantly reduce the relative abundance of FLO resistance gene, showing a reliable process for safe treatment of halogenated antibiotic containing wastewater.

Microbial sulfur metabolism and environmental implications

Sulfur as a macroelement plays an important role in biochemistry in both natural environments and engineering biosystems, which can be further linked to other important element cycles, e.g. carbon, nitrogen and iron. Consequently, the sulfur cycling primarily mediated by sulfur compounds oxidizing microorganisms and sulfur compounds reducing microorganisms has enormous environmental implications, particularly in wastewater treatment and pollution bioremediation. In this review, to connect the knowledge in microbial sulfur metabolism to environmental applications, we first comprehensively review recent advances in understanding microbial sulfur metabolisms at molecular-, cellular- and ecosystem-levels, together with their energetics. We then discuss the environmental implications to fight against soil and water pollution, with four foci: (1) acid mine drainage, (2) water blackening and odorization in urban rivers, (3) SANI® and DS-EBPR processes for sewage treatment, and (4) bioremediation of persistent organic pollutants. In addition, major challenges and further developments toward elucidation of microbial sulfur metabolisms and their environmental applications are identified and discussed.

Microbially-driven sulfur cycling microbial communities in different mangrove sediments

Microbially-driven sulfur cycling is a vital biogeochemical process in the sulfur-rich mangrove ecosystem. It is critical to evaluate the potential impact of sulfur transformation in mangrove ecosystems. To reveal the diversity, composition, and structure of sulfur-oxidizing bacteria (SOB) and sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) and underlying mechanisms, we analyzed the physicochemical properties and sediment microbial communities from an introduced mangrove species (Sonneratia apetala), a native mangrove species (Kandelia obovata) and the mudflat in Hanjiang River Estuary in Guangdong (23.27°N, 116.52°E), China. The results indicated that SOB was dominated by autotrophic Thiohalophilus and chemoautotrophy Chromatium in S. apetala and K. obovata, respectively, while Desulfatibacillum was the dominant genus of SRB in K. obovata sediments. Also, the redundancy analysis indicated that temperature, redox potential (ORP), and SO₄^2- were the significant factors influencing the sulfur cycling microbial communities with elemental sulfur (ES) as the key factor driver for SOB and total carbon (TC) for SRB in mangrove sediments. Additionally, the morphological transformation of ES, acid volatile sulfide (AVS) and SO₄^2- explained the variation of sulfur cycling microbial communities under sulfur-rich conditions, and we found mangrove species-specific dominant Thiohalobacter, Chromatium and Desulfatibacillum, which could well use ES and SO₄^2-, thus promoting the sulfur cycling in mangrove sediments. Meanwhile, the change of nutrient substances (TN, TC) explained why SOB were more susceptible to environmental changes than SRB. Sulfate reducing bacteria produces sulfide in anoxic sediments at depth that then migrate upward, toward fewer reducing conditions, where it's oxidized by sulfur oxidizing bacteria. This study indicates the high ability of SOB and SRB in ES, SO₄^2-_,S₂^- and S^2- generation and transformation in sulfur-rich mangrove ecosystems, and provides novel insights into sulfur cycling in other wetland ecosystems from a microbial perspective.

Sulfate dependent ammonium oxidation: A microbial process linked nitrogen with sulfur cycle and potential application

Sulfate dependent ammonium oxidation (Sulfammox) is a potential microbial process coupling ammonium oxidation with sulfate reduction under anaerobic conditions, which provides a novel link between nitrogen and sulfur cycle. Recently, Sulfammox was detected in wastewater treatments and was confirmed to occur in natural environments, especially in marine sediments. However, knowledge gaps in the mechanism of Sulfammox, functional bacteria, and their metabolic pathway, make it challenging to estimate its environmental significance and potential applications. This review provides an overview of recent advances in Sulfammox, including possible mechanisms, functional bacteria, and main influential factors, and discusses future challenges and opportunities. Future perspectives are outlined and discussed, such as exploration of microbial community structure and metabolic pathways, possible interactions with other microbes, environmental significance, and potential applications for nitrogen and sulfate removal, to inspire more researches on the Sulfammox process.

Improvement of sludge dewaterability by ammonium sulfate and the potential reuse of sludge as nitrogen fertilizer

A novel method to enhance sludge dewaterability with ammonium sulfate ((NH₄)₂SO₄) was proposed, and the potential reuse of dewatered sludge cake and filtrate as nitrogen fertilizers was evaluated. Compared with raw sludge, 87.91% reduction of capillary suction time (CST) and 88.02% reduction of specific resistance to filtration (SRF) after adding 80% (m/m) (NH₄)₂SO₄ were achieved, with 38.49% of protein precipitated simultaneously. The (NH₄)₂SO₄ dose destroyed cell membrane, resulting in the release of intracellular water by converting bound water into free water, thus enhancing sludge dewaterability. In the solid phase, the content of protein-N increased, and larger protein aggregates were formed. The (NH₄)₂SO₄ dose destroyed the hydration shell, making proteins to exhibit hydrophobic interactions, and to be aggregated, and precipitated from the liquid phase. When incubated Pennisetum alopecuroides L. with the dewatered sludge cake and filtrate after dewatering and conditioning with (NH₄)₂SO₄, the germination rate of grass seed and shoot lengths both increased while compared with those incubated with dewatered sludge cake and filtrate of the raw sludge. This study might provide insights into sustainable sludge treatment by integrating sludge dewatering and the potential reuse of dewatered sludge cake and filtrate as nitrogen fertilizer via treatment with (NH₄)₂SO₄.

Denitrifying sulfur conversion-EBPR (DS-EBPR) process for treatment of seawater-based highly saline wastewater: Evaluation on performance, kinetics and microbial community structure

DS-EBPR is an alternative to the conventional activated sludge process which face great challenge for treatment of seawater-based highly saline wastewater. This study aims to investigate the impacts of long-term (248 days) 20% and 30% seawater fractions and short-term shock of 30%, 40%, 70% and 100% seawater fractions (corresponding to 1.0, 1.4, 2.5 and 3.5% of salinity) on the DS-EBPR performance, kinetics and microbial community structure. Long-term operation with high fraction (30%) of seawater marginally decreased the sulfur conversion and phosphorus uptake, which correlated well with the microbial dynamics. Temporal salinity shock from 1.0% (30% seawater) to 3.5% (100% seawater) remarkably reduced the phosphorus release/uptake by 36-44%, which was partly due to the decrease in the abundance of functional bacteria and chlorapatite (Ca₅[PO₄]₃Cl) forming as P precipitates with 70-100% seawater addition. The formed chlorapatite contributed to approximately 8-26% of total P removal estimated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis.

Application of activated sludge for odor control in wastewater treatment plants: Approaches, advances and outlooks

Odors from wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) have attracted extensive attention and stringent environmental standards are more widely adopted to reduce odor emissions. Biological odor treatment methods have broader applications than the physical and chemical counterparts as they are environment-friendly, cost-effective and generate low secondary wastes. The aqueous activated sludge (AS) processes are among the most promising approaches for the prevention or end-of-pipe removal of odor emissions and have the potential to simultaneously treat odor and wastewater. However, AS deodorization biotechnologies in WWTPs still need to be further systematically summarized and categorized while in-depth discussions on the characteristics and underlying mechanisms of AS deodorization process are still lacking. Recently, considerable studies have been reported to elucidate the microbial metabolisms in odor control and wastewater treatment. This paper reviews the fundamentals, characteristics, advances and field experiences of three AS biotechnologies for odor treatment in WWTPs, i.e., AS recycling, microaeration in AS digester and AS diffusion. The underlying deodorization mechanisms of typical odors have been revealed through the summary of recent advances on multi-element conversions, metabolic interactions of bacteria, microscopic characterization and identification of functional microorganisms. Future research aspects to advance the emerging deodorization AS process, such as deodorization mechanisms, simultaneous odor and water treatment, synergistic treatment with other air emissions, are discussed.

Nutrient Removal Process and Cathodic Microbial Community Composition in Integrated Vertical-Flow Constructed Wetland - Microbial Fuel Cells Filled With Different Substrates

An integrated vertical-flow constructed wetland-microbial fuel cell system (CW-MFC), consisting of an up-flow chamber and a down-flow chamber, was constructed to treat synthetic sewage wastewater. The performance of CW-MFCs filled with different substrates [i.e., ceramsite (CM-A), quartz (CM-B), and zeolite (CM-C) granules] under various hydraulic retention times (HRTs, 7.6, 4.0, and 2.8 d) was evaluated. Efficient and stable nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) removals were observed in CM-A under different HRTs, while the voltage outputs of the CW-MFCs was greatly reduced as the HRTs decreased. With an HRT of 2.8 d, the ammonium (NH4 +-N) and orthophosphate (PO4 3--P) removal efficiencies in CM-A were as high as 93.8 and 99.6%, respectively. Bacterial community analysis indicates that the N removal in the cathode area of CM-A could potentially benefit from the appearance of nitrifying bacteria (e.g., Nitrosomonas and Nitrospira) and relatively high abundance of denitrifiers involved in simultaneous nitrification and denitrification (e.g., Hydrogenophaga, Zoogloea, and Dechloromonas) and denitrifying sulfide removal (e.g., Thauera). Additionally, the difference in N removal efficiency among the CW-MFCs could be partly explained by higher iron (Fe) content in milled ceramsite granules and higher abundance of denitrifiers with nitrate reduction and ferrous ions oxidation capabilities in CM-A compared with that in CM-B and CM-C. Efficient PO4 3--P removal in CM-A was mainly ascribed to substrate adsorption and denitrifying phosphorus (P) removal. Concerning the substantial purification performance in CM-A, ceramsite granules could be used to improve the nutrient removal efficiency in integrated vertical-flow CW-MFC.

Microbial community shift under exposure of dredged sediments from a eutrophic bay

Microbial communities occur in almost every habitat. To evaluate the homeostasis disruption of in situ microbiomes, dredged sediments from Guanabara Bay-Brazil (GB) were mixed with sediments from outside of the bay (D) in three different proportions (25%, 50%, and 75%) which we called GBD25, GBD50, and GBD75. Grain size, TOC, and metals-as indicators of complex contamination-dehydrogenase (DHA) and esterase enzymes (EST)-as indicators of microbial community availability-were determined. Microbial community composition was addressed by amplifying the 16S rRNA gene for DGGE analysis and sequencing using MiSeq platform (Illumina).We applied the quality ratio index (QR) to the GB, D, and every GBD mixture to integrate geochemical parameters with our microbiome data. QR indicated high environmental risk for GB and every GBD mixture, and low risk for D. The community shifted from aerobic to anaerobic profile, consistent with the characteristics of GB. Sample D was dominated by JTB255 marine benthic group, related to low impacted areas. Milano-WF1B-44 was the most representative of GB, often found in anaerobic and sulfur enriched environments. In GBD, the denitrifying sulfur-oxidizing bacteria, Sulfurovum, was the most representative, typically found in suboxic or anoxic niches. The canonical correspondence analysis was able to explain 60% of the community composition variation and exhibit the decrease of environmental quality as the contamination increases. Physiological and taxonomic shifts of the microbial assemblage in sediments were inferred by QR, which was suitable to determine sediment risk. The study produced sufficient information to improve the dredging plan and management.

Investigation on polyphosphate accumulation in the sulfur transformation-centric EBPR (SEBPR) process for treatment of high-temperature saline wastewater

This study investigated the polyphosphates accumulation rate in a novel sulfur transformation-centric enhanced biological phosphorus removal (SEBPR) process. The SEBPR system was continuously operated over 120 days in a sequencing batch reactor (SBR) that alternated between the anaerobic mode and the anoxic mode of operation (temperature: 30 °C and salinity: 6000 mg/L Cl^-). In addition to the SBR, batch experiments were carried out to test the effect of two different sulfate concentrations on the system performance and sulfur-phosphorus transformations. The key intercellular polymers of polyphosphates and polysulfur (poly-S) were identified by employing advanced microscopes. Metagenomic analysis was performed to characterize the diversity of microbes and their functions enriched in the SEBPR system. Finally, several molecular techniques including flow cytometry cell sorting and 16S DNA high-throughput sequencing were applied to identify the phosphorus-accumulating organisms (PAOs). The amounts of P release and P uptake in the SEBPR increased gradually to nearly 18 ± 6.4 mg P/L and 26.5 ± 6.7 mg P/L respectively, yielding a net P removal efficiency of 84 ± 25%. Batch tests indicated no polyhydroxyalkanate (PHA) synthesis, but P uptake was observed and it was correlated with the intracellular poly-S consumption, suggesting that the poly-S could act as an intracellular energy source for P uptake and polyphosphates formation. Moreover, CLSM and TEM micrographs clearly showed the presence of intercellular polyphosphates and poly-S respectively. Metagenomic analysis revealed that Proteobacteria (36.5%), Bacteroidetes (23.3%), Thermotogae (7.1%), Chloroflexi (4.5%) and Firmicutes (2.3%) were the dominant phyla in Bacteria. The conventional PAO of Candidatus Accumulibacter was found at a low abundance of 0.32% only; and an uncultured genus close to Rhodobacteraceae at the family level is speculated to be the putative sulfur PAO (SPAO). Finally, this research suggests that poly-S considerably impacts on polyphosphates accumulation in the SEBPR system when no PHAs are formed.

Formation and characterization of the micro-size granular sludge in denitrifying sulfur-conversion associated enhanced biological phosphorus removal (DS-EBPR) process

Denitrifying Sulfur conversion-associated Enhanced Biological Phosphorus Removal (DS-EBPR) bioprocess has been recently developed for saline sewage treatment. This study investigated the applicability of granulation technology in DS-EBPR by long-term operation (272 days) of a lab-scale reactor to cultivate sludge granules, then analyzed important physicochemical and biological properties. The findings of this research showed that the net P removal and denitrification efficiencies in DS-EBPR were 80% and 98%, respectively. The average particle size was about 100 μm, and the ratio of SVI₅ and SVI₃₀ was <1.3, indicating the activated sludge was well aggregated as micro-granules. The dry density was between 32 and 56 mg/mL, and the specific surface area was 28 m²/g, demonstrating good microporous structure. FISH reveals absence of PAOs, but enriched with SRB (predominant) and denitrifying bacteria in the DS-EBPR granular sludge. Overall, this study provided essential characterization information of DS-EBPR granular sludge which can be used for future development.

Multiple-cycle operation of sulphur-cycle-enhanced biological phosphorus removal to maintain stable performance at high temperatures

This study investigated a new method of multiple-cycle operation of a sulphur-cycle-enhanced biological phosphorus (P) removal system to maintain good phosphorus removal performance at a high temperature (30 °C). The findings demonstrate that P removal was low and unstable under a normal cycle (77 ± 18%), but multiple cycles resulted in a high and quite stable level of P removal (88 ± 9%). Moreover, in the normal mode, the polyhydroxyalkanoate levels increased significantly from 2 to 15 mg C/g of VSS, the glycogen level doubled from 5 to 10 mg C/g of VSS and the polyhydroxyalkanoate and glycogen levels were maintained at considerably low levels after multiple cycles (only 5 C/g of VSS). The 16S rRNA high-throughput sequencing analysis revealed that the genera Thioalbus and Psychrobacter in the gamma-Proteobacteria class were the key functional communities. These findings suggest a high level of P removal with multiple cycles of sulphur-cycle enhanced biological phosphorus removal.