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Gou J, Xia J, Li Y, Qiu Y, Jiang F. A novel sulfidogenic process via sulfur reduction to remove arsenate in acid mine drainage: Insights into the performance and microbial mechanisms. Water Res 2024; 254:121423. [PMID: 38461598 DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2024.121423] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2024] [Revised: 02/24/2024] [Accepted: 03/04/2024] [Indexed: 03/12/2024]
Abstract
Biological sulfidogenic processes based on sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) are not suitable for arsenic (As)-containing acid mine drainage (AMD) treatment because of the formation of the mobile thioarsenite during sulfate reduction. In contrast, biological sulfidogenic processes based on sulfur-reducing bacteria (S0RB) produce sulfide without pH increase, which could achieve more effective As removal than the SRB-based process. However, the reduction ability and toxicity tolerance of S0RB to As remains mysterious, which may substantially affect the practical applicability of this process when treating arsenate (As(V))-containing AMD. Thus, this study aims to develop a biological sulfur reduction process driven by S0RB, and explore its long-term performance on As(V) removal and microbial community evolution. Operating under moderately acidic conditions (pH=4.0), the presence of 10 mg/L As(V) significantly suppressed the activity of S0RB, leading to the failure of As(V) removal. Surprisingly, a drop in pH to 3.0 enhanced the tolerance of S0RB to As toxicity, allowing for efficient sulfide production (396±102 mg S/L) through sulfur reduction. Consequently, effective and stable removal of As(V) (99.9 %) was achieved, even though the sulfidogenic bacteria were exposed to high levels of As(V) (42 mg/L) in long-term trials. Spectral and spectroscopic analysis showed that As-bearing sulfide minerals were present in the bioreactor. Remarkably, the presence of As(V) induced notable changes in the microbial community composition, with Desulfurella and Clostridium identified as predominate sulfur reducers. The qPCR result further revealed an increase in the concentration of functional genes related to As transport (asrA and arsB) in the bioreactor sludge as the pH decreased from 4.0 to 3.0. This suggests the involvement of microorganisms carrying asrA and arsB in an As transport process. Furthermore, metagenomic binning demonstrated that Desulfurella contained essential genes associated with sulfur reduction and As transportation, indicating its genetic potential for sulfide production and As tolerance. In summary, this study underscores the effectiveness of the biological sulfur reduction process driven by S0RB in treating As(V)-contaminated AMD. It offers insights into the role of S0RB in remediating As contamination and provides valuable knowledge for practical applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiahua Gou
- Guangdong Provincial Key Lab of Environmental Pollution Control and Remediation Technology, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China
| | - Juntao Xia
- Guangdong Provincial Key Lab of Environmental Pollution Control and Remediation Technology, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China
| | - Yu Li
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chemical Pollution and Environmental Safety and MOE Key Laboratory of Theoretical Chemistry of Environment, School of Environment, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510006, China
| | - Yanying Qiu
- Guangdong Provincial Key Lab of Environmental Pollution Control and Remediation Technology, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China
| | - Feng Jiang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Lab of Environmental Pollution Control and Remediation Technology, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China; Guangdong Provincial International Joint Research Center on Urban Water Management and Treatment, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China.
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Qiu YY, Zou J, Xia J, Li H, Zhen Y, Yang Y, Guo J, Zhang L, Qiu R, Jiang F. Adaptability of sulfur-disproportionating bacteria for mine water remediation under the pressures of heavy metal ions and high sulfate content. Water Res 2024; 249:120898. [PMID: 38086206 DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2023.120898] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2023] [Revised: 11/12/2023] [Accepted: 11/17/2023] [Indexed: 01/03/2024]
Abstract
Biological sulfide production processes mediated by sulfate/sulfur reduction have gained attention for metal removal from industrial wastewater (e.g., mine water (MW) and metallurgical wastewater) via forming insoluble metal sulfides. However, these processes often necessitate the addition of external organic compounds as electron donors, which poses a constraint on the broad application of this technology. A recent proof of concept study reported that microbial sulfur disproportionation (SD) produced sulfide with no demand for organics, which could achieve more cost-benefit MW treatment against the above-mentioned processes. However, the resistance of SD bioprocess to different metals and high sulfate content in MW remains mysterious, which may substantially affect the practical applicability of such process. In this study, the sulfur-disproportionating bacteria (SDB)-dominated consortium was enriched from a previously established SD-driven bioreactor, in which Dissulfurimicrobium sp. with a relative abundance of 39.9 % was the predominated SDB. When exposed to the real pretreated acidic MW after the pretreatment process of pH amelioration, the sulfur-disproportionating activity remained active, and metals were effectively removed from the MW. Metal tolerance assays further demonstrated that the consortium had a good tolerance to different metal ions (i.e., Pb2+, Cu2+, Ni2+, Mn2+, Zn2+), especially for Mn2+ with a concentration of approximately 20 mg/L. It suggested the robustness of Dissulfurimicrobium sp. likely due to the presence of genes encoding for the enzymes associated with metal(loid) resistance/uptake. Additionally, although high sulfate content resulted in a slight inhibition on the sulfur-disproportionating activity, the consortium still achieved sulfide production rates of 27.3 mg S/g VSS-d on average under an environmentally relevant sulfate level (i.e., 1100 mg S/L), which is comparable to those reported in sulfate reduction. Taken together, these findings imply that SDB could ensure sustainable MW treatment in a more cost-effective and organic-free way.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yan-Ying Qiu
- Guangdong Provincial Key Lab of Environmental Pollution Control and Remediation Technology, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Jiahui Zou
- Guangdong Provincial Key Lab of Environmental Pollution Control and Remediation Technology, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Juntao Xia
- Guangdong Provincial Key Lab of Environmental Pollution Control and Remediation Technology, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Hao Li
- Guangdong Provincial Key Lab of Environmental Pollution Control and Remediation Technology, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Yuming Zhen
- Guangdong Provincial Key Lab of Environmental Pollution Control and Remediation Technology, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Yanduo Yang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Lab of Environmental Pollution Control and Remediation Technology, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Jiahua Guo
- Guangdong Provincial Key Lab of Environmental Pollution Control and Remediation Technology, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Liang Zhang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Lab of Environmental Pollution Control and Remediation Technology, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Rongliang Qiu
- Guangdong Provincial Key Lab of Environmental Pollution Control and Remediation Technology, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Agricultural & Rural Pollution Abatement and Environmental Safety, School of Natural Resources and Environment, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Feng Jiang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Lab of Environmental Pollution Control and Remediation Technology, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China; Guangdong Provincial International Joint Research Center on Urban Water Management and Treatment, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.
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Yin W, Xu Y, Chen J, Liu T, Xu Y, Xiao S, Zhang Y, Zhou X. Simultaneous removal of carbamazepine and Cd(II) in groundwater by integration of peroxydisulfate oxidation and sulfidogenic process: The bridging role of SO 42. Chemosphere 2023; 311:137069. [PMID: 36332735 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.137069] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2022] [Revised: 10/15/2022] [Accepted: 10/27/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Heat-activated PDS oxidation (HAPO) has been widely used for in-situ chemical oxidation (ISCO) of micropollutants in groundwater, whereas the aesthetic demerit of additional SO42- production is largely overlooked. In this study, the sulfidogenic process is used to offset the aesthetic demerit, and the production of SO42- is then employed to recycle heavy metals. The innovative integration technology with PDS oxidation and sulfidogenic process via the bridging role of SO42- was reported to remove micropollutants and heavy metals in groundwater simultaneously. HAPO could completely degrade CBZ, producing 400 mg/L SO42- with the addition of 0.50 g/L PDS. Sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) utilize SO42- generated from HAPO as the electron acceptor in the sulfidogenic process, removing and recycling Cd(II) via the precipitation of CdS. The SRB tolerance experiment revealed the viability of PDS oxidation coupled with the sulfidogenic process via the bridging role of SO42-. Overall, the integration technology is a green and promising technology for simultaneous micropollutants removal and heavy metals recycling in groundwater.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenjun Yin
- State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resources Reuse, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China
| | - Yue Xu
- State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resources Reuse, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China
| | - Jiabin Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resources Reuse, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China.
| | - Tongcai Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resources Reuse, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China
| | - Yao Xu
- State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resources Reuse, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China
| | - Shaoze Xiao
- State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resources Reuse, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China
| | - Yalei Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resources Reuse, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China; Shanghai Institute of Pollution Control and Ecological Security, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China
| | - Xuefei Zhou
- Key Laboratory of Yangtze Water Environment for Ministry of Education, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China; Shanghai Institute of Pollution Control and Ecological Security, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China.
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Sun R, Li Y, Lin N, Ou C, Wang X, Zhang L, Jiang F. Removal of heavy metals using a novel sulfidogenic AMD treatment system with sulfur reduction: Configuration, performance, critical parameters and economic analysis. Environ Int 2020; 136:105457. [PMID: 31926438 DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2019.105457] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2019] [Revised: 12/24/2019] [Accepted: 12/30/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
A novel sulfidogenic acid mine drainage (AMD) treatment system with a sulfur reduction process was developed. During the 220-d operation, >99.9% of 380-mg/L ferric, 150-mg/L aluminum, 110-mg/L zinc, 20-mg/L copper and 2.5-mg/L lead ions, and 42.6-44.4% of 100-mg/L manganese ions in the synthetic AMD were step-by-step removed in the developed system with three pre-posed metal precipitators and a sulfur reduction reactor. Among them, zinc, copper and lead ions were removed by the biogenic hydrogen sulfide that produced through elemental sulfur reduction; while ferric, aluminum and manganese ions were removed by the alkali precipitation. Compared with the reported sulfate reduction reactors, the sulfur reduction reactor significantly reduced the chemical cost by 25.6-78.9% for sulfide production, and maintained a high sulfide production rate (1.12 g S2-/L-d). The pH level in the sulfidogenic reactor driven by sulfur-reducing bacteria posed a significant effect on the sulfide production rate. Under a nearly neutral condition (pH 7.0-7.5), elemental sulfur dissolved into polysulfide to increase the bioavailability of S0. At acidic conditions (pH < 6.0), polysulfide formation was limited and sulfate reduction became dominant. Therefore, maintaining the sulfidogenic reactor driven by sulfur-reducing bacteria at neutral condition is essential to realize high-rate and low-cost AMD treatment. Moreover, the escape of residual hydrogen sulfide from the system was eliminated by employing a 17% recirculation from effluent to the sulfidogenic reactor.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rongrong Sun
- School of Environmental Science & Engineering, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China; School of Environment, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510006, China
| | - Yu Li
- School of Environment, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510006, China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chemical Pollution and Environmental Safety & MOE Key Laboratory of Theoretical Chemistry of Environment, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510006, China
| | - Nini Lin
- School of Environment, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510006, China
| | - Chunxi Ou
- School of Environment, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510006, China
| | - Xiaoyi Wang
- School of Environment, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510006, China
| | - Liang Zhang
- Advanced Environmental Biotechnology Centre, Nanyang Environment & Water Research Institute, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore 639798, Singapore
| | - Feng Jiang
- School of Environmental Science & Engineering, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China.
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Sun J, Hong Y, Guo J, Yang J, Huang D, Lin Z, Jiang F. Arsenite removal without thioarsenite formation in a sulfidogenic system driven by sulfur reducing bacteria under acidic conditions. Water Res 2019; 151:362-370. [PMID: 30616048 DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2018.12.027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2018] [Revised: 12/14/2018] [Accepted: 12/17/2018] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Sulfidogenic process using sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) has been used to remove arsenite from the arsenic-contaminated waters through the precipitation of arsenite with sulfide. However, excessive sulfide production and significant pH increase induced by sulfate reduction result in the formation of the mobile thioarsenite by-products and the inefficiency and instability of arsenite removal, especially when the arsenite level fluctuates. In this study, we proposed a novel sulfidogenic process driven by sulfur reducing bacteria (S0RB) for the arsenite removal under acidic conditions. In a long term experiment, efficient sulfide production (0.42 ± 0.2 kg S/m3-d) was achieved without changing the acidic condition (pH around 4.3) in a sulfur reduction bio-reactor. With the acidic sulfide-containing effluents from the bio-reactor, over 99% of arsenite (10 mg As/L) in the arsenic-contaminated water was precipitated without the formation of soluble thioarsenite by-products, even in the presence of excessive sulfide. Maintaining the acidic condition (pH around 4.3) of the sulfide-containing effluent was essential to ensure the efficient arsenite precipitation and minimize the formation of thioarsenite by-products when the arsenite to sulfide molar ratios ranged from 0.1 to 0.46. An acid-tolerant S0RB, Desulfurella, was found to be responsible for the efficient dissimilatory sulfur reduction under acidic conditions without changing the solution pH significantly. The microbial sulfur reduction may proceed through the direct electron transfer between the S0RB and sulfur particles, and also through the indirect electron transport mediated by electron carriers. The findings of this study demonstrate that the proposed sulfidogenic process driven by S0RB working under acidic conditions can be a promising alternative to the SRB-based process for arsenite removal from the arsenic-contaminated waters.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jianliang Sun
- School of Chemistry & Environment, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Yaowu Hong
- School of Chemistry & Environment, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Jiahua Guo
- School of Chemistry & Environment, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Jierui Yang
- School of Chemistry & Environment, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Duanyi Huang
- School of Chemistry & Environment, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Zichao Lin
- School of Chemistry & Environment, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Feng Jiang
- School of Chemistry & Environment, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China; MOE Key Laboratory of Theoretical Chemistry of Environment, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510006, China.
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Zhang L, Zhang Z, Sun R, Liang S, Chen GH, Jiang F. Self-accelerating sulfur reduction via polysulfide to realize a high-rate sulfidogenic reactor for wastewater treatment. Water Res 2018; 130:161-167. [PMID: 29220716 DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2017.11.062] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2017] [Revised: 11/27/2017] [Accepted: 11/28/2017] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
Sulfur reduction is a promising alternative to sulfate reduction as it can generate sulfide at a low cost for the precipitation of heavy metals or autotrophic denitrification in wastewater treatment. However, the extremely low water solubility of elemental sulfur limits its bioavailability and results in a low sulfur-reduction rate. Polysulfide, which is naturally generated through reactions between sulfur and sulfide, can enhance the bioavailability of sulfur and thus contribute to high-rate sulfur reduction. Based on this principle, a laboratory-scale sulfur-reducing bioreactor was designed in this study for wastewater treatment. After 164 days of operation, the sulfide production rate (SPR) in the bioreactor reached 126 mg S/L-h, which is significantly higher than those of other sulfate-reducing systems. Moreover, dissolved zero-valent sulfur (referred to as polysulfide) was detected in the sulfur-reducing reactor when the organics were completely depleted, indicating that polysulfide can form naturally and be readily reduced to sulfide in the bioreactor. We found that the produced sulfide promoted the formation of more polysulfide, which enabled a self-accelerating chain reaction of sulfur reduction via polysulfide. This stimulation effect was further validated by the 7-h batch tests. In the batch test without sulfide addition initially, a continuous increase in the hourly SPR was observed with increasing sulfide concentration. Furthermore, in the batch tests with the addition of 50-200 mg S/L sulfide at the beginning, the average SPR in the first 3 h increased with elevating initial sulfide concentration due to more polysulfide formation and reduction. However, high sulfide concentration (>250 mg S/L) hindered the continuous increase in SPR. Additionally, when polysulfide formation was prevented through the addition of Fe2+, the SPR dropped by 97.6% compared to that in the presence of polysulfide. This validates the key role of polysulfide in the high-rate sulfur reduction process. Overall, the findings suggest that high-rate sulfur reduction can be achieved for autotrophic denitrification or heavy-metal removal in wastewater treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liang Zhang
- School of Chemistry & Environment, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China; Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Zefeng Zhang
- School of Chemistry & Environment, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Rongrong Sun
- School of Chemistry & Environment, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Shuang Liang
- School of Chemistry & Environment, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Guang-Hao Chen
- Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, Chinese National Engineering Research Center for Control & Treatment of Heavy Metal Pollution (Hong Kong Branch) and Water Technology Center, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Clear Water Bay, Hong Kong, China
| | - Feng Jiang
- School of Chemistry & Environment, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China; Key Laboratory of Theoretical Chemistry of Environment, Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China.
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