Previous research has demonstrated that powdered activated carbon (PAC), when applied at very low dosages and long SRTs, reduces membrane fouling in membrane bioreactors (MBRs). This effect was related to the formation of stronger sludge flocs, which are less sensitive to shear. In this contribution the long-term effect of PAC addition was studied by running two parallel MBRs on sewage. To one of ...
This study aimed to examine the impact of membrane properties on membrane fouling in membrane bioreactor (MBR). Membrane fouling was divided into two categories: physically reversible and irreversible fouling. Membrane properties related to each type of membrane fouling were investigated separately. Five microfiltration (MF) and one ultrafiltration (UF) membranes with different properties (pore ...
This paper will focus on integration of a new, emerging technology with the old, proven methods to affect a hybrid process. By doing so, the net effect is often a cost-effective compromise and a relatively painless solution to otherwise difficult problems. The concept is simple, but mixing the new with the old is not without risks. We shall also examine the pitfalls of bringing a metal recovery ...
In this study, operation and maintenance performance in two long-term operating Membrane Bioreactor (MBR) wastewater treatment facilities were investigated. One facility in Japan started its operation in 1999 showed that both effluent BOD and n-hexane extracts were less than 5 mg/L, and a cumulative replacement percentage (CR%) of membrane cartridges was 7.8% as of 2008. Another facility in the ...
A single-fibre microfiltration system was employed to investigate the importance of various operating and sludge property parameters to the membrane fouling during sludge filtration. The sludge was obtained from a submerged membrane bioreactor (SMBR). A series of comparative and correlative filtration and fouling tests were conducted on the influence of the operating variables, sludge properties ...
Two wastewater polishing systems were compared in terms of their ability to protect downstream reverse osmosis (RO) processes. A conventional full-scale wastewater treatment system with primary and secondary treatment followed by rotating biological contactors (RBC) and sand filtration were compared in a side-by-side study with a pilot-scale membrane bioreactor (MBR). Effluent from the two ...
The use of a new three stages MBR process with a first methanogenic UASB stage, a second stage with aerobic biofilm growing on small carrier elements maintained in suspension and third stage with membrane filtration module is presented. The objective of the first methanogenic chamber is to diminish COD of the raw wastewater, producing a biogas rich in methane, and decrease the sludge production. ...
Water sustainability is essential for meeting human needs for drinking water and sanitation in both developing and developed countries. Reuse, decentralization, and low energy consumption are key objectives to achieve sustainability in wastewater treatment. Consideration of these objectives has led to the development of new and tailored technologies in order to balance societal needs with the ...
The formation of inorganic fouling on MF membrane was investigated in membrane bioreactor (MBR) treating industrial wastewater. Membrane autopsy works using microscopic techniques and surface analysis were carried out at the completion of pilot-scale operation to analyze foulant materials extensively. Scaling occurred on the membrane surface significantly in the MBR treating calcium-rich ...
Two laboratory-scale membrane bioreactor systems were investigated to treat high saline wastewater containing 1,000 mg/L COD and 32 g/L NaCl, namely: the yeast membrane bioreactor (YMBR) and the bacterial membrane bioreactor (BMBR). COD removal of both processes was above 90% at a hydraulic retention time (HRT) of 5 hours (volumetric loading of 5 kg COD/m³.d), sludge retention time (SRT) of 50 ...
Thousands of sparsely populated communities scatter in the remote areas of northern Canada. It is economically preferable to adopt the decentralized systems to treat the domestic wastewater because of the vast human inhabitant distribution and cold climatic conditions. Electro-technologies such as electrofiltration, elctrofloatation, electrocoagulation and electrokinetic separation have been ...
There is a growing interest in utilising non-traditional water resources by means of water reclamation and water recycling for long term sustainability. Amongst the many treatment alternatives, membrane bioreactors (MBRs) have been seen as an effective technology capable of transforming various types of wastewater into high-quality effluent exceeding most discharge requirements and suitable for a ...
Aeration energy demands for bioprocesses and membrane scouring in membrane bioreactors (MBRs) account for 50% to over 70% of the total operational energy consumption. Energy saving achieved by operating MBRs under low dissolved oxygen (DO) would be an interesting approach to bring MBRs to higher levels of efficiency. This review paper is first carried out to provide a systematic investigation on ...
Increase of shear stress at membrane surfaces is a generally applied strategy to minimize membrane fouling. It has been reported that a two-phase flow, better known as slug flow, is an effective way to increase shear stress. Hence, slug flow was introduced into an anaerobic membrane bioreactor for membrane fouling control. Anaerobic suspended sludge was cultured in an anaerobic membrane ...
In this study, for the first time, a venturi device was integrated into a submerged membrane bioreactor (MBR) to improve membrane surface cleaning and bioreactor oxygenation. The performances of a blower and the venturi device were compared in terms of membrane fouling and bioreactor oxygenation. Upon comparing membrane fouling, the performances were similar for a low operation flux (18 ...
A novel implementation of a membrane bioreactor (MBR) has been studied in this paper. It is utilised as combination of rotating biological contractor (RBC) and an external membrane for oily wastewater treatment. The performance of MBR was compared with the standalone RBC. The RBC used in this investigation is the same one combined with the membrane to form the MBR. Wastewater biodegradability has ...
A novel bioreactor including a group of dual functional ceramic membranes was developed and used for wastewater treatment. The ceramic membranes could be used for both aeration and filtration alternately, so fouling to ceramic membrane would be palliated effectively as its dual functions. For 100 days operation, COD removal ratio was 88∼97% for influent COD of 154∼1389 mg/L, and NH4+-N removal ...
A double membrane system combining a membrane bioreactor (MBR) with a nanofiltration (NF) membrane at the pilot scale was tested to treat real antibiotic wastewater at a pharmaceutical company in Wuxi (China). The water yield of the pilot system reached over 92 ± 5.6% through recycling the NF concentrate to the MBR tank. Results showed that the pilot scale system operated in good ...
The objective of this study was to investigate the influences of electroosmosis (EO) and electrophoresis (EP) on the permeate flux in submerged membrane bioreactors. When a polymeric membrane is placed in between an anode and a cathode, both EO and EP occur simultaneously, causing enhancement in flux. Results showed that after 150 min of filtration, the permeate fluxes were 60, 115, 175 and ...
4-Aminobenzenesulfonate (4-ABS), an aromatic amine and recalcitrant toxic pollutant, is widely used in the dye and pharmaceutical industry. Pannonibacter sp. W1 is a specialized microbial strain which can efficiently degrade 4-ABS. This study shows the feasibility of using the specialized strain in an MBR system to treat synthetic wastewater containing large amount of 4-ABS. Due to membrane ...