Adaptation of anaerobic ammonium-oxidising consortium to synthetic coke-ovens wastewater.
A consortium with autotrophic anaerobic ammonium oxidising (AAAO) activity was developed from municipal sludge, and its ability to remove high ammonium concentrations in a toxic wastewater such as coke ovens wastewater is presented here. The enriched AAAO consortium was acclimatised to a synthetic coke ovens wastewater to establish anaerobic ammonium oxidation (AAO) activity. Phenol was the main carbon component of the synthetic wastewater whereby it was added stepwise from 50+/-10 to 550+/-10 mg l(-1) into an anammox enrichment medium. Ammonium-N removal was initially impaired; however, it gradually recovered. After 15 months of further selection and enrichment, the ammonium removal rate reached 62+/-2 mg NH(4)(+)-N l(-1) day(-1), i.e. 1.5 times the rate in the original AAAO reactor. The new consortium demonstrated higher ammonium and nitrite removal rates, even under phenol perturbation (up to 330+/-10 mg l(-1)). It is therefore concluded that the AAO activity in the consortium was resistant to high phenol and has potential for treating coke-ovens wastewater.
Toh
S K
SK
Environmental Engineering Research Centre, Civil and Environmental Engineering School, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 640261. csktoh@ntu.edu.sg
Ashbolt
N J
NJ
D000693:Anaerobiosis; D001673:Biodegradation, Environmental; D019149:Bioreactors; D003077:Coke; D007220:Industrial Waste; D010084:Oxidation-Reduction; D019800:Phenol / Q000378:metabolism; D000644:Quaternary Ammonium Compounds / Q000378:metabolism*; D014865:Waste Disposal, Fluid / Q000379:methods*
D003077:Coke; D007220:Industrial Waste; D000644:Quaternary Ammonium Compounds; D019800:Phenol