title: Start-up period investigation of pilot-scale submerged membrane electro-bioreactor (SMEBR) treating raw municipal wastewater.
abstract: Submerged membrane electro-bioreactor (SMEBR) is a new hybrid technology for wastewater treatment employing electrical field and microfiltration in a nutrient-removing activated sludge process. A pilot SMEBR system was located at the wastewater treatment plant in the City of l'Assomption (Quebec, Canada) with the objective of investigating the start-up period performance under variable organic loadings and environmental conditions with respect to effluent quality, membrane fouling, and sludge properties. The pilot SMEBR facility was fed with the raw de-gritted municipal wastewater. At steady state operation, the removal efficiencies of ammonia (as NH3(+)-N), phosphorus (as PO4(3-)-P), and COD were 99%, 99%, and 92%, respectively. No substantial increase in the monitored transmembrane pressure as 0.02kPad(-1) was reported. The time necessary to filter 100mL of the sludge sample has decreased by 78% after treatment whilst the sludge volume index averaged 119mLg(-1). Energy requirements were in the range of 1.1-1.6kWhm(-3) of wastewater. It was concluded that the SMEBR is a very competitive technology when compared to conventional membrane systems as it can enhance treatment performance to an appreciable extent, remove phosphorus and reduce fouling.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Institute Center for Water and Environment (iWATER), Masdar Institute of Science and Technology, PO Box 54224, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Electronic address: swajih@masdar.ac.ae.
authors.forename: Shadi W
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Hasan
authors.affiliation: Department of Building, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Concordia University, Montreal, QC H3G 1M8, Canada.
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Elektorowicz
authors.affiliation: Department of Civil Engineering, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg R3T 5V6, Canada.
authors.forename: Jan A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Oleszkiewicz
mesh_terms: D000641:Ammonia / Q000032:analysis; D019149:Bioreactors; D002947:Cities; D004560:Electricity; D005374:Filtration / Q000295:instrumentation; D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D010758:Phosphorus / Q000032:analysis; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011792:Quebec; D012722:Sewage; D014865:Waste Disposal, Fluid / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D062065:Wastewater / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D000641:Ammonia; D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D010758:Phosphorus; D012722:Sewage; D062065:Wastewater
keywords: Electrokinetics; Energy consumption; Membrane fouling; Nutrient removal; Submerged membrane electro-bioreactor (SMEBR); Wastewater