Novel Separation Methods and Technology for Wastewater and Sludge Treatment

A special issue of Separations (ISSN 2297-8739). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental Separations".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 June 2023) | Viewed by 7077

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
1. State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, 1239 Siping Road, Shanghai 200092, China
2. Shanghai Institute of Pollution Control and Ecological Security, Shanghai, China
Interests: solidwaste management; multisource sludge disposal; anaerobic digestion; thermal hydrolysis; aerobic composting
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
1. State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, 1239 Siping Road, Shanghai 200092, China
2. Shanghai Institute of Pollution Control and Ecological Security, Shanghai, China
Interests: sludge treatment; anaerobic digestion; thermal hydrolysis; nitrogen metabolism
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Wastewater and sludge treatment are closely related to the water environment and human health, and they have been the subject of extensive research around the world. The efficient removal of various pollutants in wastewater and sludge is the first step to achieving their harmlessness and sanitation. In recent years, the technical goal has gradually shifted from single-pollutant removal to the simultaneous recycling and utilization of resources. In the context of global carbon emission reduction, the simultaneous assessment and reduction of carbon emissions in the treatment process has also become a topic that needs research attention given the new requirements for the corresponding technologies.

This Special Issue aims to collect contributions on the most recent advances in the field of wastewater and sludge treatment. Topics of interest include wastewater treatment including the removal of conventional (N, P, heavy metals, etc.) and emerging pollutants, as well as nutrients recovery; sludge pollutants removal and energy recovery; sludge reduction and harmless technologies such as dewatering, anaerobic digestion, aerobic composting, pyrolysis, etc.; high-value-added products fabricated from wastewater and sludge; carbon footprint analysis for the applied technologies; the carbon emission reduction strategies.

It is my pleasure to invite you to submit a manuscript for this Special Issue. Full papers, communications, and reviews are all welcome.

Prof. Dr. Bin Dong
Dr. Sisi Chen
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Separations is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • wastewater treatment
  • sludge disposal
  • emerging pollutants
  • heavy metals
  • high-value-added products
  • energy and resources recovery
  • hygienization
  • carbon footprint

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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16 pages, 2135 KiB  
Article
Agriculture Waste as Slow Carbon Releasing Source of Mixotrophic Denitrification Process for Treating Low C/N Wastewater
by Xiaohong Hong, Liaofan Tang, Haixia Feng, Xiaolei Zhang and Xianqiong Hu
Separations 2022, 9(10), 323; https://doi.org/10.3390/separations9100323 - 21 Oct 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1477
Abstract
Mixotrophic denitrification has showed great potential for treating wastewater with a low C/N ratio. Mixotrophic denitrification is the process combining autotrophic denitrification and heterotrophic denitrification in one system. It can compensate the disadvantage of the both denitrifications. Instead of using sodium acetate and [...] Read more.
Mixotrophic denitrification has showed great potential for treating wastewater with a low C/N ratio. Mixotrophic denitrification is the process combining autotrophic denitrification and heterotrophic denitrification in one system. It can compensate the disadvantage of the both denitrifications. Instead of using sodium acetate and glucose as carbon source for the heterotrophic denitrification, agriculture solid wastes including rice straw (RS), wheat straw (WS), and corncob (CC) were employed in this study to investigate their potential as carbon source for treating low C/N wastewater. The carbon releasing pattern of the three carbon rich materials has been studied as well as their capacity in denitrification. The results showed that the highest denitrification occurred in the corncob system which was 0.34 kg N/(m3·d). Corncob was then selected to combine with sulfur beads to build the mixotrophic denitrification system. The reactor packed with sulfur bead on the top and corncob on the bottom achieved 0.34 kg N/(m3·d) denitrification efficiency, which is higher than that of the reactor packed with completely mixed sulfur bead and corncob. The autotrophic denitrification and heterotrophic denitrification were 42.2% and 57.8%, respectively. The microorganisms in the sulfur layer were Thermomonas, Ferritrophicum, Thiobacillus belonging to autotrophic denitrification bacteria. Kouleothrix and Geothrix were mostly found in the corncob layer, which have the function for fiber hydrolysis and denitrification. The study has provided an insight into agriculture solid waste application and enhancement on denitrification of wastewater treatment. Full article
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12 pages, 1999 KiB  
Article
Enhancing the Stability of Aerobic Granular Sludge Process Treating Municipal Wastewater by Adjusting Organic Loading Rate and Dissolved Oxygen Concentration
by Juan Peng, Lei Zhao, Qiaoru Wang, Wei Song, Zhuoyue Wang, Ji Li, Xiaolei Zhang and Fang Yuan
Separations 2022, 9(8), 228; https://doi.org/10.3390/separations9080228 - 22 Aug 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2057
Abstract
Aerobic granular sludge (AGS) application in treating municipal wastewater has been greatly restricted due to its low stability. It has been found that operation parameters have a great impact on stability. The organic loading rate (OLR) and dissolved oxygen (DO) concentration are two [...] Read more.
Aerobic granular sludge (AGS) application in treating municipal wastewater has been greatly restricted due to its low stability. It has been found that operation parameters have a great impact on stability. The organic loading rate (OLR) and dissolved oxygen (DO) concentration are two very important parameters that impact stability. In this study, the organic loading rate (OLR) and aeration rate were studied to verify their influence on AGS system stability, which is indicated by determining pollutant removal performance, including chemical oxygen demand (COD), ammonia nitrogen, and total nitrogen (TN). The physical and chemical property changes of AGS and the effects of pollutant removal during the formation of AGS were systematically investigated. The AGS was formed after about 25 days and remained stable for about 45–50 days. The AGS was light-yellow globular sludge with an average particle size of 1.25 mm and a sludge volume index (SVI) of 33.9 mL/g. The optimal condition was obtained at an OLR of 4.2 kg COD/m3·d, aeration rate of 4 L/min, and a hydraulic retention time (HRT) of 4 h. The corresponding removal efficiencies of COD, ammonia nitrogen, and TN were 94.1%, 98.4% and 74.1%, respectively. The study shows that the AGS system has great potential for pollutant removal from wastewater. Full article
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16 pages, 2239 KiB  
Article
Investigation of the Removal of Several Micropollutants Presenting Different Ozone Reactivities from Natural Potable Water Matrix by the Application of Ozonation with the Use of SiO2 and Al2O3 as Catalysts
by Savvina Psaltou, Efthimia Kaprara, Apostolos Tsaragklis, Manassis Mitrakas and Anastasios Zouboulis
Separations 2022, 9(7), 173; https://doi.org/10.3390/separations9070173 - 12 Jul 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1562
Abstract
The aim of this study was to investigate the correlation between solid materials and micropollutants, aiming to enhance the removal of the latter during the application of the ozonation process. For that purpose, two solid materials (SiO2 and Al2O3 [...] Read more.
The aim of this study was to investigate the correlation between solid materials and micropollutants, aiming to enhance the removal of the latter during the application of the ozonation process. For that purpose, two solid materials (SiO2 and Al2O3) presenting catalytic activity were used for the removal of eight micropollutants from natural potable water, containing them either separately or in a mixture, by ozonation. The studied micropollutants, presenting different physicochemical properties, are atrazine, ibuprofen, p-CBA (ozone-resistant compounds), benzotriazole, caffeine (with moderate ozone reactivity), carbamazepine, fluoxetine, paracetamol (easily oxidized by ozone). The residual concentrations of carbamazepine, paracetamol, and fluoxetine were found to be lower than 5.9 μg/L, 1.2 μg/L, and 15.5 μg/L, respectively, after 1 min of oxidation time in all studied systems. In contrast, benzotriazole and caffeine removal was enhanced by the addition of catalysts; in both cases the best catalyst was SiO2. Regarding the ozone-resistant compounds, both examined materials enhanced the removal of ibuprofen and p-CBA; however, the best was found to be SiO2 and Al2O3, respectively. In contrast, Al2O3 cannot be considered as an effective catalyst for the removal of atrazine, which presents chemical affinity only with SiO2 and for this reason it can be removed to a higher extent by its presence. Similar results were observed in the study of the mixture, although in this system, the residual concentration of all micropollutants was found to be under the detection limit after the application of catalytic ozonation. Full article
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Review

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37 pages, 1644 KiB  
Review
Heterogeneous Catalytic Ozonation: Solution pH and Initial Concentration of Pollutants as Two Important Factors for the Removal of Micropollutants from Water
by Savvina Psaltou, Manassis Mitrakas and Anastasios Zouboulis
Separations 2022, 9(12), 413; https://doi.org/10.3390/separations9120413 - 6 Dec 2022
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 1525
Abstract
There are several publications on heterogeneous catalytic ozonation; however, their conclusions and the comparisons between them are not always consistent due to the variety of applied experimental conditions and the different solid materials used as catalysts. This review attempts to limit the major [...] Read more.
There are several publications on heterogeneous catalytic ozonation; however, their conclusions and the comparisons between them are not always consistent due to the variety of applied experimental conditions and the different solid materials used as catalysts. This review attempts to limit the major influencing factors in order to reach more vigorous conclusions. Particularly, it highlights two specific factors/parameters as the most important for the evaluation and comparison of heterogeneous catalytic ozonation processes, i.e., (1) the pH value of the solution and (2) the initial concentration of the (micro-)pollutants. Based on these, the role of Point of Zero Charge (PZC), which concerns the respective solid materials/catalysts in the decomposition of ozone towards the production of oxidative radicals, is highlighted. The discussed observations indicate that for the pH range 6–8 and when the initial organic pollutants’ concentrations are around 1 mg/L (or even lower, i.e., micropollutant), then heterogeneous catalytic ozonation follows a radical mechanism, whereas the applied solid materials show their highest catalytic activity under their neutral charge. Furthermore, carbons are considered as a rather controversial group of catalysts for this process due to their possible instability under intense ozone oxidizing conditions. Full article
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