Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Excessive precipitation of CaCO3 as aragonite in a continuous aerobic granular sludge reactor

  • Environmental biotechnology
  • Published:
Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

A hybrid airlift reactor was adopted to retain aerobic granules in the reactor successfully for continuous operation. It was found that aerobic granules maintained excellent physical structure stability in the continuous-flow reactor with reactor performance as good as batch operation. However, flocs appeared after batch operation was switched to continuous operation, and chemical oxygen demand (COD) in the wastewater was thus removed by co-existed granules and flocs in the reactor. Furthermore, excessive precipitation of CaCO3 as needled shaped aragonite in the continuous aerobic granular sludge reactor was observed, which led to the further enhancement of settling ability of granules with sludge volume index (SVI) reduction from 32 to 2 ml g−1 but specific oxygen utilization rate (SOUR) decrease from 61 to 23 mg O2 g−1 MLVSS h−1. Thus, apart from the physical structure stability, bioactivity stability of granules should be also considered as an important parameter to evaluate the continuous operation of aerobic granular sludge. Furthermore, the decrease in granule polysaccharide content implied that protein was more important for aragonite precipitation. The excessive aragonite precipitation in the continuous-flow reactor could be due to the competition between flocs and granules. In addition, the degradation of polysaccharide in aerobic granules under a continuous-flow mode may also contribute to excessive aragonite precipitation.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Adav SS, Lee DJ, Tay JH (2007) Extracellular polymeric substances and structural stability of aerobic granule. Water Res 42:1644–1650

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • APHA (1998) Standard methods for the examination of water and wastewater, 19th edn. American Public Health Association, Washington

    Google Scholar 

  • Bradford MM (1976) A rapid and sensitive method for the quantitation of microgram quantities of protein utilizing the principle of protein-dye binding reproduction. Anal Biochem 72:248–254

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Council Directive 91/271/EEC (1991) http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:31991L0271&from=EN

  • Dubois M, Gilles KA, Hamilton JK, Rebers PA, Smith F (1956) Calorimetric method for determination of sugar and related substances. Anal Chem 28:350–356

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Dupraz CR, Reid P, Braissant O, Decho AW, Norman RS, Visscher PT (2009) Processes of carbonate precipitation in modern microbial mats. Earth Sci Rev 96:141–162

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Feng QL, Pu G, Pei Y, Cui FZ, Li HD, Kim TN (2000) Polymorph and morphology of calcium carbonate crystals induced by proteins extracted from mollusk shell. J Cryst Growth 216:459–465

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jia XS, Furumai H, Fang HHP (1996) Yields of biomass and extracellular polymers in four anaerobic sludges. Environ Technol 17:283–291

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Juang YC, Adav SS, Lee DJ, Tay JH (2010) Stable aerobic granules for continuous-flow reactors: precipitating calcium and iron salts in granular interiors. Bioresour Technol 101:8051–8057

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kawaguchi T, Decho AW (2002) A laboratory investigation of cyanobacterial extracellular polymeric secretions (EPS) in influencing CaCO3 polymorphism. J Cryst Growth 240:230–235

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kong YH, Liu YQ, Tay JH, Wong FS, Zhu JR (2009) Aerobic granulation in sequencing batch reactors with different reactor height/diameter ratios. Enzym Microb Technol 45:379–383

  • Kong Q, Ngo HH, Shu L, Fu RS, Jiang CH, Miao MS (2014) Enhancement of aerobic granulation by zero-valent iron in sequencing batch airlift reactor. J Hazard Mater 279:511–517

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Li J, Cai A, Wang M, Ding L, Ni Y (2014) Aerobic granulation in a modified oxidation ditch with an adjustable volume intraclarifier. Bioresour Technol 157:351–354

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Liu YQ, Tay JH (2007) Cultivation of aerobic granules in a bubble column and an airlift reactor with divided draft tubes at low aeration rate. Biochem Eng J 34:1–7

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Liu YQ, Moy B, Kong YH, Tay JH (2010) Formation, physical characteristics and microbial community structure of aerobic granules in a pilot-scale sequencing batch reactor for real wastewater treatment. Enzym Microb Technol 46:520–525

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Liu YQ, Kong Y, Tay JH, Zhu J (2011) Enhancement of start-up of pilot-scale granular SBR fed with real wastewater. Sep Purif Technol 82:190–196

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Liu H, Li Y, Yang C, Pu W, He L, Bo F (2012) Stable aerobic granules in continuous-flow bioreactor with self-forming dynamic membrane. Bioresour Technol 121:111–118

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Mishima K, Nakamura M (1991) Self-immobilization of aerobic activated sludge. A pilot study of the aerobic upflow sludge blanket process in municipal sewage treatment. Water Sci Technol 23:981–990

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Morales N, Figueroa M, Mosquera-Corral A, Campos JL, Mendez R (2012) Aerobic granular-type biomass development in a continuous stirred tank reactor. Sep Purif Technol 89:199–205

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Morgenroth E, Sherden T, van Loosdrecht MCM, Heijnen JJ, Wilderer PA (1997) Aerobic granular sludge in a sequencing batch reactor. Water Res 31:3191–3194

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ni M, Ratner BD (2008) Differentiating calcium carbonate polymorphs by surface analysis techniques—an XPS and TOF-SIMS study surface and interface analysis. Surf Interface Anal 40:1356–1361

    Article  PubMed Central  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Qin L, Liu Y, Tay JH (2004) Effect of settling time on aerobic granulation in sequencing batch reactor. Biochem Eng J 21:47–52

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Stocks-Fischer S, Galinat JK, Bang SS (1999) Microbiological precipitation of CaCO3. Soil Biol Biochem 31:1563–1571

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Tay JH, Liu QS, Liu Y (2001) Microscopic observation of aerobic granulation in sequential aerobic sludge blanket reactor. J Appl Microbiol 91:168–175

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Thaveesri J, Daffonchio D, Liessens B, Verstraete W (1995) Different types of sludge granules in UASB reactors treating acidified wastewaters. Int J Gen Mol Microbiol 68:329–337

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Tsuneda S, Nagano T, Hoshino T, Ejiri Y, Noda N, Hirata A (2003) Characterization of nitrifying granules produced in an aerobic upflow fluidized bed reactor. Water Res 37:4965–4973

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • van Langerak EPA, Gonzalez-Gil G, van Aelst A, van Lier JB, Hamelers HVM, Lettinga G (1998) Effects of high calcium concentrations on the development of methanogenic sludge in upflow anaerobic sludge bed (UASB) reactors. Water Res 32:1255–1263

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wada N, Okazaki M, Tachibana S (1993) Effects of calcium binding polysaccharides from calcareous algae on calcium carbonate polymorphs under conditions of double diffusion. J Cryst Growth 132:115–121

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Zhou D, Liu M, Gao L, Shao C, Yu J (2013) Calcium accumulation characterization in the aerobic granules cultivated in a continuous-flow airlift bioreactor. Biotechnol Lett 35:871–877

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Compliance with ethical standards

ᅟ

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Ethical approval

This article does not contain any studies with human participants or animals performed by any of the authors.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Engineering and the Environment, University of Southampton, Southampton, SO17 1BJ, UK

    Yong-Qiang Liu

  2. College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu, 610500, China

    Gui-Hong Lan

  3. Department of Urban Water Environmental Research, Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, Beijing, 100012, China

    Ping Zeng

Authors
  1. Yong-Qiang Liu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Gui-Hong Lan
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Ping Zeng
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Yong-Qiang Liu.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Liu, YQ., Lan, GH. & Zeng, P. Excessive precipitation of CaCO3 as aragonite in a continuous aerobic granular sludge reactor. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 99, 8225–8234 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00253-015-6727-6

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00253-015-6727-6

Keywords

Search

Navigation