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The impact of ultrasonic treatment on activity of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria and nitrite-oxidizing bacteria in activated sludge

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Abstract

The ultrasonic treatment of sludge has been considered as an effective method to facilitate the partial nitritation of municipal sewage. This study aims to reveal the effects of ultrasound on ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) and nitrite-oxidizing bacteria (NOB). The impact factors including ultrasonic irradiation time and intensity, sludge concentration, thermal effect and released free radicals were studied. The maximized difference between the changes in AOB and NOB activities were obtained with 10 g mixed liquor suspended solids (MLSS)/L, using 0.9 kJ/mL ultrasonic energy density and 12 h interval time. The increased ultrasonic intensity destroyed the floc structure of activated sludge, increased the microbial death, and decreased the cellular ATP level. Further, the mechanism exploration indicated that the mechanical shearing could be a critical factor in achieving the nitritation with inhibitory effect on nitrite oxidation.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 51678337 and 51708326), Major Science and Technology Program for Water Pollution Control and Treatment of China (Nos. 2017ZX07103007 and 2018ZX07111006).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China

    Siqi Li, Min Zheng, Shuang Wu, Yu Xue, Yanchen Liu, Chengwen Wang & Xia Huang

  2. Advanced Water Management Centre, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, QLD, 4072, Australia

    Min Zheng

  3. China Academy of Urban Planning & Design, Beijing, 100084, China

    Shuang Wu

Authors
  1. Siqi Li
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  2. Min Zheng
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  3. Shuang Wu
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  4. Yu Xue
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  5. Yanchen Liu
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  6. Chengwen Wang
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  7. Xia Huang
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Yanchen Liu.

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Highlights

• Conditions for ultrasonic treatment to achieve partial nitritation are optimized.

• Ultrasound reduces metabolic activity and releases intracellular metabolites.

• Mechanical shearing is essential to inhibit nitrite oxidation.

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Li, S., Zheng, M., Wu, S. et al. The impact of ultrasonic treatment on activity of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria and nitrite-oxidizing bacteria in activated sludge. Front. Environ. Sci. Eng. 13, 82 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11783-019-1166-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11783-019-1166-8

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