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Efficient COD removal and nitrification in an upflow microaerobic sludge blanket reactor for domestic wastewater

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Abstract

The treatment performance of an upflow microaerobic sludge blanket reactor (UMSB) for synthetic domestic wastewater was investigated at two dissolved oxygen (DO) levels, 0.3–0.5 and 0.7–0.9 mg l−1, focusing on nitrification performance. The higher DO level induced complete nitrification of ammonia nitrogen (NH3–N), achieving chemical oxygen demand and NH3–N removals of 97 and 92%, respectively. There were consistently significantly higher nitrate nitrogen (NO3–N) and nitrite nitrogen (NO2–N) levels in the effluent, with ~66% of newly-produced oxidised nitrogen as NO2–N. Despite the high nitrification efficiency, only about 23% of the removed NH3–N amount from the influent was ultimately transformed into oxidised nitrogen due to the simultaneous nitrification-denitrification. Sludge blanket development and granulation occurred simultaneously in the UMSB.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by the Natural Science Foundation of China (21077011) and the Program for Changjiang Scholars and Innovative Research Team in University (IRT0809).

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Correspondence to Shaokui Zheng.

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Zheng, S., Cui, C. Efficient COD removal and nitrification in an upflow microaerobic sludge blanket reactor for domestic wastewater. Biotechnol Lett 34, 471–474 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10529-011-0801-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10529-011-0801-7

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