Abstract
This study investigated the effects of residual H2O2 on hydrolysis-acidification and methanogenesis stages of anaerobic digestion after microwave-H2O2 (MW-H2O2) pretreatment of waste activated sludge (WAS). Results showed that high sludge solubilization at 35–45 % was achieved after pretreatment, while large amounts of residual H2O2 remained and refractory compounds were thus generated with high dosage of H2O2 (0.6 g H2O2/g total solids (TS), 1.0 g H2O2/g TS) pretreatment. The residual H2O2 not only inhibited hydrolysis-acidification stage mildly, such as hydrolase activity, but also had acute toxic effect on methanogens, resulting in long lag phase, low methane yield rate, and no increase of cumulative methane production during the 30-day BMP tests. When the low dosage of H2O2 at 0.2 g H2O2/g TS was used in MW-H2O2 pretreatment, sludge anaerobic digestion was significantly enhanced. The cumulative methane production increased by 29.02 %, but still with a lag phase of 1.0 day. With removing the residual H2O2 by catalase, the initial lag phase of hydrolysis-acidification stage decreased from 1.0 to 0.5 day.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bilgin Oncu N, Akmehmet Balcioglu I (2013) Microwave-assisted chemical oxidation of biological waste sludge: simultaneous micropollutant degradation and sludge solubilization. Bioresour Technol 146:126–134. doi:10.1016/j.biortech.2013.07.043
Bougrier C, Delgenès JP, Carrère H (2007) Impacts of thermal pre-treatments on the semi-continuous anaerobic digestion of waste activated sludge. Biochem Eng J 34:20–27. doi:10.1016/j.bej.2006.11.013
Carrère H, Dumas C, Battimelli A et al (2010) Pretreatment methods to improve sludge anaerobic degradability: a review. J Hazard Mater 183:1–15. doi:10.1016/j.jhazmat.2010.06.129
Carvajal A, Peña M, Pérez-Elvira S (2013) Autohydrolysis pretreatment of secondary sludge for anaerobic digestion. Biochem Eng J 75:21–31. doi:10.1016/j.bej.2013.03.002
Chi Y, Li Y, Fei X et al (2011) Enhancement of thermophilic anaerobic digestion of thickened waste activated sludge by combined microwave and alkaline pretreatment. J Environ Sci 23:1257–1265. doi:10.1016/S1001-0742(10)60561-X
Doğan I, Sanin FD (2009) Alkaline solubilization and microwave irradiation as a combined sludge disintegration and minimization method. Water Res 43:2139–2148. doi:10.1016/j.watres.2009.02.023
Dolfing J, Mulder JW (1985) Comparison of methane production rate and coenzyme F420 content of methanogenic consortia in anaerobic granular sludge. Appl Environ Microbiol 49:1142–1145
Eskicioglu C, Kennedy KJ, Droste RL (2006) Characterization of soluble organic matter of waste activated sludge before and after thermal pretreatment. Water Res 40:3725–3736. doi:10.1016/j.watres.2006.08.017
Eskicioglu C, Droste RL, Kennedy KJ (2007a) Performance of anaerobic waste activated sludge digesters after microwave pretreatment. Water Environ Res 79:2265–2273. doi:10.2175/106143007X176004
Eskicioglu C, Kennedy KJ, Droste RL (2007b) Enhancement of batch waste activated sludge digestion by microwave pretreatment. Water Environ Res 79:2304–2317. doi:10.2175/106143007X184069
Eskicioglu C, Terzian N, Kennedy KJ et al (2007c) Athermal microwave effects for enhancing digestibility of waste activated sludge. Water Res 41:2457–2466. doi:10.1016/j.watres.2007.03.008
Eskicioglu C, Kennedy KJ, Droste RL (2008a) Initial examination of microwave pretreatment on primary, secondary and mixed sludges before and after anaerobic digestion. Water Sci Technol 57:311–317. doi:10.2166/wst.2008.010
Eskicioglu C, Prorot A, Marin J et al (2008b) Synergetic pretreatment of sewage sludge by microwave irradiation in presence of H2O2 for enhanced anaerobic digestion. Water Res 42:4674–4682. doi:10.1016/j.watres.2008.08.010
Eskicioglu C, Kennedy KJ, Droste RL (2009) Enhanced disinfection and methane production from sewage sludge by microwave irradiation. Desalination 248:279–285. doi:10.1016/j.desal.2008.05.066
He P, Lü F, Zhang H et al (2007) Sewage sludge in China: challenges toward a sustainable future. Water Pract Technol 2:1–8. doi:10.2166/WPT.2007083
Houtmeyers S, Degrève J, Willems K et al (2014) Comparing the influence of low power ultrasonic and microwave pre-treatments on the solubilisation and semi-continuous anaerobic digestion of waste activated sludge. Bioresour Technol 171:44–49. doi:10.1016/j.biortech.2014.08.029
Jang J-H, Ahn J-H (2013) Effect of microwave pretreatment in presence of NaOH on mesophilic anaerobic digestion of thickened waste activated sludge. Bioresour Technol 131:437–442. doi:10.1016/j.biortech.2012.09.057
Jang S, Imlay JA (2007) Micromolar intracellular hydrogen peroxide disrupts metabolism by damaging iron-sulfur enzymes. J Biol Chem 282:929–937. doi:10.1074/jbc.M607646200
Jiang G, Yuan Z (2013) Synergistic inactivation of anaerobic wastewater biofilm by free nitrous acid and hydrogen peroxide. J Hazard Mater 250–251:91–98. doi:10.1016/j.jhazmat.2013.01.047
Jin L, Zhang G, Tian H (2014) Current state of sewage treatment in China. Water Res 66:85–98. doi:10.1016/j.watres.2014.08.014
Kang YW, Cho MJ, Hwang KY (1999) Correction of hydrogen peroxide interference on standard chemical oxygen demand test. Water Res 33:1247–1251. doi:10.1016/S0043-1354(98)00315-7
Kelessidis A, Stasinakis AS (2012) Comparative study of the methods used for treatment and final disposal of sewage sludge in European countries. Waste Manag (New York, NY) 32:1186–1195. doi:10.1016/j.wasman.2012.01.012
Kim J, Park C, Kim T-H et al (2003) Effects of various pretreatments for enhanced anaerobic digestion with waste activated sludge. J Biosci Bioeng 95:271–275. doi:10.1263/jbb.95.271
Kim D-H, Cho S-K, Lee M-K, Kim M-S (2013) Increased solubilization of excess sludge does not always result in enhanced anaerobic digestion efficiency. Bioresour Technol 143:660–664. doi:10.1016/j.biortech.2013.06.058
Kubota K, Ozaki Y, Matsumiya Y, Kubo M (2009) Analysis of relationship between microbial and methanogenic biomass in methane fermentation. Appl Biochem Biotechnol 158:493–501. doi:10.1007/s12010-008-8477-8
Kuglarz M, Karakashev D, Angelidaki I (2013) Microwave and thermal pretreatment as methods for increasing the biogas potential of secondary sludge from municipal wastewater treatment plants. Bioresour Technol 134:290–297. doi:10.1016/j.biortech.2013.02.001
Liu B, Wei Q, Zhang B, Bi J (2013) Life cycle GHG emissions of sewage sludge treatment and disposal options in Tai Lake Watershed, China. Sci Total Environ 447:361–369. doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2013.01.019
Liu J, Tong J, Wei Y, Wang Y (2015) Microwave and its combined processes: an effective way for enhancing anaerobic digestion and dewaterability of sewage sludge? Journal of Water Reuse and Desalination. doi:10.2166/wrd.2015.120
Mao T, Show K-Y (2007) Influence of ultrasonication on anaerobic bioconversion of sludge. Water Environ Res 79:436–441. doi:10.2175/106143006X123049
Mehdizadeh SN, Eskicioglu C, Bobowski J, Johnson T (2013) Conductive heating and microwave hydrolysis under identical heating profiles for advanced anaerobic digestion of municipal sludge. Water Res 47:5040–5051. doi:10.1016/j.watres.2013.05.055
Mishra S, Imlay JA (2013) An anaerobic bacterium, Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron, uses a consortium of enzymes to scavenge hydrogen peroxide. Mol Microbiol 90:1356–1371. doi:10.1111/mmi.12438
Mudhoo A, Sharma SK (2011) Microwave irradiation technology in waste sludge and wastewater treatment research. Crit Rev Environ Sci Technol 41:999–1066. doi:10.1080/10643380903392767
Pilli S, Yan S, Tyagi RD, Surampalli RY (2014) Thermal pretreatment of sewage sludge to enhance anaerobic digestion: a review. Crit Rev Environ Sci Technol 45:669–702. doi:10.1080/10643389.2013.876527
Qiang H, Xingfu S, Li G, Hainan A (2014) Two-phase integrated sludge thickening and digestion (TISTD) reactor microbial diversity and community structure succession rules. World J Microbiol Biotechnol 30:3137–3147. doi:10.1007/s11274-014-1741-x
Rajendran K, Kankanala HR, Lundin M, Taherzadeh MJ (2014) A novel process simulation model (PSM) for anaerobic digestion using Aspen Plus. Bioresour Technol 168:7–13. doi:10.1016/j.biortech.2014.01.051
Raposo F, De la Rubia MA, Fernández-Cegrí V, Borja R (2012) Anaerobic digestion of solid organic substrates in batch mode: an overview relating to methane yields and experimental procedures. Renew Sust Energ Rev 16:861–877. doi:10.1016/j.rser.2011.09.008
Sambusiti C, Rollini M, Ficara E et al (2014) Enzymatic and metabolic activities of four anaerobic sludges and their impact on methane production from ensiled sorghum forage. Bioresour Technol 155:122–128. doi:10.1016/j.biortech.2013.12.055
Shahriari H, Warith M, Hamoda M, Kennedy KJ (2012) Anaerobic digestion of organic fraction of municipal solid waste combining two pretreatment modalities, high temperature microwave and hydrogen peroxide. Waste Manag (New York, NY) 32:41–52. doi:10.1016/j.wasman.2011.08.012
Shen Y, Linville JL, Urgun-demirtas M et al (2015) An overview of biogas production and utilization at full-scale wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in the United States : challenges and opportunities towards energy-neutral WWTPs. Renew Sust Energ Rev 50:346–362
Sólyom K, Mato RB, Pérez-Elvira SI, Cocero MJ (2011) The influence of the energy absorbed from microwave pretreatment on biogas production from secondary wastewater sludge. Bioresour Technol 102:10849–10854. doi:10.1016/j.biortech.2011.09.052
The State Council of the people’s Republic of China (2015) Action Plan for Water Pollution Prevention and Control
Toreci I, Kennedy KJ, Droste RL (2009) Evaluation of continuous mesophilic anaerobic sludge digestion after high temperature microwave pretreatment. Water Res 43:1273–1284. doi:10.1016/j.watres.2008.12.022
Toreci I, Droste RL, Kennedy KJ (2011) Mesophilic anaerobic digestion with high-temperature microwave pretreatment and importance of inoculum acclimation. Water Environ Res 83:549–559. doi:10.2175/106143010X12780288628651
Tyagi VK, Lo S-L (2011) Application of physico-chemical pretreatment methods to enhance the sludge disintegration and subsequent anaerobic digestion: an up to date review. Rev Environ Sci Biotechnol 10:215–242. doi:10.1007/s11157-011-9244-9
Wang Y, Wei Y, Liu J (2009) Effect of H2O2 dosing strategy on sludge pretreatment by microwave-H2O2 advanced oxidation process. J Hazard Mater 169:680–684. doi:10.1016/j.jhazmat.2009.04.001
Wang Y, Xiao Q, Liu J et al (2015) Pilot-scale study of sludge pretreatment by microwave and sludge reduction based on lysis–cryptic growth. Bioresour Technol 190:140–147
Wilson CA, Novak JT (2009) Hydrolysis of macromolecular components of primary and secondary wastewater sludge by thermal hydrolytic pretreatment. Water Res 43:4489–4498. doi:10.1016/j.watres.2009.07.022
Wong WT, Chan WI, Liao PH, Lo KV (2006) A hydrogen peroxide/ microwave advanced oxidation process for sewage sludge treatment. J Environ Sci Health, Part A: Tox Hazard Subst Environ Eng 41:2623–2633. doi:10.1080/10934520600928086
Xiao Q, Wei Y, Wang Y, Zeng F (2012a) Comparison of sludge solubilization by microwave and its combined processes. China Water & Wastewater 28:61–64
Xiao Q, Yan H, Wei Y et al (2012b) Optimization of H2O2 dosage in microwave-H2O2 process for sludge pretreatment with uniform design method. J Environ Sci 24:2060–2067. doi:10.1016/S1001-0742(11)60998-4
Yang G, Zhang G, Wang H (2015) Current state of sludge production, management, treatment and disposal in China. Water Res 78:60–73. doi:10.1016/j.watres.2015.04.002
Yu Y, Chan WI, Lo IW et al (2010) Sewage sludge treatment by a continuous microwave enhanced advanced oxidation process. Can J Civ Eng 37:796–804. doi:10.1139/L10-044
Zhao Z-H, Sakagami Y, Osaka T (1998) Toxicity of hydrogen peroxide produced by electroplated coatings to pathogenic bacteria. Can J Microbiol 44:441–447. doi:10.1139/cjm-44-5-441
Zhou QH, Wu ZB, Cheng SP et al (2005) Enzymatic activities in constructed wetlands and di-n-butyl phthalate (DBP) biodegradation. Soil Biol Biochem 37:1454–1459. doi:10.1016/j.soilbio.2005.01.003
Acknowledgments
This work is supported by the National Water Pollution Control and Management Technology Major Project of China (2012ZX07202-005 and 2015ZX07203-005).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Responsible editor: Angeles Blanco
Electronic supplementary material
Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.
ESM 1
(DOCX 367 kb)
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Liu, J., Jia, R., Wang, Y. et al. Does residual H2O2 result in inhibitory effect on enhanced anaerobic digestion of sludge pretreated by microwave-H2O2 pretreatment process?. Environ Sci Pollut Res 24, 9016–9025 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-015-5704-z
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-015-5704-z