Inexpensive non-toxic flocculation of microalgae contradicts theories; overcoming a major hurdle to bulk algal production

There are two major energy and cost constraints to bulk production of single cell microalgae for biofuels or feed: expensive culture systems with high capital costs and high energy requirements for mixing and gas exchange; and the cost of harvesting using high-speed continuous centrifugation for dewatering. This report deals with the latter; harvesting by flocculation where theory states that alkaline flocculants neutralize the repelling surface charge of algal cells, allowing them to coalesce into a floc. It had been assumed that with such electrostatic flocculation, the more cells to be flocculated, the more flocculant needed, in a linear stoichiometric fashion, rendering flocculation overly expensive. Counter to theory of electrostatic flocculation, we find that the amount of alkaline flocculant needed is a function of the logarithm of cell density, with dense cultures requiring an order of magnitude less base than dilute suspensions, with flocculation occurring at a lower pH. Various other theories abound that flocculation can be due to multi-valent cross-linking, or co-precipitation with phosphate or with magnesium and calcium, but are clearly not relevant with the flocculants we used. Monovalent bases that cannot cross-link or precipitate phosphate work with the same log-linear stoichiometry as the divalent bases, obviating those theories, leaving electrostatic flocculation as the only tenable theory of flocculation with the materials used. The cost of flocculation of dense cultures with this procedure should be below $1.00/T algae for mixed calcium:magnesium hydroxides.     

Changes in the chemistry and biota of Lake Carey: a large salt lake impacted by hypersaline discharge from mining operations in Western Australia

The environment of Lake Carey, a large salt lake in the goldfields of Western Australia, has been subjected to mining for the past 100 years. The effect of discharge of hypersaline water to the playa as a result of pit dewatering has been a grave concern. The aim of this paper was to investigate the influences of seasonal parameters and mining activity on the physico-chemical and biological attributes of Lake Carey. Assessment of water and sediment chemistry and benthic microbial communities (BMCs) has been carried out opportunistically since 1999, with particular emphasis on the differences between sites receiving dewatering discharge currently or in the past (Impacted Sites), and those which have never received dewatering discharge (Control Sites). Results of water and sediment analyses indicated that the impacts of dewatering discharge on Lake Carey were localised and evident in the vicinity of the discharge sites. However, large rainfall events, such as the cyclonic rainfall in 2004, could result in flushing and amelioration of sediments. This was also reflected in the sites which were historically impacted by dewatering discharge. The sites directly impacted by dewatering discharge displayed poor abundance and species richness of diatoms compared to the sites unaffected by dewatering discharge. However, recovery of these sites in terms of species richness and abundance is also initiated by large rainfall events, as shown by data collected from the historical dewatering discharge sites. Guest Editors: J. John & B. Timms Salt Lake Research: Biodiversity and Conservation—Selected papers from the 9th Conference of the International Society for Salt Lake Research     

Application of alkaline treatment for sludge decrement and humic acid recovery

A new method was introduced to reduce waste activated sludge and extract humic acid for liquid fertilizer. Sludge was disintegrated with NaOH (0.4 g/g dry solid, 8 h) and then centrifuged to obtain the supernatant. The residual sludge was then dewatered, while the supernatant was used to extract humic acid with an ultrafiltration membrane. The results showed that the alkaline treatment dissolved more than half of the sludge organic matter, which was composed of 24% humic acid by mass. After the supernatant was concentrated 20 times using a membrane with a molecular weight cutoff of 1000, the retentate contained 94.5% of the dissolved organics and could be used to produce humic acid fertilizer. Additionally, only 26% of the NaOH was consumed and the residual NaOH in the permeate flux could be reused. Due to the removal of water and organics, the dewatered sludge could be reduced by 60% when compared to samples that did not receive the alkaline treatment.     

微生物絮凝剂的稳定性及其对城市污水厂浓缩污泥的絮凝脱水

研究了酱油曲霉(Aspergillus sojae)产生的微生物絮凝剂(MBF)的稳定性,并将其用于城市污水厂的浓缩污泥的强化脱水.结果表明:由酱油曲霉提取的MBF具有很好的热稳定性和酸碱稳定性,4℃低温条件下保存35d后絮凝率仍在96%以上,而常温条件下保存35d后不同pH的MBF絮凝率差别很大.与PAM、PAC相比较,MBF能更好地降低城市污水处理厂浓缩污泥比阻.MBF对浓缩污泥的强化脱水的最佳投加量为7%(v/v),且MBF的单耗随着污泥处理量的增大而逐渐减小.     

The effect of Ni(II) on properties of bulking activated sludge and microbial analysis of sludge using 16S rDNA gene

This study investigated the effect of nickel on properties and microbial community of bulking activated sludge when 60-240 mg/L Ni(II) was dosed continuously in a sequencing batch reactor (SBR) over 350 days. Results showed that 120 mg/L nickel did not significantly inhibited removal of organic pollutant by activated sludge. However, the system was completely upset when 240 mg/L Ni(II) was dosed. Improvement of settling and dewatering ability was also observed with the addition of Ni(II). In addition, investigations by polymerase chain reaction-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE) of 16S rDNA of bacteria strain demonstrated that Ni(II) significantly affected microbial community of bulking activated sludge, judging from the elimination of original species and emergence of possible new nickel-resistant bacteria. The effect of nickel on shift of microbial community was an important cause resulted in the improvement of sludge properties in this bulking activated sludge system.     

微生物絮凝剂的稳定性及其对城市污水厂浓缩污泥的絮凝脱水

研究了酱油曲霉(Aspergillus sojae)产生的微生物絮凝剂(MBF)的稳定性, 并将其用于城市污水厂的浓缩污泥的强化脱水。结果表明：由酱油曲霉提取的MBF具有很好的热稳定性和酸碱稳定性, 4℃低温条件下保存35 d后絮凝率仍在96%以上, 而常温条件下保存35 d后不同pH的MBF絮凝率差别很大。与PAM、PAC相比较, MBF能更好地降低城市污水处理厂浓缩污泥比阻。MBF对浓缩污泥的强化脱水的最佳投加量为7%(V/V), 且MBF的单耗随着污泥处理量的增大而逐渐减小。     

Dewatering fibrous sludge with soy protein

Sludge is typically conditioned with petroleum-based polymers such as cationic polyacrylamides (c-PAMs) prior to dewatering. It is shown that soy and whey proteins can function as sludge conditioners. High cake solids are obtained when fiber or fibrous sludge is dewatered after treatment with a crude soy flour hydrolysate. Filtrate turbidity is not reduced by the soy alone, but it can be significantly lowered with a small c-PAM supplement. The approach is demonstrated with wood pulp fiber and several paper mill sludges. The binding of soy protein to sludge solids is much weaker than that of c-PAM, but it still produces a denser cake because charge reversal is reduced. Although soy protein and sludge particles are both negatively charged overall they both contain positively charged groups that facilitate bonding. The cost:benefits of c-PAM supplemented soy protein are attractive when compared to a full c-PAM dose. In addition, the soy product has a green value.     

Dewaterability characteristics of sludge conditioned with surfactants pretreatment by electrolysis

The potential benefits of electrolysis-conditioned sludge dewaterability treatments with surfactants were investigated in this study. Capillary suction time (CST) and specific resistance of filtration (SRF) were used to evaluate the sludge dewaterability. Extracellular polymeric substance (EPS) content, viscosity and zeta potential were determined in an attempt to explain the observed changes in the conditioning process. The results indicated that SDS (Sodium Dodecyl Sulphate) and Triton X-100 have negative effect on the dewaterability of sludge pretreated both with and without electrolysis. However, with a combination of CTAB (Cetyl Trimethyl Ammonium Bromide) and electrolysis pretreatment presented clear advantages over surfactant conditioning alone for improving sludge dewaterability. The optimal dosage of CTAB to give maximal dewaterability was found to be 2000 mg/L, which generated sludge with optimal EPS concentration (150-300 mg/L), viscosity (55-62 mpa s) and zeta potential (−2.12 to −1.19 mV).     

Characterization of dewatering process of activated sludge assisted by cationic surfactants

In this work, the dewatering of activated sludge assisted by cationic surfactants was investigated. Dose of dodecyl trimethyl ammonium bromide (DTAB) and cetyl trimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB) resulted in the release of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) from sludge and decrease in sludge negative charge. The surfactants significantly promoted sludge dewaterability, as reflected by decreased specific resistance of filtration (SRF) and water content in sludge cakes. The treated sludge were analyzed by combined use of differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermo gravimetric analysis (TGA) and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) analysis. CTAB was found more effective in releasing bound water from sludge than DTAB, due to its superior surface activity and strong adsorption/bridge capacities with sludge. The specific surface area and pore size of sludge cakes declined after surfactant treatment, indicating an enhanced compressibility. With these results, the surfactant-assisted dewatering mechanism could be attributed to the integrated effects of electrostatic neutralization, enhanced compaction and release of EPS and bound water. Our study clearly characterizes the accelerated dewatering process assisted by cationic surfactants, and demonstrates that cationic surfactants could be used as a potential agent for sludge dewatering.