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Innovations in Technologies for Nutrients Removal and Recovery From Water and Wastewater

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A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental Sustainability and Applications".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 June 2023) | Viewed by 25015

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Dr. Alessio Siciliano

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Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Università della Calabria, Cosenza, Italy
Interests: anaerobic digestion; biogas; bioreactors; organic waste pretreatment processes; water and wastewater treatment
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Currently, the release of nutrients in water and soil is an important environmental issue. Indeed, this phenomenon causes the eutrophication of water bodies and the subsequent depletion of dissolved oxygen. Further problems occur because certain forms of nitrogen (ammonia, nitrite, nitrate) are toxic to aquatic life or may lead to diseases if drinking water is contaminated with these compounds. The accumulation of nutrients in aquatic systems is mainly attributable to the exploitation in agricultural practices of chemical fertilizers, animal manures, and digestates and, furthermore, to the discharge of municipal and industrial wastewater.

Several biological and physical–chemical techniques for the removal of nutrients compounds are available. The nitrogen forms can be biologically removed by means of conventional nitrification–denitrification mechanisms or through autotrophic processes. The abatement of phosphorus can be achieved in biological treatment plants in which the growth of phosphorus-accumulating organisms is promoted.

Among the chemical–physical technologies, air stripping and breakpoint chlorination have been largely applied for the removal of ammoniacal nitrogen. The chemical denitrification by means of zero-valent metals is an interesting technique for the reduction of nitric nitrogen. The abatement of phosphorus can be accomplished through precipitation treatments. Other processes, such as adsorption, ion exchange, reverse osmosis, and so on, are potentially applicable to remove nutrients. Among the different solutions, an approach based on resource recovery and reuse is very attractive because it promotes the development of sustainable technologies. In this regard, struvite precipitation processes have gained great interest in recent years.

The Special Issue welcomes papers focused on the latest knowledge and innovations on any type of processes for the removal and recovery of nutrients from water and wastewater. The papers must show originality and give a significant contribution to the scope of the Special Issue.

Prof. Dr. Alessio Siciliano
Guest Editor

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Keywords

Air stripping
Ammonium
ANAMMOX
CANON
Denitrification
Nitrate
Nitrification
Nutrients
PAO
Phosphorus
Struvite

Published Papers (8 papers)

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Research

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11 pages, 4131 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Assessment of K-Struvite Precipitation as a Means of Nutrient Recovery from Source Separated Human Urine

by Işık Kabdaşlı, Sezen Kuşçuoğlu, Olcay Tünay and Alessio Siciliano

Sustainability 2022, 14(3), 1082; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14031082 - 18 Jan 2022

Cited by 14 | Viewed by 2045

Abstract

The impact of nutrients on the environment, particularly on water bodies, has led to extensive studies for nutrient control. Within this context, studies have been focused on source separation of human urine from domestic wastewater to recover nutrients. Potassium is one of the most important components of human urine. However, data on potassium removal or recovery are quite limited except for some indirect information through use of zeolites for mostly ammonia removal. Potassium struvite or K-struvite (MgKPO₄·6H₂O) is a sparingly soluble salt belonging to the struvite family that has the potential of being used as a means of potassium and phosphate recovery from segregated human urine. This study aimed to assess the potential of K-struvite precipitation for control and recovery of nutrients. Within this context, K-struvite precipitation experiments were performed on both synthetically prepared samples and synthetic human urine solution to determine effect of operation parameters i.e., pH, stoichiometry, and temperature on potassium recovery performance. Results indicated that process performance as well as type of solid phases co-precipitated with K-struvite were closely related to initial potassium concentration, pH, and reaction stoichiometry. At pH 10, the potassium recovery efficiency was maximized up to 87% by application of 100% excess dose of Mg and P for both synthetic samples and synthetic human urine solution. On the other hand, application of excess dose of K did not provide any improvement in K recovery efficiency. The effect of temperature on solubility of K-struvite was insignificant at the temperature range of 24–90 °C. Solid phase analyses confirmed that K-struvite was co-precipitated with either Mg₃(PO₄)₂, MgNaPO₄·7H₂O, or MgHPO₄·7H₂O depending on pH and stoichiometry instead of a pure compound. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Innovations in Technologies for Nutrients Removal and Recovery From Water and Wastewater)

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11 pages, 539 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Improving the Efficiency of Lambari Production and Diet Assimilation Using Integrated Aquaculture with Benthic Species

by Aline M. Marques, Andre Z. Boaratti, Dalton Belmudes, Julia R. C. Ferreira, Paulo V. L. Mantoan, Patricia Moraes-Valenti and Wagner C. Valenti

Sustainability 2021, 13(18), 10196; https://doi.org/10.3390/su131810196 - 13 Sep 2021

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 1868

Abstract

A single farmed fish species assimilates about 20% of the nutrients in the supplied diet. This study evaluated if the culture of complementary ecological-function species can recover nutrients dispersed into water and transform them into high-valued biomass. A completely randomized experiment was designed with three treatments and four replications of each production system: monoculture of lambari (Astyanax lacustris); integrated aquaculture of lambari and Amazon river prawn (Macrobrachium amazonicum); and integrated aquaculture of lambari, Amazon river prawn, and curimbatá (Prochilodus lineatus). Fingerlings of lambari (0.8 ± 0.8 g) were stocked in twelve earthen-ponds (0.015 ha) at the density of 50 fish m⁻². Eight ponds were stocked with juveniles of Amazon river prawn (1.1 ± 0.2 g) at the density of 25 prawn m⁻². Four of these eight ponds were stocked with curimbatá fingerlings (0.2 ± 0.1 g) at a density of 13 fish m⁻². Only lambari was fed twice a day with an extruded commercial diet. The experiment lasted 60 days when lambari attained commercial size. The inclusion of prawn increased the total species yield from 1.8 to 2.4 t ha⁻¹ cycle⁻¹ and reduced the feed conversion ratio (FCR) from 2.5 to 1.8. The inclusion of prawn and curimbatá increased the total yield to 3.2 t ha⁻¹ cycle⁻¹ and reduced the FCR to 1.4. Therefore, the integrated culture of lambari, prawn, and curimbatá improves the use of space, water, feed, and benthic species to recover the large quantity of nutrients accumulated in the bottom of lambari pond production, converting them into high-nutritional and monetary-valued biomass. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Innovations in Technologies for Nutrients Removal and Recovery From Water and Wastewater)

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26 pages, 3109 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Chemical Denitrification with Mg⁰ Particles in Column Systems

by Alessio Siciliano, Giulia Maria Curcio and Carlo Limonti

Sustainability 2020, 12(7), 2984; https://doi.org/10.3390/su12072984 - 08 Apr 2020

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 2288

Abstract

The removal of nitrate from aqueous environments through zero-valent metallic elements is an attractive technique that has gained increasing interest in recent years. In comparison to other metallic elements, zero-valent magnesium (ZVM) has numerous beneficial aspects. Nevertheless, the use of Mg⁰ particles for nitrate reduction in column systems has not been investigated yet. To overcome the lack of research, in the present study, a wide experimental activity was carried out to develop a chemical denitrification process through ZVM in batch column equipment. Several tests were executed to evaluate the effects of recirculation hydraulic velocity, pH, Mg⁰ amount, N-NO₃⁻ initial concentration and temperature on the process performance. The results show that the process efficiency is positively influenced by the recirculation velocity increase. In particular, the optimal condition was detected with a value of 1 m/min. The process pH was identified as the main operating parameter. At pH 3, abatements higher than 86.6% were reached for every initial nitrate concentration tested. In these conditions, nitrogen gas was detected as the main reaction product. The pH increase up to values of 5 and 7 caused a drastic denitrification decline with observed efficiencies below 26%. At pH 3, the ratio (R_MN) between Mg⁰ and initial nitrate amount also plays a key role in the treatment performance. A characteristic value of about R_MN = 0.333 gMg⁰/mgN-NO₃⁻ was found with which it is possible to reach the maximum reaction rate. Unexpectedly, the process was negatively affected by the increase in temperature from 20 to 40 °C. At 20 °C, the material showed satisfactory denitrification efficiencies in subsequent reuse cycles. With the optimal R_MN ratio, removals up to 90% were detected by reusing the reactive material three times. By means of a kinetic analysis, a mathematical law able to describe the nitrate abatement curves was defined. Moreover, the relation between the observed kinetic constant and the operating parameters was recognized. Finally, the reaction pathways were proposed and the corrosion reaction products formed during the treatment were identified. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Innovations in Technologies for Nutrients Removal and Recovery From Water and Wastewater)

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16 pages, 2974 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effect of ElasticFiller on Pollutant Removal in Each Compartment of ABR

by Chao Zhang, Guozhen Zhang, Fuping Wu and Tianhong Zhou

Sustainability 2020, 12(6), 2325; https://doi.org/10.3390/su12062325 - 17 Mar 2020

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1711

Abstract

This study was aimed to explore the effect of elastic filler on pollutant removal in each compartment of anaerobic baffled reactor (ABR), ABR with elastic filler, and ABR without elastic filler were compared. The result showed that elastic filler increased the removal rate of chemical oxygen demand (COD) and suspended solid (SS) in the first compartment, decreased the removal rate of COD and SS in the second and third compartments, and had little effect on the removal rate of COD and SS in the fourth compartment. Elastic filler increased the increase rate of ammonia nitrogen in the first and second compartments, decreased the increase rate of ammonia nitrogen in the third and fourth compartments; elastic filler had little effect on the nitrate nitrogen, nitrite nitrogen, total nitrogen and total phosphorus in each compartment of ABR. In general, elastic filler could improve the removal rate of COD and SS of ABR but had little effect on the increase rate of ammonia nitrogen, the removal rate of nitrate nitrogen, nitrite nitrogen, total nitrogen and total phosphorus. Elastic filler slightly increased the concentration of formic acid, acetic acid, propionic acid, and butyric acid in the first compartment of ABR, and slightly decreased the sum of formic acid and acetic acid in the second, hird and fourth compartments. Elastic filler did not change the composition of dissolved organic matter (DOM)in each compartment of ABR, but changed the kinds and contents of aromatic proteins, soluble microbial products and humic acids in each compartment of ABR. Elastic filler had little effect on ABR in the removal of aromatic proteins, but they could improve the removal rate of soluble microbial products and humicacids. Elastic filler slightly increased the degree of DOM humification (or maturity) in ABR effluent, but did not change the main source of humus like substance and DOM in ABR effluent. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Innovations in Technologies for Nutrients Removal and Recovery From Water and Wastewater)

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15 pages, 2734 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Method of Large-Scale Resource Utilization of Algae—Eutrophic Waste from Lake Chao, China: Preparation and Performance Optimization of Composite Packaging Materials

by Bingbing Zhao, Yan Fang, Kang Wu, Fayu Zhang and Jiaquan Wang

Sustainability 2019, 11(22), 6462; https://doi.org/10.3390/su11226462 - 16 Nov 2019

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2061

Abstract

In order to realize the resource utilization of bloom algae from Lake Chao, this study presents the use of fresh algae to improve the mechanical and biological properties of low-density polyethylene (LDPE). In this study, the algae and LDPE were used as raw materials, maleic anhydride grafted polyethylene (PE-g-MAH), polyethylene wax (PE-wax) and white oil, and glycerin were used as the compatibilizer, lubricant, and plasticizer, respectively. The single factor experiments were conducted with these three individual factors, and the response surface methodology technique was used to optimize the process conditions. In the single factor experiments, the mechanical properties of the composites increased with additions of PE-g-MAH, PE-wax/white oil, and glycerin. Both flexural strength and flexural modulus were maximized to optimize the preparation conditions. The optimum preparation conditions were found as follows: algae powder of 15.00 wt%, LDPE of 85.00 wt%, PE-g-MAH of 4.00 wt%, lubricant of 2.67 wt%, and glycerin of 3.00 wt%. This resulted in 11.60 MPa of tensile strength, 9.95 MPa of flexural strength, and 241.00 MPa of flexural modulus. The mechanical properties of composites were greatly improved compared with the absence of additives. In addition, compared with LDPE resin, the degradability of the composite was improved, and the weight loss rate was 7.73% after 6 months. The results recommended that the composites of the algae from Lake Chao and LDPE resin could be a useful material in the packaging field. Generally, the prepared composite particles can be used to produce foam products, packaging bags, or hard packing boxes with special shapes. It is more environmentally friendly, and more able to meet the challenges of sustainable development. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Innovations in Technologies for Nutrients Removal and Recovery From Water and Wastewater)

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Review

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35 pages, 2945 KiB

Open AccessReview

Is K-Struvite Precipitation a Plausible Nutrient Recovery Method from Potassium-Containing Wastes?—A Review

by Işık Kabdaşlı, Alessio Siciliano, Carlo Limonti and Olcay Tünay

Sustainability 2022, 14(18), 11680; https://doi.org/10.3390/su141811680 - 17 Sep 2022

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2470

Abstract

The definition of technologies capable of removing and recovering nutrients from polluting effluents is a key environmental challenge. Through these technologies, it would be possible to protect aquatic systems and prevent the consumption of natural resources for the production of commercial fertilizers. In this regard, the application of the precipitation processes of struvite-type compounds is an attractive approach. Indeed, these processes are potentially able to remove nutrients from many effluents and produce a precipitate reusable as a slow-release fertilizer. The scientific community has largely focused on the precipitation of magnesium ammonium phosphate (MgNH₄PO₄·6H₂O, MAP), while the recovery of the analogous magnesium potassium phosphate (MgKPO₄·6H₂O, MPP) has received extensive attention in the last decade. Research on this topic is continuously progressing to improve the precipitation process in different aspects (working conditions, reaction units, interference elimination, etc.). Until now, there has been no paper that comprehensively reviewed the applicability of MPP precipitation for the removal and recovery of nutrients from aqueous waste. To fill this gap, the present paper aimed to provide an exhaustive analysis of the literature reports on MPP processes to help researchers understand the theoretical and applicative aspects, the main problems, and the need for further research. In this regard, the applications in the treatment of various aqueous wastes were considered. The theoretical concepts, the main process parameters, and the effects of inhibiting substances and impurities are presented. Moreover, the development of reactor configurations and their working conditions are evaluated. Finally, the potential use of MPP as a fertilizer and some economic evaluations are reported. On the basis of the conducted analysis, it emerged that the recovery of MPP was mainly affected by the pH, dose, and nature of reagents, as well as the presence of competitive ions. The optimal pH values were reported to be between 9 and 11. Reagent overdoses with respect to the theoretical values improved the process and the use of pure reagents guaranteed superior performance. The stirred-tank reactors and fluidized bed reactors were the most used units with high process yields. The applicability of MPP in agronomic practices appears to be a suitable option. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Innovations in Technologies for Nutrients Removal and Recovery From Water and Wastewater)

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36 pages, 3671 KiB

Open AccessReview

Nitrate Removal by Zero-Valent Metals: A Comprehensive Review

by Giulia Maria Curcio, Carlo Limonti, Alessio Siciliano and Işık Kabdaşlı

Sustainability 2022, 14(8), 4500; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14084500 - 10 Apr 2022

Cited by 15 | Viewed by 2864

Abstract

Nitrate is a widespread water contaminant that can pose environmental and health risks. Various conventional techniques can be applied for the removal of nitrate from water and wastewater, such as biological denitrification, ion exchange, nanofiltration, and reverse osmosis. Compared to traditional methods, the chemical denitrification through zero-valent metals offers various advantages, such as lower costs, simplicity of management, and high efficiencies. The most utilized material for chemical denitrification is zero-valent iron (ZVI). Aluminium (ZVA), magnesium (ZVM), copper (ZVC), and zinc (ZVZ) are alternative zero-valent metals that are studied for the removal of nitrate from water as well as from aqueous solutions. To the best of our knowledge, a comprehensive work on the use of the various zero-valent materials that are employed for the removal of nitrate is still missing. Therefore, in the present review, the most recent papers concerning the use of zero-valent materials for chemical denitrification were analysed. The studies that dealt with zero-valent iron were discussed by considering microscopic (mZVI) and nanoscopic (nZVI) forms. For each Fe⁰ form, the effects of the initial pH, the presence or absence of dissolved oxygen, the initial nitrate concentration, the temperature, and the dissolved ions on the nitrate removal process were separately evaluated. Finally, the different materials that were employed as support for the nanoparticles were examined. For the other zero-valent metals tested, a detailed description of the works present in the literature was carried out. A comparison of the various features that are related to each considered material was also made. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Innovations in Technologies for Nutrients Removal and Recovery From Water and Wastewater)

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35 pages, 1454 KiB

Open AccessReview

Advances in Struvite Precipitation Technologies for Nutrients Removal and Recovery from Aqueous Waste and Wastewater

by Alessio Siciliano, Carlo Limonti, Giulia Maria Curcio and Raffaele Molinari

Sustainability 2020, 12(18), 7538; https://doi.org/10.3390/su12187538 - 12 Sep 2020

Cited by 85 | Viewed by 8347

Abstract

The abatement of nutrient compounds from aqueous waste and wastewater is currently a priority issue. Indeed, the uncontrolled discharge of high levels of nutrients into water bodies causes serious deteriorations of environmental quality. On the other hand, the increasing request of nutrient compounds for agronomic utilizations makes it strictly necessary to identify technologies able to recover the nutrients from wastewater streams so as to avoid the consumption of natural resources. In this regard, the removal and recovery of nitrogen and phosphorus from aqueous waste and wastewater as struvite (MgNH₄PO₄·6H₂O) represents an attractive approach. Indeed, through the struvite precipitation it is possible to effectively remove the ammonium and phosphate content of many types of wastewater and to produce a solid compound, with only a trace of impurities. This precipitate, due to its chemical characteristics, represents a valuable multi-nutrients slow release fertilizer for vegetables and plants growth. For these reasons, the struvite precipitation technology constantly progresses on several aspects of the process. This manuscript provides a comprehensive review on the recent developments in this technology for the removal and recovery of nutrients from aqueous waste and wastewater. The theoretical background, the parameters, and the operating conditions affecting the process evolution are initially presented. After that, the paper focuses on the reagents exploitable to promote the process performance, with particular regard to unconventional low-cost compounds. In addition, the development of reactors configurations, the main technologies implemented on field scale, as well as the recent works on the use of struvite in agronomic practices are presented. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Innovations in Technologies for Nutrients Removal and Recovery From Water and Wastewater)

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