Mechanism of ammonium sharp increase during sediments odor control by calcium nitrate addition and an alternative control approach by subsurface injection.

Nitrate-driven sulfide/ferrous oxidation has been proved a cost-effective approach for river sediments in-situ odor control. However, calcium nitrate addition would sharply increase ammonium concentration in interstitial water and the mechanism was not yet clear. In this work, though sulfide and ferrous iron were efficiently oxidized, about 102% of NH4+ concentration increased in interstitial water on the first day of calcium nitrate injection (30 mg kg dwt-1), and about 31% more NH4+ increase at the 21st days was observed. To discover the mechanism of ammonium sharp release, desorption kinetics experiment was conducted and the results suggested that the short-time sharp releases of ammonium when calcium nitrate was added could be attributed to the chemical extraction of exchangeable ammonium by calcium ion. Furthermore, at the end of treatment, many genus such as Thiobacillus, Sulfurimonas, Thermomonas, and Clostridium, which were closely related to sulfide and ferrous-driven denitrification and dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium (DNRA), were identified by 16S rRNA Illumina sequencing method. These findings indicated the long-time increase of ammonium might be determined by the biochemical processes (e.g. DNRA) driven by nitrate reduction. Therefore, to avoid the impact of ammonium release, an alternative subsurface injection method was introduced in this work, and the results showed that ammonium releases could be well controlled when the injection position was beneath 10 cm of the sediment surface.

Index for nitrate dosage calculation on sediment odor control using nitrate-dependent ferrous and sulfide oxidation interactions.

Nitrate-driven sulfide and ferrous oxidation have received great concern in researches on sediments odor control with calcium nitrate addition. However, interrelations among sulfide oxidation, ferrous oxidation and their associated microbes during the nitrate reduction process are rarely reported. In this work, a nNO3/n(S+Fe) ratio (mole ratio of NO3- concentration to S2- and Fe2+ concentration) was first introduced as an index for calcium nitrate dosage calculation. Then certain amount of calcium nitrate was added to four sediment systems with various sulfide and ferrous initial concentration to create four gradients of nNO3/n(S+Fe) ratio (0.6, 0.9, 1.5 and 2.0) for treatment. Furthermore, the significant variations of sulfide and ferrous oxidation, microbial diversity and community structure were observed. The results revealed that at low nNO3/n(S+Fe) ratio (0.6 and 0.9) systems, sulfide seemed prior to ferrous to be oxidized and no obvious ferrous oxidation occurred. Meanwhile, sulfide oxidizing associated genus Sulfurimonas sp. became dominant in these systems. In contrast, sulfide and ferrous oxidation rate increased when nNO3/n(S+Fe) ratio reached 1.5 and 2.0 (two and three times of theoretically required amount for sulfide and ferrous oxidation), which made Thiobacillus sp. more dominant than Sulfurimonas sp. Hence, when nNO3/n(S+Fe) ratio of 1.5 and 2.0 were used, sulfide and ferrous could be simultaneously oxidized and no sulfide regeneration appeared in two months. These results demonstrated that for sulfide- and ferrous-rich sediment treatment, the nitrate consumed by ferrous oxidation should be taken into account when calculating the nitrate injecting dosage. Moreover, nNO3/n(S+Fe) ratio was feasible as a key parameter to control the oxidation process and as an index for calcium nitrate dosage calculation.

An alternative approach for nitrate and arsenic removal from wastewater via a nitrate-dependent ferrous oxidation process.

Owing to the high efficiency of converting nitrate to nitrogen gas with ferrous iron as the electron donor, the process of nitrate-dependent ferrous oxidation (NDFeO) has been considered suitable to treat wastewater that contains nitrate but lacks organic matter. Meanwhile, arsenic immobilization often has been found during the NDFeO reaction. Thus, it was strongly expected that nitrate and arsenic could be removed simultaneously in co-contaminated wastewater through the NDFeO process. However, in the current work, arsenic was not removed during the NDFeO process when the pH was high (above 8), though the nitrate reduction rate was over 90%. Meanwhile, the biosolid particles from the NDFeO process demonstrated strong adsorption ability for arsenic when the pH was below 6. Yet, the adsorption became weak when the pH was above 7. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy analysis revealed that the main activated component for arsenic adsorption was iron oxide in these particles, which was easily crippled under high pH conditions. These results implied that co-removal of nitrate and arsenic in wastewater treatment using NDFeO was difficult to carry out under high pH conditions. Thus, a two-step approach in which nitrate was removed first by NDFeO followed by arsenic adsorption with NDFeO biosolids was more feasible.

Temperature response of sulfide/ferrous oxidation and microbial community in anoxic sediments treated with calcium nitrate addition.

Nitrate-driven sulfide oxidation has been proved a cost-effective way to control sediments odor which has long been a universal problem for urban rivers in south China areas. In this work, sediments treatment experiments under a dynamic variation of temperature from 5 °C to 35 °C with 3% of calcium nitrate added were conducted to reveal the influence of temperature variation on this process. The results showed that microbial community was remarkably restructured by temperature variation. Pseudomonas (15.56-29.31%), Sulfurimonas (26.81%) and Thiobacillus (37.99%) were dominant genus at temperature of ≤15 °C, 25 °C and 35 °C, respectively. It seemed that species enrichment occurring at different temperature gradient resulted in the distinct variation of microbial community structure and diversity. Moreover, nitrate-driven sulfide and ferrous oxidation were proportionally promoted only when temperature increased above 15 °C. The dominant bacteria at high temperature stage were those genus that closely related to autotrophic nitrate-driven sulfide and ferrous oxidizing bacteria (e.g.Thiobacillus, Sulfurimonas and Thermomonas), revealing that promotion of sulfide/ferrous oxidation could be attributed to the change of dominant bacteria determined by temperature variation. Thus, a higher treatment efficiency by calcium nitrate addition for odor control would be achieved in summer than any other seasons in south China areas.

Effects of hematite on two types of dissolved organic compounds in lignocellulosic anaerobic hydrolysate: Lignin-derived aromatic compounds and denitrifying carbon sources.

The utilization of anaerobic hydrolysate from agroforestry wastes is limited by dissolved lignin and aromatics, which have received insufficient attention despite their potential as excellent carbon sources for denitrification. This study aims to investigate the influence of hematite on lignin-derived aromatic compounds and denitrifying carbon sources, as well as to identify iron-reducing bacteria that utilize lignin-derived aromatic compounds as electron donors. The findings revealed that hematite facilitated the anaerobic fermentation of plant biomass, resulting in the production of small molecular organic acids. Moreover, biodegradation of lignin-derived aromatic compounds led to the formation of phenolic acids, while an increased generation of denitrifying carbon sources enhanced nitrogen removal efficiency by 13.84 %. Additionally, due to adsorption by hematite and subsequent microbial degradation, there was a significant improvement (40.32%) in color removal rate within denitrification effluent. Notably, Azonexus strains were hypothesized to be involved in Fe(Ⅲ) reduction coupled with aromatic compounds oxidation.

Concurrent impacts of polystyrene nanoplastic exposure and Aeromonas hydrophila infection on oxidative stress, immune response and intestinal microbiota of grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella).

Research has demonstrated that polystyrene nanoplastics (PS-NPs) can have adverse effects on the immune responses of fish. NPs have the potential to increase the likelihood of infections in fish by pathogenic bacteria, such as the opportunistic pathogen Aeromonas hydrophila, potentially increasing the virulence of pathogenic bacteria infections in fish. The concurrent effects of PS-NPs and A. hydrophila on grass carp intestinal tissues were assessed by exposing grass carp to different concentrations of PS-NPs (10 µg/L, 100 µg/L, 1000 µg/L) after infection with A. hydrophila. As the concentration of PS-NPs in the exposure and the duration of A. hydrophila infection both escalated, intestinal tissues showed damage in the form of disordered breakage of intestinal villi, thinning of the intestinal wall, and reduced necrosis of the cells in the annulus muscle layer. The AHS-PS100 group and AHS-PS1000 group exhibited a substantial rise in the function of CAT, SOD, GST, and MPO, as well as increased MDA content and elevated ROS levels (p < 0.05). In the AHS-PS1000 group, the expression levels of IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, IL-1ß, TNF-α, and IFN-γ2 experienced a significant upsurge (p < 0.05). In addition, exposure to PS-NPs and A. hydrophila infection induced modifications in the microbial composition of the grass carp gut, affecting both phylum and genus taxonomic categories. Moreover, an increase in the abundance of Spirochaetota and Bacteroidota was observed not only in the positive control group but also in the AHS-PS100 and AHS-PS1000 groups following A. hydrophila infection. These experimental results indicate that PS-NPs exposure will aggravate the oxidative stress and inflammatory response of grass carp intestinal tissue in response to A. hydrophila infection, and lead to changes in intestinal microbial diversity and abundance. Overall, this study provides valuable hints on the potential concurrent effects of PS-NPs exposure on grass carp's response to A. hydrophila infection.

Dynamic human exposure to airborne bacteria-associated antibiotic resistomes revealed by longitudinal personal monitoring data.

Airborne antibiotic-resistant bacteria (ARB) can critically impact human health. We performed resistome profiling of 283 personal airborne exposure samples from 15 participants spanning 890 days and 66 locations. We found a greater diversity and abundance of airborne bacteria community and antibiotic resistomes in spring than in winter, and temperature contributed largely to the difference. A total of 1123 bacterial genera were detected, with 16 genera dominating. Of which, 7/16 were annotated as major antibiotic resistance gene (ARG) hosts. The participants were exposed to a highly dynamic collection of ARGs, including 322 subtypes conferring resistance to 18 antibiotic classes dominated by multidrug, macrolide-lincosamide-streptogramin, ß-lactam, and fosfomycin. Unlike the overall community-level bacteria exposure, an extremely high abundance of specific ARG subtypes, including lunA and qacG, were found in some samples. Staphylococcus was the predominant genus in the bacterial community, serving as a primary bacterial host for the ARGs. The annotation of ARG-carrying contigs indicated that humans and companion animals were major reservoirs for ARG-carrying Staphylococcus. This study contextualized airborne antibiotic resistomes in the precision medicine framework through longitudinal personal monitoring, which can have broad implications for human health.

Spatial Variation of Phosphorous Retention Capacity in Subsurface Flow Constructed Wetlands: Effect of Wetland Type and Inflow Loading.

For verification of spatial distribution of phosphorous retention capacity in constructed wetlands systems(CWs), two horizontal subsurface flow(HSSF) CWs and two vertical subsurface flow(VSSF) CWs, using sand as substrate and Typha latifolia as wetland plants, were constructed and put into use for synthetic wastewater treatment. Five months later, significant spatial variations of TP and inorganic phosphorus(Ca-P, Fe-P and Al-P) were observed, which were found to be greatly affected by CWs type and hydraulic loading. The results revealed that though spatial distribution of Fe-P and Al-P displayed a similar order of substrate content as "rhizosphere" > "near-rhizosphere" > "non-rhizosphere" and "inflow section" > "outflow section" regardless of types and loading, the distribution of Ca-P was positively correlated to that of Fe-P and Al-P in HSSF CWs, while negative correlation was shown in VSSF CWs. As a result, TP spatial distribution in HSSF CWs demonstrated a greater dissimilarity than that in VSSF CWs. For HSSF CWs with low hydraulic loading, the lowest TP content was found in non-rhizosphere substrate of outflow section, while the highest one was discovered in rhizonsphere substrate of inflow section. The values in 6 parts of areas ranged from 0.138 g·kg-1 to 2.710 g·kg-1, which also were from -33.5% to 1209% compared to the control value. On contrast, spatial difference of TP content in substrates of VSSF CWs was insignificant, with a variation ranging from 0.776 g·kg-1 to 1.080 g·kg-1, that was 275% to 421% higher than the control value. In addition, when hydraulic loading was increased, TP content in VSSF CWs sharply decreased, ranging from 0.210 g·kg-1 to 0.634 g·kg-1. Meanwhile, dissimilarity of TP spatial distribution in HSSF CWs was reduced, with TP content ranging from 0.258 g·kg-1 to 2.237 g·kg-1. The results suggested that P spatial distribution should be taken into account for CWs design and operation.

[Difference of P content in different area substrate of constructed wetland].

Adsorption of substrate is the main removal mechanisms of phosphorus in constructed wetland. It is easily impacted by various environmental factors existing in the wetland bed. The contents of substrate TP and the main inorganic P in different areas of both horizontal sub-surface flow constructed wetland with plant and one without plant were measured after treating wastewater five months. Different areas of the wetland with plant differed greatly in the substrate TP. Rhizosphere substrate in front area had the highest TP content and achieved 0.75 g x kg(-1), and the TP content of non-rhizosphere substrate in back area was only 0.21 g x kg(-1). The TP content of substrate in different areas of the wetland without plant had a little variety and ranged only between 0.21 and 0.27 g x kg(-1). Averagely, the substrate TP content in the wetland with plant was higher than the one in the wetland without plant. The phosphorous with Fe-bound (Fe-P), Al-bound (Al-P), and Ca-bound (Ca-P) were main inorganic phosphorous existing in the substrate in both wetlands, their contents in different areas substrate all increased, compared with the one before experiment. Fe-P and Al-P in different substrates in both wetlands had a similar variety. Their content between rhizosphere and intermediate substrate of front area in the wetland with plant and other area substrate in both wetlands differed greatly because the former increased greatly. Compared with Fe-P and Al-P, the variety of Ca-P in different substrates in both wetlands was low. But the content of Ca-P in rhizosphere substrate in wetland with plant was higher than other two parts respectively in front and back areas. Obviously, the plant root had an impact on the phosphorous content of substrate in constructed wetland. For TP, Fe-P, Al-P, Ca-P and loosely sorbed phosphorous in substrate, it increased with distance of the root.

[Effects of allelochemical isolated from Phragmites communis on algal membrane permeability].

Efflux of K+, Mg2+, Ca2+ ions from algal cells as signals of cell membrane permeability, inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) as detection method of ions, the present research investigated effects of allelochemical eathyl-2-methyl acetoacetate (EMA) isolated from Phragmites communis on cell membrane permeability of Microcystis aeruginosa, Chlorella pyrenoidosa and Chlorella vulagaris. The results showed that, when the cells were boiled for 10 min and the membrane was destroyed absolutely, the K+ efflux of M. aeruginosa and C. pyrenoidosa were 1.45 and 1.59 microg x (10(9) cell) (-1), respectively. When the concentration of EMA was 2 mg x L(-1), the K+ efflux of M. aeruginosa and C. pyrenoidosa were 1.38 and 1.40 microg x (10(9) cell)(-1), respectively. The K+ efflux of M. aeruginosa and C. pyrenoidosa reached 1.44 and 1.58 microg x (10(9) cell)(-1) while the EMA was 4 mg x L(-1). When the concentrations were 2 mg x L(-1) or 4 mg x L(-1) the K+ efflux reached more than 95% of the total ion amount in M. aeruginosa and C. pyrenoidosa cells. But when EMA concentration was 4 mg x L(-1), K+ efflux of C. vulagaris was 0.64 microg x (10(9) cell)(-1), which was only 31.5% of total K+ amount in C. vulagaris. Effects EMA on efflux of Mg2+ and Ca2+ were similar to those of K+. The results indicated that EMA destroyed the cell membrane of M. aeruginosa and C. pyrenoidosa but not C. vulagaris. This is one of the mechanisms of EMA species-selective antialgal.

[Effects of allelochemical EMA isolated from Phragmites communis on algal cell membrane lipid and ultrastructure].

In order to reveal the antialgal mechanisms of allelochemicals, effects of the allelochemical eathyl-2-methyl acetoacetate (EMA) on cell membrane lipid and ultrastructure of Chlorella pyrenoidosa, Microcystis aeruginosa and Chlorella vulagaris were studied in this paper. The lipid fatty acids of the algal membrane were isolated following the Bligh and Dye method and quantified by gas chromatograph/mass spectrometry. The ultrastructure of algal cells was observed with TEM. The results showed that EMA increased the contents of linolenic acid and linolic acid with increment of 14%, while decreased the content of myristic acid and cetylic acid in C. pyrenoidosa, membrane. The content of unsaturated fatty acids C18:1 and C18:2 increased 12% and 10% in M. aeruginosa with the addition of EMA, while the content of saturated fatty acids C18:0 and C16:0 decreased. EMA showed no significant change in the fatty acid composition in C. vulagaris under the experiment condition. EMA broke off cell wall of C. pyrenoidosa and M. aeruginosa. EMA damaged the cell membrane and the inclusion of algal cell leaked out. Nuclear and mitochondrial structure was damaged with the addition of EMA. EMA showed no significant change in the ultrastructure of C. vulgaris.

[Hydrodynamic effects of the oxidation ditch on the removal efficiency and energy consumption].

The hydrodynamic characteristics in the oxidation ditch have great effects on the distributions of the dissolved oxygen and the velocity gradient, and then make important effects on the removal efficiency and energy consumption. The single-ditch Passver oxidation ditch with the capacity of 500 m3/d was investigated. The measurement and computer simulation were carried out on the velocity gradient and degrees, 180 degrees, respectively, which lied on the corner of the downriver of the aerator. The local energy consumption could be decreased by 10% after the guided wall with 180 degrees opening angle was installed. Under the condition that the velocity of the aerator was 72 r/min, the installation of the 180 degrees guided wall could not effect the distribution of DO concentration. According to the operation results of treating the municipal wastewater with low concentration, the IAWPRC model was used to simulate the water qualities in the oxidation ditch with the 180 degrees guided wall or not, respectively. The simulation results showed that the water qualities in the effluent didn't change a lot after the 180 degrees guided wall installed.

[Effect of environment and nutrient factors on the content of nitrogen and phosphorus in two duckweeds species: Spirodela polyrrhiza and Lemna aequinoctialis].

Effects of temperature, light density, nitrogen level and phosphorus level of medium to the content of two species Spirodela polyrrhiza and Lemna aequinoctialis were researched. The results showed that the content of nitrogen in two species kept constant when the concentration of nitrogen was higher than 3 mg x L(-1) and temperature higher than 25 degrees C. It decreased under lower concentrations of nitrogen and lower temperature. Photon flux density had no effect on it. But weak photon flux density and low temperature led to reduce the content of phosphorus of duckweed. The content of phosphorus in two duckweed species kept constant when photon flux density was higher than 8 000 1x and temperature higher than 25 degrees C. The relationship between the content of phosphorus and concentrations of phosphorus in medium could be described by Monod model. The saturated phosphorus content of Spirodela polyrrhiza was higher than Lemna aequinoctialis.

[Effect of inorganic nitrogen compounds and pH on the growth of duckweed].

The use of duckweed in domestic wastewater treatment was paied increasing attention recently. But inorganic nitrogen compounds and pH of wastewater possibly affect the growth of duckweed. The effect of ammonia, nitrate and pH on the growth of Lemna minor L., a common spiece in China, was assessed with laboratory scale experiments. The experiments used artificial culture with different levels of pH, ammonia and nitrate concentrations. The experimental results indicated that the lowest value of pH Lemna minor can tolerate was between 5-6, and it can grow well in pH from 6 to 9. The growth rate of Lemna minor was inhibited gradually with increasing concentration of ammonia. The toxicity of ammonia was a result of both forms, NH3 and NH4+. Compared to NH4+, the effect of NH3 was much stronger. Nitrate had few inhibitory on the growth of Lemna minor. The increase in ammonia and nitrate concentrations can increase the chloropyll content of Lemna minor. Activity of peroxidase of Lemna minor in ammonia culture was higher than that in nitrate culture because of the toxicity of ammonia.

[Growth feature of biomass of Lemna aequinoctialis and Spirodela polyrrhiza in medium with nutrient character of wastewater].

Duckweeds have an important potential in nutrient recovery from wastewater because of their rapid multiplication and high protein content in biomass. The growth rate of duckweed biomass has a direct relationship with nutrient removal and recovery. With laboratory experiments of batch culture and continuous culture, the growth curves of two duckweed species, Lemna aequinoctialis and Spirodela polyrrhiza, cultivated in different media were gotten and fitted by Logistic model. The effect of nitrogen on growth of duckweed was evaluated. Experimental results indicated that the growth curve had characteristic of sigmoidal shape and the growth rate had density-dependent characteristic. Results of statistical analysis demonstrated that Logistic model is suitable to describe the growth of single duckweed specie. The maximal growth rate from regression in medium with ammonia nitrogen was lower than those in medium with nitrate nitrogen. The maximal growth rate of Lemna aequinoctialis was higher than Spirodela polyrrhiza The paper also discussed the application of Logistic model in harvesting of duckweed biomass from wastewater.