Analysis of bacterial function in combined PN/A granular sludge and solid phase denitrification processes

doi:10.11949/0438-1157.20221125

Abstract

Abstract:

For the control of residual nitrate in the effluent of partial nitritation and anaerobic ammonium oxidation (PN/A) system, a novel system was developed for the advanced nitrogen removal by coupling solid-phase denitrification (SPD) and PN/A granular sludge. On the basis of increasing the autotrophic denitrification efficiency of granular sludge step by step, the SPD of three fillers, quartz sand, polybutylene succinate (PBS) and hydroxybutyrate valeric acid copolyester (PHBV), was systematically investigated. The results indicated that the denitrification performance of PHBV was the best, the optimal total nitrogen (TN) removal efficiency exceed 93% in the PN/A-PHBV system, which was significantly higher than sand (83.6%) and PBS (85.8%) in high hydraulic pressure condition. According to the results of pyrosequencing analysis and the FAPROTAX function predicted, the dissolution level of solid carbon source is an important factor affecting the diversity of biofilm flora. Among them, the hydrolytic bacteria Clostridium-sensu-stricto-7, which was dominant on the surface of PHBV, formed a stable cooperative relationship with denitrifying bacteria such as Comamonadaceae, in addition to effectively eluting autotrophic denitrification functional bacteria, the functional potential of the flora to participate in multi-element cycling was significantly improved. The results of this study have significance in guiding for systematic optimization of the PN/A-SPD combination process and promoting its engineering application.

Key words: autotrophic biological nitrogen removal, granular sludge, solid carbon source, denitrification, bacterial community function

摘要：

为解决部分亚硝化-厌氧氨氧化（PN/A）反应存在的硝酸盐残留问题，将PN/A颗粒污泥与固相反硝化（SPD）系统相耦合，用于高氨氮废水的连续处理。在逐级提高颗粒污泥自养脱氮效能的基础上，系统考察了石英砂、聚丁二酸丁二醇酯（PBS）和羟基丁酸戊酸共聚酯（PHBV）三种填料的SPD效能。结果表明，在高水力选择压下，PHBV的反硝化性能最佳，使PN/A-SPD组合工艺的总氮去除率超过了93%，远高于石英砂（83.6%）和PBS（85.8%）的水平。通过高通量测序与功能基因注释可知，固态碳源的溶出水平是影响生物膜菌群多样性的关键因素。其中，在PHBV表面占据主导的水解菌Clostridium-sensu-stricto-7与Comamonadaceae等反硝化菌形成了稳定的协作关系，在有效洗脱自养脱氮功能菌的同时，显著提升了菌群参与多元素循环的功能潜力。上述发现对于系统优化PN/A-SPD组合工艺，推动其工程化应用具有重要的指导意义。

关键词: 自养生物脱氮, 颗粒污泥, 固态碳源, 反硝化, 菌群功能

CLC Number:

X 703

Li ZHANG, Jianhua WU, Shuhui CUI, Feng YAN, Hao SUN, Feiyue QIAN. Analysis of bacterial function in combined PN/A granular sludge and solid phase denitrification processes[J]. CIESC Journal, 2022, 73(11): 5128-5137.

张立, 吴建华, 崔舒惠, 严锋, 孙浩, 钱飞跃. PN/A颗粒污泥-固相反硝化组合工艺的菌群功能解析[J]. 化工学报, 2022, 73(11): 5128-5137.

Figures/Tables 10

Fig.1 Schematic diagram of PN/A-SPD reactor

Table 1 Operation conditions of PN/A-SPD reactor during different phases

运行阶段	运行时间	PN/A段		SPD段
运行阶段	运行时间	HRT/h	NH $4 +$ -N负荷/（kg·m^-3·d^-1）	HRT/h	上升流速/(m·h^-1)
Ⅰ	第1~15 d	3.5	1.40±0.02	—	—
Ⅱ	第16~30 d	2.5	1.95±0.04	—	—
Ⅲ	第31~100 d	2.0	2.44±0.04	0.4	0.3

Table 1 Operation conditions of PN/A-SPD reactor during different phases

运行阶段	运行时间	PN/A段		SPD段
运行阶段	运行时间	HRT/h	NH $4 +$ -N负荷/（kg·m^-3·d^-1）	HRT/h	上升流速/(m·h^-1)
Ⅰ	第1~15 d	3.5	1.40±0.02	—	—
Ⅱ	第16~30 d	2.5	1.95±0.04	—	—
Ⅲ	第31~100 d	2.0	2.44±0.04	0.4	0.3

Fig.2 Changes in denitrification performance of PN/A granular sludge [(a) , (b)] and different SPD reactors (c) during start-up

Fig.3 SEM images of fresh and microbe attached sand [(a), (b)], PBS [(c), (d)], and PHBV [(e), (f)]

Fig.4 Richness (a), diversity indexes (b), PCoA results (c) and Venn diagram (d) of different microorganism samples on OTU level

Fig.5 Bacterial community structure on phylum level (a), heatmap of top 40 genera (b), fractions of hydrolyzing and denitrifying bacteria (c) in different microorganism samples

Fig.6 Co-occurrence networks of TOP 50 genera in PN/A granular sludge (a), sand (b), PBS (c) and PHBV (d) biofilm

Table 2 Statistical results of co-occurrence networks in different bio-carriers

系统	节点数	边数	正相关比例/%	负相关比例/%	平均度
PN/A颗粒	49	385	80.3	19.5	15.714
Sand-SPD	49	450	62.1	37.8	18.367
PBS-SPD	50	436	50.0	50.0	17.440
PHBV-SPD	47	334	53.3	46.7	14.213

Fig.7 Faprotax prediction of bacterial gene functions in different biomass carriers

Fig.8 Mechanisms of denitrification in sand (a), PBS (b) and PHBV (c)

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