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Control and Optimization of Wastewater Treatment Technology

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A special issue of Processes (ISSN 2227-9717). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental and Green Processes".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 March 2021) | Viewed by 40542

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Special Issue Editor

Dr. Biplob Pramanik

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Guest Editor

School of Engineering, RMIT University, Melbourne, VIC 3000, Australia
Interests: resource and energy recovery (water–waste–energy nexus); emerging contaminant removal including microplastics and perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

A major challenge to mankind is to provide adequate, clean freshwater for sanitation, as well as for industrial and agricultural production. This problem is further heightened in a world where the climatic pattern is characterized by intense droughts and flooding rains. Hence, wastewater reclamation is a great choice to ensure an ample and steady supply of fresh, clean water, that is, independent of the hydrological cycle, for urban and agriculture consumption. However, safe and reliable water reuse requires adequate removal of organics, salts, pathogenic agents, and chemicals of emerging concern from the reclaimed effluent. Amongst these contaminants, chemicals of emerging contaminants, such as per-fluorinated substances and micro-plastics, present arguably the most vexing challenge to such water use. A major technical challenge for the water industry is therefore to understand the fate of these chemicals during water reuse and to develop new treatment processes for their removal that are reliable and cost effective. Recently, the research paradigm has also shifted from the removal of nutrients and metals to their recovery, because some unconventional liquid streams, including seawater, industrial and domestic wastewater, mine tailing ponds, brine concentrate, and sludge, are widely untapped sources of nutrients and metals.

This Special Issue on "Control and Optimization of Wastewater Treatment Technology” aims to curate novel advances in the development of new treatment processes along with the application of conventional treatment processes to address longstanding challenges in emerging contaminant control before it discharges to open waterways. Topics include, but are not limited to, the following:

Development of a new technology to control chemicals of emerging contaminants;
Resource recovery from wastewater;
Recycling materials (e.g., slag, biochar, tire rubber) for water treatment; and
Water quality monitoring and management.

Dr. Biplob Pramanik
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Processes is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

chemicals of emerging contaminants
resource recovery
recycling materials
wastewater

Published Papers (10 papers)

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Research

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12 pages, 2127 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Novel Treatment of Sugar Mill Wastewater in a Coupled System of Aged Refuse Filled Bioreactors (ARFB): Full-Scale

by Rubén Fernando Gutiérrez-Hernández, Hugo Alejandro Nájera-Aguilar, Juan Antonio Araiza-Aguilar, Rebeca Isabel Martínez-Salinas, Carlos Manuel García-Lara, Ulises González-Vázquez and Abumalé Cruz-Salomón

Processes 2021, 9(3), 516; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr9030516 - 12 Mar 2021

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2995

Abstract

Sugar is the most important food supplement of our daily diet. During the production, sugar mills use a large volume of water and produce a significant amount of wastewater polluted with high organic compounds. Therefore, it is necessary to treat the wastewater before their disposal. For this reason, this article presents the results obtained from the monitoring of a coupled system of aged refuse filled bioreactors (ARFB) in full scale to treat wastewater from a sugar mill. The coupled system consists of two bioreactors (a primary one -ARFB₁- and a rectification one -ARFB₂-) arranged in a series with identical geometries. The ARFB₁-ARFB₂ system was evaluated in two stages. The first stage (maintenance period) for 28 weeks, and second stage (Zafra season) for 29 weeks. The system was fed with sugar mill wastewater (SMW) with a chemical oxygen demand (COD) of 2787 ± 1552 mg/L and 2601 ± 722 mg/L, respectively. As results, we observed a rapid stabilization of the system over 2 months. In addition, we found the ARFB₁-ARFB₂ system achieved an average COD removal of 94.9%, with a final effluent (E2) concentration below the maximum permissible limits of Mexican and international regulations for all analyzed parameters. Finally, the results of this study show that the ARFB₁-ARFB₂ full-scale novel technology is an efficient process for removal of the main contaminants that affect the wastewater from the sugar mills. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Control and Optimization of Wastewater Treatment Technology)

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13 pages, 2176 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Phosphate and Ammonium Removal from Water through Electrochemical and Chemical Precipitation of Struvite

by Kyösti Rajaniemi, Tao Hu, Emma-Tuulia Nurmesniemi, Sari Tuomikoski and Ulla Lassi

Processes 2021, 9(1), 150; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr9010150 - 14 Jan 2021

Cited by 25 | Viewed by 4588

Abstract

Batch electrocoagulation (BEC), continuous electrocoagulation (CEC), and chemical precipitation (CP) were compared in struvite (MgNH₄PO₄·6H₂O) precipitation from synthetic and authentic water. In synthetic water treatment (SWT), struvite yield was in BEC 1.72, CEC 0.61, and CP 1.54 kg/m³. Corresponding values in authentic water treatment (AWT) were 2.55, 3.04, and 2.47 kg/m³. In SWT, 1 kg struvite costs in BEC, CEC, and CP were 0.55, 0.55, and 0.11 €, respectively, for AWT 0.35, 0.22 and 0.07 €. Phosphate removal in SWT was 93.6, 74.5, and 71.6% in BEC, CEC, and CP, respectively, the corresponding rates in AWT were 89.7, 77.8, and 74.4%. Ammonium removal for SWT in BEC, CEC, and CP were 79.4, 51.5, and 62.5%, respectively, rates in AWT 56.1, 64.1, and 60.9%. Efficiency in CEC and BEC are equal in nutrient recovery in SWT, although energy efficiency was better in CEC. CP is cheaper than BEC and CEC. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Control and Optimization of Wastewater Treatment Technology)

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17 pages, 7977 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Electrochemical Mineralization of Ibuprofen on BDD Electrodes in an Electrochemical Flow Reactor: Numerical Optimization Approach

by Alejandro Regalado-Méndez, Martín Ruiz, José A. Hernández-Servín, Reyna Natividad, Rubi Romero, Mario E. Cordero, Carlos Estrada-Vázquez and Ever Peralta-Reyes

Processes 2020, 8(12), 1666; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr8121666 - 17 Dec 2020

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2951

Abstract

Statistical analysis was applied to optimize the electrochemical mineralization of ibuprofen with two boron-doped diamond (BDD) electrodes in a continuous electrochemical flow reactor under recirculation batch mode. A central composite rotatable (CCR) experimental design was used to analyze the effect of initial pH (2.95–13.04), current intensity (2.66–4.34 A), and volumetric flow rate (0.16–1.84 L/min) and further optimized by response surface methodology (RSM) to obtain the maximum mineralization efficiency and the minimum specific energy consumption. A 91.6% mineralization efficiency (E_M) of ibuprofen with a specific energy consumption (E_C) of 4.36 KW h/g TOC within 7 h of treatment was achieved using the optimized operating parameters (pH₀ = 12.29, I = 3.26 A, and Q of 1 L/min). Experimental results of RSM were fitted via a third-degree polynomial regression equation having the performance index determination coefficients (R²) of 0.8658 and 0.8468 for the E_M and E_C, respectively. The reduced root-mean-square error (RMSE) was 0.1038 and 0.1918 for E_M and E_C, respectively. This indicates an efficient predictive performance to optimize the operating parameters of the electrochemical flow reactor with desirability of 0.9999993. Besides, it was concluded that the optimized conditions allow to achieve a high percentage of ibuprofen mineralization (91.6%) and a cost of 0.002 USD $/L. Therefore, the assessed process is efficient for wastewater remediation.” Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Control and Optimization of Wastewater Treatment Technology)

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16 pages, 3692 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Optimal-Setpoint-Based Control Strategy of a Wastewater Treatment Process

by Sergiu Caraman, Laurentiu Luca, Iulian Vasiliev and Marian Barbu

Processes 2020, 8(10), 1203; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr8101203 - 23 Sep 2020

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 3832

Abstract

This paper presents an optimal-setpoint-based control strategy of a wastewater treatment process (WWTP). The treatment plant serves the city of Galati, located in Eastern Romania, a city with a population of 250,000 inhabitants. As the treatment plant includes several control loops (based upon PI controllers), an efficient operation means the establishing of an optimal operating point regardless of the pluviometric regime (DRY, RAIN and STORM) or transitions between regimes. This optimal operating point is given by the optimal setpoint set (setpoints of the dissolved oxygen concentration in the aerated tanks, setpoint of the nitrate concentration, external recirculation flow, sludge flow extracted from the primary clarifier and excess sludge flow from the secondary clarifier) of the treatment plant control loops. The control algorithm has two distinct parts: the first part consists of computing the optimal aforementioned setpoints, based on the mathematical model of the treatment plant developed in SIMBA. For optimization (performed with genetic algorithms) an aggregate performance criterion that takes into consideration the quality of the effluent, the cost of the wastewater treatment as well as the percentage exceeding of the main parameters of the treated water was used; the second part consists of computing the optimal setpoint set which will be further applied directly in the process based on the membership to the current operating regime. The computation of the membership degrees to the current operating regime was performed with a fuzzification block, based on the information about the inflow rate in the biological treatment plant. For simulations, three data files of the influent were created, aiming at determining the optimal setpoints in each operating regime, and a fourth one containing an influent scenario able to globally test the system operation. The obtained results showed the efficiency of the biological treatment, the effluent quality index being about ten times lower than that of the influent. Furthermore, the genetic algorithm used in optimization determines accurately enough the minimum value of the performance criterion in the case of each pluviometric regime, the lowest value of the performance criterion being obtained in DRY operating regime and the highest values in RAIN and STORM regimes. This is mainly due to the increase of the treatment cost and to small exceeding of the limits of several quality parameters such as chemical oxygen demand and ammonium concentration in the two regimes mentioned above. The fuzzification block aims to achieve a smooth transition from one operating regime to another, thus determining easier operating regimes of the treatment plant actuators and contributing to the increase of their life cycle. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Control and Optimization of Wastewater Treatment Technology)

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13 pages, 2737 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Modeling and Optimization of COD Removal from Cold Meat Industry Wastewater by Electrocoagulation Using Computational Techniques

by Juan Morales-Rivera, Belkis Sulbarán-Rangel, Kelly Joel Gurubel-Tun, Jorge del Real-Olvera and Virgilio Zúñiga-Grajeda

Processes 2020, 8(9), 1139; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr8091139 - 11 Sep 2020

Cited by 14 | Viewed by 3297

Abstract

In this paper, electrocoagulation (EC) treatment for the removal of chemical oxygen demand (COD) from cold meat industry wastewater is modeled and optimized using computational techniques. Methods such as artificial neural networks (ANNs) and response surface methodology (RSM), based on the Box–Behnken design using three levels, were employed to calculate the best control parameters for pH (5–9), current density (2–6 mA/cm²) and EC time (20–60 min). Analysis of variance (ANOVA) and 3D graphs revealed that pH and current density are the main parameters used for depicting the EC process. The developed models successfully describe the process with a correlation coefficient of R² = 0.96 for RSM and R² = 0.99 for ANN. The models obtained were optimized applying the moth-flame optimization (MFO) algorithm to find the best operating conditions for COD removal. ANN-MFO was used and showed superior COD removal (92.91%) under conditions of pH = 8.9, current density = 6.6 mA/cm² and an EC time of 38.62 min. The energy consumption with these optimal conditions was 6.92 kWh/m³, with an operational cost of $3.14 (USD)/m³. These results suggest that the proposed computational model can be used to obtain more effective and economical treatments for this type of effluent. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Control and Optimization of Wastewater Treatment Technology)

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16 pages, 2679 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Treatment of Cheese Whey Wastewater Using an Expanded Granular Sludge Bed (EGSB) Bioreactor with Biomethane Production

by Abumalé Cruz-Salomón, Edna Ríos-Valdovinos, Francisco Pola-Albores, Selene Lagunas-Rivera, Rosa Isela Cruz-Rodríguez, Kelly del Carmen Cruz-Salomón, Jesús Mauricio Ernesto Hernández-Méndez and María Emperatriz Domínguez-Espinosa

Processes 2020, 8(8), 931; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr8080931 - 2 Aug 2020

Cited by 23 | Viewed by 6094

Abstract

Cheese whey wastewater (CWW) is the major by-product of the dairy industry. CWW is produced in large quantities, has varied characteristics and is usually disposed of. The disposal of CWW causes a negative impact on the environment of different agroindustrial areas due to the physic-chemical composition that significantly increases its high organic load and nutrients. For this reason, the aim of this work was to carry out an evaluation of the anaerobic treatability of an Expanded Granular Sludge Bed (EGSB) bioreactor as a new sustainable alternative for treatment of these effluents with bioenergy production. In this study, the bioreactor was operated under stable conditions (i.e., buffer index of 0.23 ± 0.1, pH 7.22 ± 0.4 and temperature 26.6 ± 1.4 °C) for 201 days. During evaluation the hydraulic retention time (HRT) was 6 and 8 days, and it was buffered with NaHCO₃. At these conditions, the COD removal rate and biochemical methane potential (BMP) were 90, 92%; and 334, 328 mLCH₄/gCOD, respectively. The evidence found in this study highlighted that the CWW is a viable substrate to be treated in the EGSB bioreactor as long as it keeps buffered. Furthermore, the process to treat the CWW in an EGSB bioreactor can be a sustainable alternative to simultaneously solve the environmental pollution that this agro-industry confronts and produce renewable and environmentally-friendly bioenergy. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Control and Optimization of Wastewater Treatment Technology)

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15 pages, 4415 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Cyclic Sequential Removal of Alizarin Red S Dye and Cr(VI) Ions Using Wool as a Low-Cost Adsorbent

by Mustafa I. Khamis, Taleb H. Ibrahim, Fawwaz H. Jumean, Ziad A. Sara and Baraa A. Atallah

Processes 2020, 8(5), 556; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr8050556 - 9 May 2020

Cited by 17 | Viewed by 3310

Abstract

Alizarin red S (ARS) removal from wastewater using sheep wool as adsorbent was investigated. The influence of contact time, pH, adsorbent dosage, initial ARS concentration and temperature was studied. Optimum values were: pH = 2.0, contact time = 90 min, adsorbent dosage = 8.0 g/L. Removal of ARS under these conditions was 93.2%. Adsorption data at 25.0 °C and 90 min contact time were fitted to the Freundlich and Langmuir isotherms. R2 values were 0.9943 and 0.9662, respectively. Raising the temperature to 50.0 °C had no effect on ARS removal. Free wool and wool loaded with ARS were characterized by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR). ARS loaded wool was used as adsorbent for removal of Cr(VI) from industrial wastewater. ARS adsorbed on wool underwent oxidation, accompanied by a simultaneous reduction of Cr(VI) to Cr(III). The results hold promise for wool as adsorbent of organic pollutants from wastewater, in addition to substantial self-regeneration through reduction of toxic Cr(VI) to Cr(III). Sequential batch reactor studies involving three cycles showed no significant decline in removal efficiencies of both chromium and ARS. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Control and Optimization of Wastewater Treatment Technology)

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17 pages, 4239 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Design and Optimization of Fluidized Bed Reactor Operating Conditions for Struvite Recovery Process from Swine Wastewater

by Soomin Shim, Seunggun Won, Arif Reza, Seungsoo Kim, Naveed Ahmed and Changsix Ra

Processes 2020, 8(4), 422; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr8040422 - 2 Apr 2020

Cited by 20 | Viewed by 6469

Abstract

Struvite crystallization using fluidized bed reactors (FBRs) is one of the most commonly used methods for nutrient recovery from different waste streams. However, struvite recovery from swine wastewater containing much higher solids using FBR has not been studied extensively. In this study, we therefore designed and optimized the key operating conditions parameters, i.e., pH (9.0, 9.5, and 10.0), circulation rate (CR) (1.5, 3.0, and 4.5 L/L_reactor·h), and hydraulic retention time (HRT) (1, 3, and 5 h) of FBR to ensure efficient nutrient removal and struvite crystallization from swine wastewater using response surface methodology (RSM) with central composite design (CCD) as experimental design. A magnesium/phosphorus (Mg/P) molar ratio of 1.3 was maintained with MgCl₂ according to ortho-phosphate (O-P) concentration of influent and an air diffuser was set to supply air with 0.03 L air/L_reactor·min. The O-P recovery efficiency of over 91% was achieved through the entire runs. Among the operational parameters, pH did not show any significant effect on NH₄-N recovery, particle size, and struvite production rate (SPR). The optimal CR over 2.94 L/L_reactor·h was found to be appropriate for efficient removal of nutrients and struvite crystallization. While optimizing the HRT, priority of the process operation such as the production of larger struvite particles or increased struvite productivity should be considered. Therefore, the optimal operational parameters of pH 9.0, CR > 2.94 L/L_reactor·h, and HRT of 1 or 5 h were chosen to obtain better responses through RSM analyses. The findings of this study would be useful in designing and operating either pilot- or full-scale FBR for struvite crystallization from swine wastewater. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Control and Optimization of Wastewater Treatment Technology)

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14 pages, 5454 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Recovery of Molybdenum, Chromium, Tungsten, Copper, Silver, and Zinc from Industrial Waste Waters Using Zero-Valent Iron and Tailored Beneficiation Processes

by Daniel Vollprecht, Katharina Plessl, Simone Neuhold, Fritz Kittinger, Wolfgang Öfner, Peter Müller, Robert Mischitz and Klaus Philipp Sedlazeck

Processes 2020, 8(3), 279; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr8030279 - 28 Feb 2020

Cited by 16 | Viewed by 3068

Abstract

Zero-valent iron (ZVI) has been used for water treatment for more than 160 years. However, passivation of its surface often constituted a problem which could only be tackled recently by the innovative Ferrodecont process using a fluidized bed reactor. In this study, pilot scale experiments for the removal of Mo, Cr, W, Cu, Ag and Zn from two industrial waste water samples and lab-scale experiments for the beneficiation of the abrasion products are presented to integrate the Ferrodecont process into a complete recycling process chain. Firstly, 38.5 % of Cu was removed from sample A, yielding abrasion products containing 33.1 wt% Cu as metallic copper (Cu) and various Cu compounds. The treatment of sample B removed 99.8 % of Mo, yielding abrasion products containing 17.8 wt% of Mo as amorphous phases or adsorbed species. Thermal treatment (1300 °C) of the abrasion product A indicated a reduction of delafossite to metallic Cu according to differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermogravimetry (TG) and X-ray diffraction (XRD), which was successfully separated from the magnetic iron phases. Hydrometallurgical treatment (1.5 M NaOH, 3 d, liquid:solid ratio (L:S) = 15:1) of sample B yielded aqueous extracts with Mo concentrations of 5820 to 6300 mgL⁻¹. In conclusion, this corresponds to an up to 53-fold enrichment of Mo during the entire process chain. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Control and Optimization of Wastewater Treatment Technology)

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Review

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14 pages, 795 KiB

Open AccessReview

The Effect of Temperature on the Biosorption of Dyes from Aqueous Solutions

by Lech Smoczyński, Bogusław Pierożyński and Tomasz Mikołajczyk

Processes 2020, 8(6), 636; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr8060636 - 26 May 2020

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 3153

Abstract

This work is a review of scientific papers on the influence of temperature (T) on the biosorption of various dyes from aqueous solutions and wastewaters. The dyeing process of textiles is usually carried out at high temperatures, and therefore, the wastewater generated there when entering the treatment plant may still be hot. Hence, depending on the climatic conditions of a given region, the biosorption method used for their purification may occur at various temperatures. Most of the papers clearly stated the positive influence of T on biosorption, generally indicating the chemical nature of this process. At the same time, substantial number of authors confirmed the positive effect of T on the biosorption with an initial T-rise from approximately 20 °C to about 30–40 °C range; conversely, at higher temperatures, they indicated a decrease in the biosorption efficiency. Additionally, many authors clearly implied the negative impact of T on the biosorption parameters. They generally envisaged the physical nature of this process, but also indicated its limitation, as there was only a 15%–50% reduction in biosorption efficiency with an increase in T. In addition, an attempt was made to analyse the effect of temperature on the biosorption process, depending on the type of dye. It could then be cautiously suggested that a moderate increase in the T parameter favourably affected the biosorption of the red and reactive dyes. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Control and Optimization of Wastewater Treatment Technology)

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