Ammonia Removal by Simultaneous Nitrification and Denitrification in a Single Dual-Chamber Microbial Electrolysis Cell
Sanath Kondaveeti, Dae-Hyeon Choi, Md Tabish Noori, Booki Min
AI summary
82% confidenceThis study demonstrates simultaneous nitrification and denitrification (SND) in a dual-chamber microbial electrolysis cell (MEC) for ammonia removal from synthetic wastewater without external organic substrate or aeration. Water electrolysis at the anode generates dissolved oxygen to support nitrifier activity, converting ammonia to nitrate, while the cathode performs autotrophic denitrification. Batch operations achieved 96.8% nitrification efficiency at 1.5 V, with continuous-mode operation removing ammonia at 170 g-N/m³·d at 15 h HRT, demonstrating viability for field-scale wastewater treatment.
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Abstract
Ammonia removal from wastewater was successfully achieved by simultaneous nitrification and denitrification (SND) in a double-chamber microbial electrolysis cell (MEC). The MEC operations at different applied voltages (0.7 to 1.5 V) and initial ammonia concentrations (30 to 150 mg/L) were conducted in order to evaluate their effects on MEC performance in batch mode. The maximum nitrification efficiency of 96.8% was obtained in the anode at 1.5 V, followed by 94.11% at 1.0 V and 87.05% at 0.7. At 1.5 V, the initial ammonia concentration considerably affected the nitrification rate, and the highest nitrification rate constant of 0.1601/h was determined from a first-order linear regression at 30 mg/L ammonium nitrogen. The overall total nitrogen removal efficiency was noted to be 85% via the SND in the MEC operated at an initial ammonium concentration of 50 mg/L and an applied cell voltage of 1.5 V. The MEC operation in continuous mode could remove ammonia (50 mg/L) in a series of anode and cathode chambers at the nitrogen removal rate of 170 g-N/m3.d at an HRT of 15. This study suggests that a standalone dual-chamber MEC can efficiently remove ammonia via the SND process without needing additional organic substrate and aeration, which makes this system viable for field applications.
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- Journal
- Energies
- Year
- 2022