Development of an alkali-producing bioelectrochemical system for sewage-polluted seawater: nutrient removal, scalant mitigation, and resource recovery

IF 6.3 2区工程技术 Q1 ENGINEERING, CHEMICAL

Journal of water process engineering Pub Date : 2025-05-01 DOI:10.1016/j.jwpe.2025.107834

Chao-Chin Chang , Chieh-Yun Wu , Jia-Zhe Jiang , Chen-An Hsu , Chang-Ping Yu , Yi-Li Lin

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Abstract

The bioelectrochemical system (BES) plays a promising role in developing sustainable water treatment technologies that can treat wastewater while simultaneously generating electricity or recovering valuable resources. However, an unbalanced pH gradient between the anode and the cathode is often observed, which is considered a significant limitation that needs to be addressed. Instead of focusing on pH gradient balancing, this study first constructed a two-unit alkali-producing BES (APBES) for treating coastal sewage-polluted seawater. In Unit I, after five optimization scenarios, the system exhibited a nearly 100-fold increase in electric current production and a significant rise in pH from ∼7 to 9. The partial removal of pollutants (95 % reduction in chemical oxygen demand and 49 % reduction in conductivity) and scalants (28 % removal of sulfate and 76 % removal of calcium) was achieved. The anode and cathode effluents of Unit I were then mixed in a secondary unit (Unit II). After integrating Unit II with Unit I, the results demonstrated that APBES can not only remove pollutants and scalants but also simultaneously recover valuable resources. The removal efficiencies of calcium (80 %), sulfate (53 %), orthophosphate (51 %), and ammonium (81 %), supported by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) analyses, collectively reinforced this observation. This study is the first to verify the potential of APBES for the simultaneous nutrient removal and scalant mitigation, as well as the transformation of nutrients and scalants into valuable resources for sewage-polluted seawater. Further efforts are warranted to develop APBES into a versatile platform for sustainable water resource management.

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污水污染海水产碱生物电化学系统的开发：去除营养物、缓蚀剂和资源回收

生物电化学系统（BES）在开发可持续水处理技术方面发挥着重要作用，可以在处理废水的同时发电或回收有价值的资源。然而，在阳极和阴极之间经常观察到不平衡的pH梯度，这被认为是一个需要解决的重大限制。本研究不注重pH梯度平衡，而是首先构建了双单元产碱BES （APBES）处理沿海污水污染海水。在单元1中，经过5个优化方案后，系统的电流产量增加了近100倍，pH值从~ 7显著上升到9。实现了污染物（化学需氧量降低95%，电导率降低49%）和烫伤剂（硫酸盐去除率28%，钙去除率76%）的部分去除。然后将单元I的阳极和阴极废水混合在二级单元（单元II）中。将单元II和单元I整合后，结果表明APBES不仅可以去除污染物和鳞屑，还可以同时回收有价值的资源。通过扫描电子显微镜（SEM）和能谱分析（EDS），对钙（80%）、硫酸盐（53%）、正磷酸盐（51%）和铵（81%）的去除率共同加强了这一观察结果。本研究首次验证了APBES在同时去除营养物质和缓蚀剂方面的潜力，以及将营养物质和缓蚀剂转化为污水污染海水的宝贵资源的潜力。有必要进一步努力将APBES发展成为可持续水资源管理的多功能平台。

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来源期刊

Journal of water process engineering Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology-Biotechnology

CiteScore

10.70

自引率

8.60%

发文量

846

审稿时长

24 days

期刊介绍： The Journal of Water Process Engineering aims to publish refereed, high-quality research papers with significant novelty and impact in all areas of the engineering of water and wastewater processing . Papers on advanced and novel treatment processes and technologies are particularly welcome. The Journal considers papers in areas such as nanotechnology and biotechnology applications in water, novel oxidation and separation processes, membrane processes (except those for desalination) , catalytic processes for the removal of water contaminants, sustainable processes, water reuse and recycling, water use and wastewater minimization, integrated/hybrid technology, process modeling of water treatment and novel treatment processes. Submissions on the subject of adsorbents, including standard measurements of adsorption kinetics and equilibrium will only be considered if there is a genuine case for novelty and contribution, for example highly novel, sustainable adsorbents and their use: papers on activated carbon-type materials derived from natural matter, or surfactant-modified clays and related minerals, would not fulfil this criterion. The Journal particularly welcomes contributions involving environmentally, economically and socially sustainable technology for water treatment, including those which are energy-efficient, with minimal or no chemical consumption, and capable of water recycling and reuse that minimizes the direct disposal of wastewater to the aquatic environment. Papers that describe novel ideas for solving issues related to water quality and availability are also welcome, as are those that show the transfer of techniques from other disciplines. The Journal will consider papers dealing with processes for various water matrices including drinking water (except desalination), domestic, urban and industrial wastewaters, in addition to their residues. It is expected that the journal will be of particular relevance to chemical and process engineers working in the field. The Journal welcomes Full Text papers, Short Communications, State-of-the-Art Reviews and Letters to Editors and Case Studies