The effectiveness of nature-based hybrid solutions for the removal of nitrogen and emergent pollutants from municipal wastewater in cold climate conditions

IF 4.1 2区环境科学与生态学 Q1 ECOLOGY

Ecological Engineering Pub Date : 2025-06-19 DOI:10.1016/j.ecoleng.2025.107711

Matthew Hopkins , Lina Büngener , Anna-Kaisa Ronkanen , Anna Maria Pirttilä , Anna Liisa Ruotsalainen , Kaisa Lehosmaa , Saija H.K. Ahonen , Piippa R. Wäli , Elisangela Heiderscheidt , Heini Postila

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Arctic aquatic environments are especially sensitive to nutrient (nitrogen and phosphorous) and emergent pollutant discharge, which commonly enters water systems through wastewater effluents. To remove nutrients and emergent pollutants from the municipal wastewater in a small village in northern Finland, we evaluated a hybrid nature-based treatment system designed to complement an existing conventional wastewater treatment facility. The system included a moving bed bioreactor installed within the existing facility to improve nitrification; a sedimentation basin, moss unit, fungi-woodchip unit, and two woodchip bioreactors were also placed in the former drainage ditch after the facility to increase nutrient and emergent pollution removal. System performance was monitored for 5 years across all seasons to assess treatment efficiency. The treatment facility went from leaching of total nitrogen prior to implementation of the hybrid system to an average of 31 % removal efficiency after the system was implemented. Of the 129 emergent pollutants analyzed, 58 were below the detection limit, 20 showed no removal through the treatment process, and 51 compounds showed changes in concentration throughout the hybrid treatment system. Of the 51 compounds which showed changes in the system, 20 showed clear removal trends throughout the entire hybrid treatment system (normal wastewater treatment system + moss and fungi units and woodchip bioreactors), and 8 showed clear removal only in the woodchip bioreactor. Temperature did not appear to have a noticeable impact on the removal efficiency of these compounds. In view of the findings of this study, future research should be directed at further system optimization (in this case by better optimizing the MBBR), increasing, if possible, the number of sampling times and points for the emergent pollutants, and investigating in more detail the interaction between microbes and pollutant removal in cold climatic conditions.

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基于自然的混合解决方案在寒冷气候条件下去除城市废水中的氮和紧急污染物的有效性

北极水生环境对营养物质（氮和磷）和紧急污染物排放特别敏感，这些污染物通常通过废水排放进入水系统。为了从芬兰北部一个小村庄的城市废水中去除营养物质和紧急污染物，我们评估了一种基于自然的混合处理系统，该系统旨在补充现有的传统废水处理设施。该系统包括安装在现有设施内的移动床生物反应器，以改善硝化作用；在设施后的前排水沟中还放置了一个沉淀池、苔藓单元、真菌-木屑单元和两个木屑生物反应器，以增加营养和去除紧急污染。对系统性能进行了为期5年的监测，以评估处理效率。该处理设施从实施混合系统之前的总氮浸出到系统实施后的平均去除效率为31%。在分析的129种紧急污染物中，58种低于检测限，20种无法通过处理过程去除，51种化合物在整个混合处理系统中显示浓度变化。在系统中显示变化的51种化合物中，20种化合物在整个混合处理系统（普通废水处理系统+苔藓和真菌单元和木屑生物反应器）中表现出明显的去除趋势，8种化合物仅在木屑生物反应器中表现出明显的去除趋势。温度似乎对这些化合物的去除效率没有明显的影响。鉴于本研究的发现，未来的研究应针对进一步的系统优化（在这种情况下，通过更好地优化MBBR），如果可能的话，增加突发污染物的采样次数和采样点，并更详细地研究寒冷气候条件下微生物与污染物去除之间的相互作用。

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来源期刊

Ecological Engineering 环境科学-工程：环境

CiteScore

8.00

自引率

5.30%

发文量

293

审稿时长

57 days

期刊介绍： Ecological engineering has been defined as the design of ecosystems for the mutual benefit of humans and nature. The journal is meant for ecologists who, because of their research interests or occupation, are involved in designing, monitoring, or restoring ecosystems, and can serve as a bridge between ecologists and engineers. Specific topics covered in the journal include: habitat reconstruction; ecotechnology; synthetic ecology; bioengineering; restoration ecology; ecology conservation; ecosystem rehabilitation; stream and river restoration; reclamation ecology; non-renewable resource conservation. Descriptions of specific applications of ecological engineering are acceptable only when situated within context of adding novelty to current research and emphasizing ecosystem restoration. We do not accept purely descriptive reports on ecosystem structures (such as vegetation surveys), purely physical assessment of materials that can be used for ecological restoration, small-model studies carried out in the laboratory or greenhouse with artificial (waste)water or crop studies, or case studies on conventional wastewater treatment and eutrophication that do not offer an ecosystem restoration approach within the paper.