TY - JOUR
T1 - Denitrification in a low carbon environment of a constructed wetland incorporating a microbial electrolysis cell
AU - Srivastava, Pratiksha
AU - Yadav, Asheesh Kumar
AU - Abbassi, Rouzbeh
AU - Garaniya, Vikram
AU - Lewis , Trevor
PY - 2018/8
Y1 - 2018/8
N2 - The main aim of this study was to explore the possibility of denitrification under low carbon conditions in a microbial electrolysis cell (MEC) integrated into a constructed wetland (CW). To our knowledge, this is the first systematic study of the incorporation of an MEC into a CW for enhancing denitrification. CWs are an efficient and low-cost technology for wastewater treatment facing problems in denitrification under low carbon conditions. Two CW-microcosms were fabricated: one included an MEC arrangement with granular graphite electrodes attached to a power source and the other with a microcosm fabricated with normal stone gravel as a control. These microcosms were fed with synthetic wastewater containing 50 mg/l of nitrate-nitrogen (NO3-N) with different ratios of organic carbon. Carbon to nitrogen ratio (C: N) were kept to 2:1, 1:1 and 0.5:1. The maximum concentration of organic carbon was 100 mg/l, subsequently decreased to 50 mg/l to 25 mg/l. The highest percentage removal achieved from CW-MEC in C: N ratios of 2:1 were 69.3% on 0.583 mA applied current, whereas the control microcosm’s removal efficiency on the same C:N was 66.2%. The outcomes of this study show that the NO3-N removal was always higher in the MEC integrated CW compared to the normal CW. The study concludes that the higher denitrification is possible by incorporation of an MEC into a constructed wetland under low carbon condition. This approach can provide a new direction for denitrification enhancement in a CW.
AB - The main aim of this study was to explore the possibility of denitrification under low carbon conditions in a microbial electrolysis cell (MEC) integrated into a constructed wetland (CW). To our knowledge, this is the first systematic study of the incorporation of an MEC into a CW for enhancing denitrification. CWs are an efficient and low-cost technology for wastewater treatment facing problems in denitrification under low carbon conditions. Two CW-microcosms were fabricated: one included an MEC arrangement with granular graphite electrodes attached to a power source and the other with a microcosm fabricated with normal stone gravel as a control. These microcosms were fed with synthetic wastewater containing 50 mg/l of nitrate-nitrogen (NO3-N) with different ratios of organic carbon. Carbon to nitrogen ratio (C: N) were kept to 2:1, 1:1 and 0.5:1. The maximum concentration of organic carbon was 100 mg/l, subsequently decreased to 50 mg/l to 25 mg/l. The highest percentage removal achieved from CW-MEC in C: N ratios of 2:1 were 69.3% on 0.583 mA applied current, whereas the control microcosm’s removal efficiency on the same C:N was 66.2%. The outcomes of this study show that the NO3-N removal was always higher in the MEC integrated CW compared to the normal CW. The study concludes that the higher denitrification is possible by incorporation of an MEC into a constructed wetland under low carbon condition. This approach can provide a new direction for denitrification enhancement in a CW.
KW - Denitrification
KW - Microbial electrolysis cell
KW - Constructed wetland-microbial electrolysis cell
KW - Electron donor
KW - Electrode
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85052735631&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.jece.2018.08.053
DO - 10.1016/j.jece.2018.08.053
M3 - Article
VL - 6
SP - 5602
EP - 5607
JO - Journal of Environmental Chemical Engineering
JF - Journal of Environmental Chemical Engineering
SN - 2213-3437
IS - 4
ER -