Iranian Journal of

Background and Objectives: Upflow Sludge Blanket Filtration (USBF) system is a modification  of the conventional activated sludge process that incorporates an anoxic zone with an upflow sludge blanket filtration clarifier in one bioreactor. It has no inherent capacity limits and is used in a wide range of applications in municipal, industrial and agricultural wastewater treatment. The main objective of this study was to evaluate the performance of a continuous USBF reactor for the treatment of sugar industrial wastewater.
Materials and Methods: Sixty liter laboratory pilot scale plant was made of plexiglass consists of   14 liter anoxic zone, 38 liter aerobic zone and 8 liter clarifier. Used molasses for raw wastewater was obtained from Varamin Sugar Company. During the study, the wastewater has been initially fed to anoxic zone of the bioreactor. It mixed with recycled activated sludge returned from the clarifier and the mixed liquor entered into aerobic zone of the bioreactor. From aeration zone, the mixed liquor passed through the sludge zone at the bottom of the clarifier which was then separated by upflow sludge blanket filtration and then the clear water discharged from the system. To complete the internal circulation loop, collected activated sludge at the bottom of the clarifier was recycled to the anoxic zone.
Results: Experimental studies indicated that average removal efficiency of COD with HRTs from 21  to 26 hours in the aerobic zone and from 8 to 10 hours in the anoxic zone were from 77 to 97 percent depended on input feed (1000 to 30000 mg/L).
Conclusion: USBF as an advanced biological process had a proper COD removal efficiency for the biological treatment of sugar industries wastewater compared to other researchers methods.

Background and Objectives: A conventional treatment to stabilize the excess activated sludge is the aerobic digestion process but due to long aeration time, it requires large equipments as well as high investment cost. Because of high oxidation potential of ozone, sludge ozonation enhances stabilization rate and reduces sludge treatment equipment size and cost. Therefore, in this study, the combination of pretreatment with ozone and aerobic digestion processes were investigated.
Materials and Methods: The experimental set-up consisted of an ozone generator and ozonation reactor with the total volume of 2 L. Removal percentages of TSS, VS, total and soluble COD, HPC, fecal coliform and settable solids were measured in integrated process compared to the single ones.
Results: The results of this research indicated that the aerobic digestion of waste activated sludge during 10 days could reduce 38% of volatile solids and thus obtaining the EPA standard. Also, the results of combined ozonation and aerobic digestion revealed that the pre-ozonation at 0.25 g O3/g TS or 0.5 g O3/g TS with 6 or 3 days aeration, respectively, could achieve 38% reduction in VS and hence the requirement set by EPA. Therefore, integration of pre-ozonation with aerobic digestion can significantly reduce the digestion time to attain the standards.
Conclusion: The sludge pre-ozonation with low dose of ozone due to solids disintegration can enhance the efficiency of aerobic digestion in waste activated sludge stabilization, and consequently decrease size of equipments, air requirement, investment and probably operation cost.

Background and Objectives : Propylene glycol is the main compound of anti-freezing chemicals. A significant amount of propylene glycol is released to the environment after application and contaminates the soil. The main objective of this study was to determine the biological removal of propylene glycol from wastewater and its degradation in soil by the isolated bacteria from activated sludge process.
Materials and Methods: In the present study, the sludge taken from the return flow in a local activated sludge treatment system was used as the initial seed. The performance of the bioreactor in treating the wastewater was evaluated at four different retention times of 18, 12, 6 and 4 h all with the inlet COD concentration of 1000 mg/L. This phase lasted around 4 months. Then, a part of the adapted microorganisms were transported from the bioreactor to the soil which was synthetically contaminated to the propylene glycol.
Results: The average of propylene glycol removal efficiency from the wastewater in detention times of 18, 12, 8 and 4 h in steady state conditions was 98.6%, 97.1%, 86.4% and 62.2% respectively. Also, the maximum degradation in soil was found to be 97.8%.
Conclusion: According to the results obtained from this study, it appears that propylene glycol is inherently well biodegradable and can be biodegraded in liquid phase and soil after a short period of adaptation.

Backgrounds and Objectives: Direct biodegradation of landfill leachate is too difficult because of high concentrations of COD and NH3 and also the presence of toxic compounds. The main objective of this study was to application of Strurvite precipitation as a pretreatment stage, in order to remove inhibitors of biodegradation before the batch decant activated sludge process with addition of powdered activated carbon (PAC).
Materials and Methods: Strurvite precipitated leachate was introduced to a bench scale batch decant activated sludge reactor with hydraulic retention times of 6 and 12 hour. PAC was added to aeration tank directly at the rate of 3.5 g/L.
Results:TCOD, SCOD, NH3 and P removal efficiency with addition of PAC in HRT of 6 h were 90,87, 98.3 and 94 % respectively and 96, 95, 99.2 and 98.7 5 in HRT of 12 h.
Concusion:According to obtained data from this work, it can be concluded that Strurvite precipitation before batch decant activated sludge process and simultaneous addition of PAC is promising technology for leachate treatment and can meet effluent standards for discharge to the receiving waters.

Backgrounds and Objectives: One of environmental outcomes in industrial towns is developing environmental pollution such as production of industrial wastewaters. These industrial wastewaters should be appropriately treated before entering to receiving waters. However we can't solve environmental anxieties by establishing of wastewater treatment plants alone but permanent and regular assessment of these treatment plants performance is necessary for achieving environmental standards. Thus, this research has been done in order to investigation of activated sludge performance in wastewater treatment of Agghala industrial town in Golestan province.
Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study implemented in sewage treatment plant laboratory of Agghala industrial town in Golestan within 12 months at 2007. Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) parameter determined twice in week, But Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) test accomplished weekly. pH measured by pH meter daily. Experiment of total suspended solids (TSS) and total dissolved solids (TDS) carried out every 10 days. All tests accomplished according to standard method for water and wastewater examination (2005). Then data analyzed using excel 2007.
Results: The average of BOD, COD and TSS in influent was 11196.17, 1854.58, 1232.25 mg/L respectively.Maximum influent organic loading rate was related to Shahrivar andMehr months. The total average of removal efficiency for BOD, COD and TSS was calculated 99.66, 98.2, and 97.6% respectively.
Conclusion:Quality of this treatment plant effluent was according to effluent disposal standards all over year. In sum, efficiency of this treatment plant (activated sludge system) was very good ininfluent pollutant removing. However occasionally effluent was not adapted with environmental standards but these deficiencies is solvable by accurate management and supervision on flow rate and influent organic loading rate easily.

Backgrounds and Objectives:Owing to the fact that the major environmental problem is production of surplus sludge in wastewater treatment plant, reducing the volume of produced sludge was objective of this research.
Materials and Methods: An anaerobic-aerobic SBR with working volume of 10 L was used to make micro-organism adapted and a polymer production reactor (PPR) with working volume of 1.5 L was used for producing polymer munisipal wastewater which contained different concentration of volatile fatty acids was consodered as the feed source (acetate and propionate) and this system was evaluated with SRT of 5, 7 and 10 days.
Results: The maximum polymer production efficiency observed within 5 days (SRT=5 days) though this efficiency was not significant in comparison with the two others time courses study. In this research the maximum polymer production efficiency at optimum condition was 25% of the sludge dry weight.
Conclusion: Experiment revealed that producing polymer from activated sludge reduced the volume of sludge and the maximum reduced sludge volume was obtained 19%.

Background and Objective: Nickel (II) and cadmium (II) are important in environmental pollutant. Biosorption of heavy metals can be an effective process for the removal and recovery of heavy metal ions from aqueous solutions because of the decrease in sludge problems, economical issues, high efficiency and compatibility with the environment.
Materials and Methods: power of wasted activated sludge have been contact with nickel (II) and cadmium (II) solutions in 0.25 and 0.75 milli molar invarious pHs and mixing pace, at 24-26 0C temperature on batch reactor system .After two hours (continuously 5-420 min in kinetic study) samples were analyzed with atomic absorption spectrophotometer.
Results:The kinetic study results show that equilibrium adsorption time for nickel (II) and cadmium
(II) reached within 2 hr, but the profile curve of cadmium (II) biosorption was smoother than nickel (II) biosorption. Both metals adsorption followed the Langmuir model and the maximum adsorption capacity (qmax) for nickel (II) and cadmium (II) was 0.195 and 0.37 milli mole per gram respectively. The increase in pH resulted in adsorption increase for both metals. For cadmium (II) at 0.25 and 0.75 mMinitial concentration there was no adsorption at pH 2 where as nickel (0.25 mM) adsorption was observed at the same pH. The optimum mixing rate for both metals was 200 rpm and this effect was more obviously in greater concentration.
Conclusion: Like othe biosorbents ,wasted activated sludge showed greater capacity for cadmium(II) biosorption than nickel (II). Cadmium (II) in modeling and biosorption characteristics study had more conformity than nickel (II).

Background and Objectives: Microbial quality, particularly parasitic characteristics in terms of effluent reuse in agriculture is one of the most important indices. The aim of this study is determination of removal efficiency of Kermanshah wastewater treatment(conventional activated sludge) and Gilangharb wastewater treatment plants (stabilization ponds) for cyst and parasitic eggs.
Material and Methods: In this study research samples were taken once in five days from both inlet and outlet of wastewater Plants within a period of five months. The identification and counting of cyst and parasitic eggs were carried out by Mac master slide according to Bailenger method.
Results: The findings shows that mean of parasitic eggs and protozoan cysts in effluent of Kermanshah wastewater treatment plant were 0.99±0.42 and 0.90±0.25 per liter respectively, indeed removal efficiency for parasitic eggs and cysts are %98.42±3 and %97.5±4.5 respectively, but, any parasitic eggs and protozoan cysts in Gilangharb wastewater treatment plant was not observed and removal efficiency of these tow parameters was %100. Ascaris lumbricoides eggs had most number in influent and effluent of both plants.
Conclusion: As results show, removal efficiency for cysts and parasitic eggs in both above mentioned are desirable, and the quality of effluent treatment plant of both the rate of nematode eggs Anglbrg index (number of nematode eggs: 1 " number per liter) is consistent.

Background and Objectives: One of the complete treatment processes for industrial and municipal wastewater treatment is membrane bioreactor process which has dominant potential in process and operation sections. This study was conducted to compare the performance of extended aeration activated sludge (EAAS) with submerged membrane bioreactor (SMBR) systems in the treatment of strength wastewater, in the same condition.
Materials and Methods: The initial activated sludge was brought from the Plascokar Saipa wastewater plant. The Plexiglas reactor with effective volume of 758 L was separated by a baffle into the aeration and secondary sedimentation parts with effective volumes of 433 L and 325 L, respectively. The chemical oxygen demand (COD) concentration of the influent wastewater of the EAAS and SMBR systems were between 500-2700 and 500-5000 mg/L, respectively.
Results: Results showed that the SMBR system produced a much better quality effluent than EAAS system in terms of COD, biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5), total suspended solids (TSS) and ammonium. By increasing the COD concentration, the concentration of mixed liquor suspended solids (MLSS) and the removal efficiency of organic matter in the SMBR system, were increased regularly, however the removal efficiency of COD in the EAAS system was irregular. 
Conclusion: The average BOD5/COD ratio of effluent in the EAAS and SMBR systems were 0.708±0.18 and 0.537±0.106, respectively. These show that the organic matters in the effluent of the SMBR system was less degradable and thereupon more biological treatment was achieved. Nitrification process was completely done in the SMBR system while the EAAS system could not achieve to complete nitrification.

Background and Objectives: Bioaugmentation is a superior technique in bioremediation of contaminated soils with petroleum hydrocarbons. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of isolated bacteria from activated sludge of Asalouyeh special zone municipal wastewater treatment for bioaugmentation of kerosene-contaminated soils and to study the growth of isolated bacteria in the presence of different concentrations of this product.

Materials and Methods: Sampling of activated sludge was carried out from two treatment plants in Asalouyeh zone. Isolation of degrading bacteria was performed by culturing the samples on basal mineral medium. Emulsification test and evaluating the kinetic growth of bacteria were carried out in different concentrations of kerosene. Isolated bacteria were inoculated to polluted soils with kerosene oil compound for bioaugmentation and measuring their bioremediation potentials and the rate of biodegradation were measured by InfraRed (IR) spectroscopy.

Results: In this study, three bacterias: Pseudomonas putida, Serratia marcescens, and Proteus mirabilis were isolated and identified as kerosene degrading bacterias from activated sludge. P. putida was recognized as the most powerful degrading bacterium of this oil product according to the emulsification tests, measuring the growth of bacteria in various concentrations of kerosene, the results of bioaugmentation of contaminated column of soil with kerosene, and reducing the level of Total Petroleum Hydrocarbons (TPHs). This bacterium with emulsification rate of 3.8 could reduce 71.03% of TPHs within 30 days.   

Conclusion: According to the adaption of Pseudomonas putida, Serratia marcescens, and Proteus mirabilis in activated sludge with variety of pollutants in sewage, they can be used as non-indigenous bacteria for bioaugmentation and cleaning up the soil contaminated petroleum hydrocarbons.