Hot off the press article on mainstream deammonification!
How to transfer well-established sidestream wastewater treatment for nitrogen removal via deammonification into the mainstream? Could biofilm carriers help tackling hurdles such as low temperatures, slow-growing anammox bacteria, and nitrite-oxidizing bacteria competition?
Hanna Jagenteufel et al. compared cubic polyurethane foam carriers in moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR) vs. integrated fixed-film activated sludge (IFAS) reactors over three years of lab-scale operation — transitioning from sidestream to mainstream conditions.
Key takeaways:

• Carriers supported 6-fold higher anammox bacteria and ammonium-oxidizing bacteria activity than suspended biomass
• IFAS outperformed MBBR for mainstream deammonification
• Deammonification in the mainstream enables enhanced recovery of biogas

• Controlling nitrite-oxidizing bacteria at lower temperatures & concentrations remains challenging

  
  Check the openaccess article for full details: https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4441/18/9/1021