• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.60 no.1
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• pp.80-85
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• 2022

In wastewater treatment processes huge quantities of sludge are produced continuously each year. This work investigated the reuse of two types of sludge as biosorbents of a toxic dye. The potential of granular and filamentous fungus dried sludge for the elimination of eosin from aqueous solution was studied in batch system. The effect of initial concentration and temperature was examined. Maximum uptake was observed at 100 mg l^-1 and 30 ℃. The maximum removal rate was 92% for the granular sludge and 90% for the filamentous one. Equilibrium was attained after 30 min for the studied dye concentrations. The equilibrium uptake increased with the initial eosin concentration. The Freundlich and Langmuir adsorption models were also investigated. The reuse of disposed sludge as adsorbent could be a solution for the valorization of such dangerous waste to resolve two environmental problems at the same time.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.28-33
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• 1997

This study was carried out to investigate factors affecting anaerobic digestion enhancement of waste activated sludge(WAS). In order to this investigation, the degradability and rupture of microorganisms cell present in WAS, and mesophilic anaerobic digestion(MAD) of these compounds, were also evaluated. The micro-organisms cell in WAS were ruptured by a mechanical jet stream and smashed under pressure of 30 bar. The rupture level of micro-organisms cell in WAS were determined using phosphate, soluble protein and soluble chemical oxygen demand (SCOD)concentrations. It was found that the rupture level of micro- organisms cell within WAS increased with increasing pretreatment times, and the pretreated WAS once under pressure of 30 bar resulted in an increase in VS removal and methane production of 5%, 9% over the intact WAS of 35%, 71%, respectively, in batchwise MAD of 6-day and 14-day retention time. With the pretreatment and MAD of 6-day retention time used, mesophlic bioconvertibility as the biogasification of WAS were found to be significantly higher biogas of 1, 850 ml than 300 ml under intact WAS. In conclusion it can be stated mechanical pretreatment enhances WAS bioconvertibility, while under identical treatment conditions, resulted in a considerable decrease in the bioconvertibility of intact WAS.

• Journal of Korean Society on Water Environment
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.147-152
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• 2005

Fermentation efficiencies of organic wastes from the variety of sources were evaluated based on the production of total volatile acids(TVA) in batch reactor. Mixing and pH were not significant factors in producing TVA from the organic wastes. After a 10-day fermentation, final TVA concentrations in piggery, cattle, poultry, and primary settled sludge of domestic wastewater were 8,900, 2,900, 7,370 and 1,630 mg/L, respectively. The pH of organic wastes was decreased from neutral to 5.7. The ratio of TVA to $NH_4{^+}-N$ produced from the animal waste ranged from 11.5 to 30.1, whereas, that in the primary settled sludge of domestic wastewater, was 5.4. Possibility of fermented organic wastes as the electron donors for denitrification in the activated sludge was investigated. In both acclimated and nonacclimated activated sludge, higher denitrification rates were obtained with fermented piggery sludge added than with either methanol or acetate added. The fermented organic acids derived from the primary settled sludge gave the higher denitrification rate ($4.2mg\;NO_3-N/g\;vss{\cdot}hr$) in the acclimated activated sludge. Denitrification rate was $1.5mg\;NO_3-N/g\;vss{\cdot}hr$ in the nonacclimated sludge with the fermented acids from the primary settled sludge of domestic wastewater added.

• Journal of Korean Society on Water Environment
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.264-270
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• 2006

In this research, volume reduction of activated sludge using electrolysis was studied to find an optimum condition using lab scale experiments. Wasted sludge was treated by electrolysis with controlling current density, chloride concentration, electrode distance, and reaction time. Volume of return sludge was reduced by 9.79% in average while maximum was 16.7%. Sludge volume reduction efficiency was affected by current density and reaction time. It was reversely proportional to the electrode distance. Especially current density was effective on the system performance significantly. Electric conductivity, salinity and COD were increased by electrolysis implying sludge disintegrated and converted to COD in part. An empirical equation for total solid removal efficiency by electrolysis was proposed by multiple linear regression analysis as: $TS_{rem}$(%) = 5.534 ${\times}$ current density (A/l) + 0.178 ${\times}$ reaction time (m) + 2.758.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.93-98
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• 2009

The thermophilic aerobic digestion (TAD) process is recognized as an effective method for rapid waste activated sludge (WAS) degradation and the deactivation of pathogenic microorganisms. Yet, high energy costs due to heating and aeration have limited the commercialization of economical TAD processes. Previous research on autothermal thermophilic aerobic digestion (ATAD) has already reduced the heating cost. However, only a few studies have focused on reducing the aeration cost. Therefore, this study applied a two-step aeration control strategy to a fill-and-draw mode semicontinuous TAD process. The NADH-dependent fluorescence was monitored throughout the TAD experiment, and the aeration rate shifted according to the fluorescence intensity. As a result, the simple two-step aeration control operation achieved a 20.3% reduction in the total aeration, while maintaining an effective and stable operation. It is also expected that more savings can be achieved with a further reduction of the lower aeration rate or multisegmentation of the aeration rate.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.1-16
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• 1993

This paper describes an investigation to determine whether the activated sludge (AS) process could be used for the treatment of wastewater at the Union Carbide Coporation (UCC) plant in Seadrift, Texas. This plant presently utilizes a waste stabilization pond (WSP) system for treatment of the wastewater. The treatment system consists of an in-plant primary WSP and two off-plant WSPs (secondary and tertiary WSPs), run in series. The total hydraulic detention time of the WSP system is approximately 150 days. Several laboratory-based treatability studies have been conducted to evaluate the performace of the WSP system and the degradability of specific chemical compounds. From an additional study, it was determined that the WSP system was stressed and occasionally operating near the limit of its treatment capacity. The existing primary WSP plays an important role in the overall treatmemt system, because it not only functions as a pH and organic-strength equalization basin, but also serves as a "preconditioning" basin by fermenting high strength organic wastes to volatile organic acids for subsequent degradation in the escondary WSP. However, in view of pending RCRA legislatin conerning the "proposed organic toxicity characteristics limits" (40 CFR Part261: Federal Register, July, 1988), it is possible that the primary WSP will have to be abandoned in favor of alternative treatment options. Therefore the main purpose of this study was to perform activated sludge treatability evaluations for the development of an alternative to the existing primary WSP treatment ststem. In addition, another purpose was to determine the degradability of bis(2-chloroethyl)ether (Chlorex or CX) and benzene(BZ) in the activated sludge process. The presence of these two chemicals in the wastewater of the plant prompted the question of whatedether they could be degraded in an activated sludge system.

• Proceedings of the Korean Environmental Health Society Conference
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• 2005.06a
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• pp.406-409
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• 2005

Since 2003, Korean government has restricted landfill application of organic waste, which shares approximately 56% of total waste sludge from municipal and industrial wastewater treatment plants. In addition, enforcement of the ocean disposal prohibition law is effective from 2005. Organic sludge was composted for the purpose of converting to organic fertilizer. After moisture content was regulated with bulking agents aerobic treatment performed. When composting was conducted, commercial and activated microbe materials, identified from soil were seeded in sewage sludge. Carbon dioxide production was increased sharply after 24 hours. Temperature and pH of compost reached to $66.2^{\circ}C$ and 8. Heavy metals were lower than their regulatory limits, which enable it to utilize as organic fertilizer.

• Clean Technology
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• v.8 no.3
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• pp.167-172
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• 2002

The adaptability of earthworm casts produced form the waste sludge of pulp and paper plants for a biocarrier used in the advanced wastewater treatment was investigated. Removal efficiencies of nutrients in the activated sludge technology without carrier were compared with those treated with carrier made of casts under the different conditions such as the composition of the input and kinds of carrier. When the waste water was treated in the activated sludge technology without carriers, removal efficiencies of T-P and T-N were average values of 31% and 52%, respectively. On the contrary, pellet type carrier and pack type carrier increased the removal efficiencies of T-P and T-N by 1.3~1.4 and 1.9~2.0 times, respectively. At the same time, the high removal of T-P and T-N were observed irrespective of the types of carrier in which many kinds of microorganisms were grown. The difference in the removal efficiencies of BOD and COD between the treatment with and without carrier was negligible. According to this research, the carrier made of casts was thought to be highly applicable in the advanced wastewater treatment.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.51-65
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• 2002

This study was carried out to apply some basic physical and chemical treatment options including Fenton's oxidation, and to evaluate the performances and the characteristics of organic and nitrogen removal using lab-scale biological treatment system such as complete-mixing activated sludge and sequencing batch reactor(SBR) processes for the treatment of leachate from a municipal waste landfill in Gyeongnam province. The results were as follows: Chemical coagulation experiments using aluminium sulfate, ferrous sulfate and ferric chloride resulted in leachate CO $D_{Cr}$ removal of 32%, 23% and 21 % with optimum reaction dose ranges of 10,000～15,000 mg/$\ell$, 1,000 mg/$\ell$ and 500～2,000 mg/$\ell$, respectively. Fenton's oxidation required the optimum conditions including pH 3.5, 6 hours of reaction time, and hydrogen peroxide and ferrous sulfate concentrations of 2,000 ～ 3,000 mg/$\ell$ each with 1:1 weight ratio to remove more than 50% of COD in the leachate containing CO $D_{Cr}$ between 2,000 ～ 3,000 mg/$\ell$. Air-stripping achieved to remove more than 97% of N $H_3$-N in the leachate in spite of requiring high cost of chemicals and extensive stripping time, and, however, zeolite treatment removing 94% of N $H_3$-N showed high selectivity to N $H^{+}$ ion and much faster removal rate than air-stripping. The result from lab-scale experiment using a complete-mixing activated sludge process showed that biological treatability tended to increase more or less as HRT increased or F/M ratio decreased, and, however, COD removal efficiency was very poor by showing only 36% at HRT of 29 days. While COD removal was achieved more during Fenton's oxidation as compared to alum treatment for the landfill leachate, the ratio of BOD/COD after Fenton's oxidation considerably increased, and the consecutive activated sludge process significantly reduced organic strength to remove 50% of CO $D_{Cr}$ and 95% of BO $D_{5}$ . The SBR process was generally more capable of removing organics and nitrogen in the leachate than complete-mixing activated sludge process to achieve 74% removal of influent CO $D_{Cr}$ , 98% of BO $D_{5}$ and especially 99% of N $H_3$-N. However, organic removal rates of the SBR processes pre-treated with air-stripping and with zeolite were not much different with those without pre-treatment, and the SBR process treated with powdered activated carbon showed a little higher rate of CO $D_{Cr}$ removal than the process without any treatment. In conclusion, the biological treatment process using SBR proved to be the most applicable for the treatment of organic contents and nitrogen simultaneously and effectively in the landfill leachate.e.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Fisheries and Ocean Technology
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.41-47
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• 1981

The characteristics of septic tank sludges were investigated and the kinetic coefficients in the aerobic biodegradation were evaluated from bach treatability tests. Using an unbiased statistical method, the estimated values, k (substrate removal rate coefficient) =0. 0175hr-1 at 17\ulcornerC, K. (Michaelis Menten constant) = 248mg/ e, a (cell yield coefficient)=0.625, and Kd (cell decay coefficient:' =0. 00192hr-1 were obtained based on biodegradable COD(mg/ \ulcorner) and volatile suspended solids(mg/\ulcorner). The relationship between COD and BOD, COD (mg/\ulcorner) =2. 1 BOD(mg/\ulcorner) +250, also was established for the septic tank sludges. Dilution was inevitable for the grit removal because of the high viscosity of the sludges. An aerobic activated sludge process rather than anaerobic processes was recommended for the removal of soluble organics after the removal of grit and suspended solids. A multi-stage activated sludge process was adapted for this highly concentrated and not easily-degradable waste. It was estimated that a four-stage activated sludge process would require 40 hours retention time compared to 92 hours for a single-stage process, 52 hours for a double-stage process, and 46 hours for a three stage process in order to achieve an effluent quality of 84mg/ e COD( 40mg/ e BOD) with about 4, OOOmg/ \ulcorner MLSS from an influent quality of I, 500mg/ t COD(714mg/.e BOD), while multi-stages beyond four stage would not save the required retention time significantly.