• Membrane and Water Treatment
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• v.6 no.4
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• pp.263-276
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• 2015

This paper deals with the influence of chemical oxygen demand to nitrogen ratio ((COD/N) ratio) on the performance of an membrane bioreactor. We aim at establishing relations between COD/N ratio, organisms' distribution and sludge properties (specific resistance to filtration (SRF) and membrane fouling). It is also essential to define new criteria to characterize the autotrophic microorganisms, as the measurements of apparent removal rates of ammonium seem irrelevant to characterize their specific activity. Two experiments (A and B) have been carried on a 30 L lab scale membrane bioreactor with low COD/N ratio (2.3 and 1.5). The obtained results clearly indicate the role of the COD/N ratio on the biomass distribution and performance of the membrane bioreactor. New specific criteria for characterising the autotrophic microorganisms activity, is also defined as the ratio of maximum ammonium rate to the specific oxygen uptake rate in the endogenous state for autotrophic bacteria which seem to be constant whatever the operating conditions are. They are about 24.5 to 23.8 $gN-NH_4{^+}/gO_2$, for run A and B, respectively. Moreover, the filterability of the biological suspension appear significantly lower, specific resistance to filtration and membrane fouling rate are less than $10^{14}m^{-2}$ and $0.07\;10^{12}m^{-1}.d^{-1}$ respectively, than in conventional MBR confirming the adv < antage of the membrane bioreactor functioning under low COD/N ratio.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.22 no.8
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• pp.1155-1160
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• 2012

Sulfur-utilizing autotrophic denitrification relies on an inorganic carbon source to reduce the nitrate by producing sulfuric acid as an end product and can be used for the treatment of wastewaters containing high levels of nitrates. In this study, sulfur-denitrifying bacteria were used in anoxic batch tests with sulfur as the electron donor and nitrate as the electron acceptor. Various medium components were tested under different conditions. Sulfur denitrification can drop the medium pH by producing acid, thus stopping the process half way. To control this mechanism, a 2:1 ratio of sulfur to oyster shell powder was used. Oyster shell powder addition to a sulfur-denitrifying reactor completely removed the nitrate. Using 50, 100, and 200 g of sulfur particles, reaction rate constants of 5.33, 6.29, and $7.96mg^{1/2}/l^{1/2}{\cdot}h$ were obtained, respectively; and using 200 g of sulfur particles showed the highest nitrate removal rates. For different sulfur particle sizes ranging from small (0.85-2.0 mm), medium (2.0-4.0 mm), and large (4.0-4.75 mm), reaction rate constants of 31.56, 10.88, and $6.23mg^{1/2}/l^{1/2}{\cdot}h$ were calculated. The fastest nitrate removal rate was observed for the smallest particle size. Addition of chemical oxygen demand (COD), methanol as the external carbon source, with the autotrophic denitrification in sufficiently alkaline conditions, created a balance between heterotrophic denitrification (which raises the pH) and sulfur-utilizing autotrophic denitrification, which lowers the pH.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.91-97
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• 2002

Removal of malodorous gases from swine manure by a polyurethane biofilter inoculated with heterotrophic and autotrophic bacteria was investigated. Ammonia, hydrogen sulfide and other gases could be efficiently treated at 3~3.6 second of empty bed retention time by the polyurethane biofilter. In the range of SV $200~l,200h^{-1}$ , the average removal efficiency of odor was about 89% when the odor unit of inlet gas was below 4100. Odor elimination capacity of the polyurethane biofilter was$ 1.8$\times$10^{5}$ $~5.0$\times$10^{7}$OUㆍm$^{-3}$ㆍ$h^{-1}$ that were 84~90% of the inlet load. The critical loads of $NH_3$ and $H_2$S, which mean 97% removal with respect to the inlet loads, were 31 and $27 g.m^{-3}$ ㆍ$h^{-1}$ , respectively. The maximum elimination capacities of $NH_3$ and $H_2$S were 56 and $157 gㆍm^{-3}$ ㆍh$^{-1}$ , respectively. Although the removability for$ NH_3$ and $H_2$S was not influenced by $H_2$S$NH_3$ ratio (ppmv/ppmv), the $H_2$S removability was inhibited by high $H_2$S concentration more than 80 ppmv.

• Journal of Korean Society of Water and Wastewater
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.259-265
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• 2008

Generally speaking, there are two widely used methods of Nitrogen removal from waste water: 1) nitrification using autotrophic microorganisms, and 2) denitrification using heterotrophic microorganisms. The C/N ratio is an important factor of the denitrification process. In this case, if methanol is added to increase the lacking organic matter, a high economic cost is incurred and methanol is left in the processed water. In an effort to fix these issues, autotrophic denitrification through the use of Hydrogen, Iron and Sulfur is being studied, and among those Sulfur is cheaper and carries out denitrification effectively, and therefore is being studied the most. In this study, after cultivating T. denitrificans, the presence of T. denitrificans was determined and the effectiveness of denitirification via T. denitrificans was studied. In order to find out about the inhibition of T. denitrificans from the loading of organic matter, this shows that the greater the loading of organic matter, the more the denitrification ability of T. denitrificans is hindered. In order to research the hindrance of T. denitrificans resulting from the loading of $NO_3{^-}-N$, these results show that concentrations less than 100mg/L per 100mL of gel volume do not hinder T. denitrificans. In order to research the optimization of denitrification resulting from T. denitrificans, three 500mL samples of Sulfur granules were prepared: 1) one with only T. denitrificans attached (Mode I), 2) one with both T. denitrificans and active sludge attached (Mode II), and 3) one with only active sludge attached (Mode III). The results showed that autotrophic denitrification using S from Mode I was the most active.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.362-372
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• 2011

The relationships among total epiphytes, algal epiphytes and eelgrass ($Zostera$ $marina$ L.) were studied at eelgrass medows from July, 1998 to July, 1999 in Yulim-ri, Yeosu, Korea. Epiphytic diatoms on eelgrass leaves were observed from July to December 1998. From the results of this study, we inferred the following three (3) conclusions : 1) As eelgrass grew older, biomass of epiphytes increased, according to relationships between the leaf length and area of eelgrass and biomass (DW, AFDW and Chl. $a$) of epiphytes. 2) According to the ratio of dry weight, ash-free dry weight and Chlorophyll of epiphytes, the algae with calcareous or siliceous skeletons, such as coralline algae or diatoms, were dominated in the epitphytic algae community. 3) The autotrophic index (AI) calculated from AFDW and Chl. $a$ of epiphytes varied from 151 to 375. However, the period of autotrophic community was shorter than heterotrophic community and the value of AI was high. From these results, we inferred that heterotrophic community, including detritus or microorganisms were dominated in the most of research period.

• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.231-236
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• 2011

Biological nitrogen removal, using a continuous flow packed-bed reactor (CPBR) in a consecutive nitrification and denitrification process, was evaluated. An apparent decline in the nitrification efficiency coincided with the steady increase in $NH_4{^+}$-N load. Sustained nitrification efficiency was found to be higher at longer empty bed contact times (EBCTs). The relationship between the rate of alkalinity consumption and $NH_4{^+}$-N utilization ratio followed zero-order reaction kinetics. The heterotrophic denitrification rate at a carbon-tonitrogen (C/N) ratio of >4 was found to be >74%. This rate was higher by a factor of 8.5 or 8.9 for $NO_3{^-}$-N/volatile solids (VS)/day or $NO_3{^-}-N/m^3$ ceramic media/day, respectively, relative to the rates measured at a C/N ratio of 1.1. Autotrophic denitrification efficiencies were 80-90%. It corresponds to an average denitrification rate of 0.96 kg $NO_3{^-}-N/m^3$ ceramic media/day and a relevant average denitrification rate of 0.28 g $NO_3{^-}$-N/g VS/day, were also obtained. Results presented here also constitute the usability of an innovative porous sulfur ceramic media. This enhanced the dissolution rate of elemental sulfur via a higher contact surface area.

• The Sea:JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN SOCIETY OF OCEANOGRAPHY
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.78-86
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• 2002

Abundance, carbon biomass and chlorophyll a concentration of each size-fractionated plankton on the basis of trophical level were investigated in terms of spacial and temporal distribution, and interactions between each biological parameter and environmental factors in Jungmun coastal waters of Jeju Island from July 1999 to June 2000. Heterotrophic picoplankton (HPP) abundance averaged 1.4${\times}$$10^{6}$ cells ${\cdot}$ $ml^{-1}$ at of offshore and 8.3${\times}$$10^{5}$ cells ${\cdot}$ $ml^{-1}$ at inshore, while autotrophic picoplankton (APP) abundance 9.9${\times}$$10^{4}$ cells ${\cdot}$ $ml^{-1}$ at of offshore and 7.1${\times}$$10^{4}$ cells ${\cdot}$ $ml^{-1}$ at inshore. They were more abundant at of offshore than at inshore, and also more abundant than the other areas of Korean waters. On the other hand, heterotrophic and autotrophic nanoplankton (HNP, ANP) were more abundant at inshore than at of offshore. Microplankton (AMP) abundance was affected by diatom (r=0.962, P${\le}$0.001) at inshore and by dinoflagellate (r=0.868, P${\le}$0.001) at of offshore. However correlations between each plankton group in terms of size and trophic level were not significant. Carbon biomass showed as same as the distribution pattern of abundance, but composition percentage of each biomass of plankton group were quite different from that of abundance, representing the highest percentage in ANP. Seasonal fluctuation of chlorophyll a were different according to size class, showing the highest with 0.42 ${\mu}g$CHl-${\alpha}$${\cdot}$$1^{-1}$(57.9%) of APP in March 2000, 1.42 ${\mu}g$CHl-${\alpha}$${\cdot}$$1^{-1}$(74.7%) of ANP in May 2000, and 1.51 ${\mu}g$CHl-${\alpha}$${\cdot}$$1^{-1}$(81.8%) of AMP in July 1999. Correlation between biological parameters and environmental factors by principle component analysis revealed that the first factor as main explanation is the increasing of phosphorus and silica and the increasing of the at both of offshore and inshore. The N:P ratio were 36.4 at inshore and 32.6 at of offshore, showing the lack of phosphorus. Thus we suggest that phosphorus might be a main limiting factor to affect phytoplankton community in the study area.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.29 no.9
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• pp.1035-1043
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• 2007

A leachate containing an elevated concentration of organic and inorganic compounds has the potential to contaminate adjacent soils and groundwater as well as downgradient areas of the watershed. Moreover high-strength ammonium concentrations in leachate can be toxic to aquatic ecological systems as well as consuming dissolved oxygen, due to ammonium oxidation, and thereby causing eutrophication of the watershed. In response to these concerns landfill stabilization and leachate treatment are required to reduce contaminant loading sand minimize effects on the environment. Compared with other treatment technologies, leachate recirculation technology is most effective for the pre-treatment of leachate and the acceleration of waste stabilization processes in a landfill. However, leachate recirculation that accelerates the decomposition of readily degradable organic matter might also be generating high-strength ammonium in the leachate. Since most landfill leachate having high concentrations of nitrogen also contain insufficient quantities of the organic carbon required for complete denitrification, we combined a shortcut biological nitrogen removal (SBNR) technology in order to solve the problem associated with the inability to denitrify the oxidized ammonium due to the lack of carbon sources. The accumulation of nitrite was successfully achieved at a 0.8 ratio of $NO_2^{-}-N/NO_x-N$ in an on-site reactor of the sequencing batch reactor (SBR) type that had operated for six hours in an aeration phase. The $NO_x$-N ratio in leachate produced following SBR treatment was reduced in the landfill and the denitrification mechanism is implied sulfur-based autotrophic denitrification and/or heterotrophic denitrification. The combined leachate recirculation with SBNR proved an effective technology for landfill stabilization and nitrogen removal in leachate.

• Journal of Bio-Environment Control
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.51-55
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• 2004

The most commonly used inorganic nutrient compositions such as Murashige & Skoog medium have been optimized for heterotrophic growth. Therefore, they may not be optimal for photomixotrophic and photoautotrophic growth of plantlets. In photomixotrophic micropropagation, emdium sugar level is often lowered, while light and $CO_2$ levels in vessel are raised, and chlorophyllous explants are used to facilitate photosynthetic carbon acquisition. In a factorial experiment effect of addition (+) and omission(_) of organic materials (OM, 0.5 g ${\cdot}$ $m^{-3}$ each of thiamine, nicotinic acid and pyridoxine and 100 ${\cdot}$ $m^{-3}$ myo-inositiol) combined with three sucrose levels (0, 15, and 30 kg ${\cdot}$ $m^{-3}$) was tested on the growth of potato plantlets. Each of nodal cuttings with a leaf was cultured on 0.1${\times}$$10^{-4}m^{-3}$) MS agar ( 8 kg ${\cdot}$ $m^{-3}$) medium (pH 5.80 before autoclave) in glass test tubes (100 mm${\times}$25mm) capped with a sheet of transparent film with a 6 mm diameter gas permeable filter (5.1 air exchanges ${\cdot}$$h^{-1}$). Cultures were maintained in a room for 27 days at $23^{\circ}C$, 50% RH, 350-450${\mu}mol\;{\codt}\;mol^{-1}CO_2$, 16 h ${\cdot}$ $d^{-1}$ photoperiod at 13${\mu}mol\;{\codt}\;m\;{\codt}\;s^{-1}$ PPFD provided by white cool fluorescent lamps. Growth of potato plantlet in the +OM and -OM treatments were similar, while medium pH was 0.2 scale lower in the latter. Dry weight, % dry matter, and stem diameter enhanced, while shoot to root dry weight ratio, leaf area, chlorophyll concentration per gram dry weight, and medium pH decreased with increasing initial sucrose level. Interaction between OM and sucrose levels was observed in shoot length and medium pH. Results indicate that OM can be omitted from the medium without detrimental effect while addition of sucrose was beneficial for the photomixotrophic growth of potato plantlets under raised light and $CO_2$.