Granular activated carbon for aerobic sludge granulation in a bioreactor with a low-strength wastewater influent

Aerobic sludge granulation is rather difficult or impossible for the treatment of low-strength wastewater. In this study, a novel technique involving granular activated carbon (GAC) was developed for rapid aerobic granulation under a low organic loading condition. Laboratory experiments were conducted with two sequencing batch reactors (SBRs) running side by side. One reactor had fine GAC added to the sludge mixture, and the other had no GAC added. A low-strength organic wastewater with a chemical oxygen demand (COD) concentration of only 200 mg/L was used as the influent to the SBRs. The morphology, physical properties, and bacterial community structure of the sludge in the two reactors were characterized and compared throughout the experiments. The results showed that granules could not be formed in the SBR without added GAC. However, complete granulation was achieved in the SBR with GAC addition. Selective discharge of slow settling sludge was also essential to the granulation process. Adding GAC to the seed sludge mixture, together with the selective discharge of small and loose sludge flocs, facilitated the retention and growth of bacterial cells on GAC in attached-growth mode, leading to complete granulation. In addition, the use of GAC produced aerobic granules with strong cores to help maintain the long-term stability of mature granules. With granulation, the solid-liquid separation property of the sludge was greatly improved. Once granules were formed, the granules were quite stable and GAC addition was no longer needed. Therefore, adding GAC is a simple and effective strategy to initiate granule formation for complete sludge granulation in bioreactors treating low-strength organic wastewater. © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.postprin

Effect of the food-to-microorganism (F/M) ratio on the formation and size of aerobic sludge granules

Laboratory experiments were carried out to investigate the effect of the sludge loading, or the food-to-microorganism (F/M) ratio, on the rate of aerobic granulation and the size of the granules in biological wastewater treatment. Four column batch reactors were used with a similar sludge suspended solids (SS) concentration of around 2000 mg/L. The reactors were fed with a glucose-based wastewater at different chemical oxygen demand (COD) concentrations, resulting in F/M ratios from 0.3 to 1.1 g COD/g SS-d. A higher F/M ratio appeared to promote faster formation of larger granules and a lower F/M ratio led to slower formation of smaller granules. Upon complete granulation, the granules became rather stable in size, and the mean diameter of the granules in different reactors increased from 1.2 to 4.5 mm linearly with the F/M ratio applied. Molecular analysis of the sludge did not show the domination of any particular bacterial species during the granulation process. It is apparent that applying different F/M ratios in different granulation stages, e.g., a higher F/M in the early stage and a reduced F/M in the later stage, can be an effective start-up strategy to facilitate rapid granule formation and sustain small and healthy granules in bioreactors. © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.postprin

On the Correlations between Flavour Observables in Minimal U(2)^3 Models

The stringent correlations between flavour observables in models with CMFV are consistent with the present data except for the correlation Delta M_{s,d}-epsilon_K. Motivated by the recent work of Barbieri et al, we compare the CMFV correlations with the ones present in a special class of models with an approximate global U(2)^3 flavour symmetry, constrained by a minimal set of spurions governing the breakdown of this symmetry and the assumption that only SM operators are relevant in flavour physics. This analog of CMFV to be called MU(2)^3 allows to avoid the Delta M_{s,d}-epsilon_K tension in question because of reduced flavour symmetry and implied non-MFV contributions to Delta M_{s,d}. While the patterns of flavour violation in K meson system is the same as in CMFV models, the CP-violation in B_{s,d} meson systems can deviate from the one in the SM and CMFV models. We point out a stringent triple S_{psi K_S}-S_{psi phi}-|V_ub| correlation in this class of models that could in the future provide a transparent distinction between different MU(2)^3 models and in the context of these models determine |V_ub| by means of precise measurements of S_{psi K_S} and S_{psi phi} with only small hadronic uncertainties. For fixed S_{psi K_S} the correlation between B(B^+ -> tau^+nu_tau) and S_{psi phi} follows. We also find that MU(2)^3 models could in principle accommodate a negative value of S_{psi phi}, provided |V_ub| is found to be in the ballpark of exclusive determinations and the particular MU(2)^3 model provides a 25% enhancement of epsilon_K. A supersymmetric U(2)^3 model worked out in the Barbieri-School appears to satisfy these requirements. However if B(B^+ -> tau^+nu_tau)>1.0 10^{-4} will be confirmed by future experiments only positive S_{psi phi} is allowed in this framework. We summarize briefly the pattern of flavour violation in rare K and B_{s,d} decays in MU(2)^3 models.Comment: 28 pages, 6 figures; v2: Few references and discussion on CP violation in B_s-> mu^+ mu^- added; v3: Several clarifying comments added, conclusions unchanged, version accepted for publication in JHE

Privacy-Preserving Trust Management Mechanisms from Private Matching Schemes

Cryptographic primitives are essential for constructing privacy-preserving communication mechanisms. There are situations in which two parties that do not know each other need to exchange sensitive information on the Internet. Trust management mechanisms make use of digital credentials and certificates in order to establish trust among these strangers. We address the problem of choosing which credentials are exchanged. During this process, each party should learn no information about the preferences of the other party other than strictly required for trust establishment. We present a method to reach an agreement on the credentials to be exchanged that preserves the privacy of the parties. Our method is based on secure two-party computation protocols for set intersection. Namely, it is constructed from private matching schemes.Comment: The material in this paper will be presented in part at the 8th DPM International Workshop on Data Privacy Management (DPM 2013

Source origins, modeled profiles, and apportionments of halogenated hydrocarbons in the greater Pearl River Delta region, southern China

We analyze 16-month data of 13 major halocarbons measured at a southern China coastal site in the greater Pearl River Delta (PRD). A total of 188 canister air samples were collected from August 2001 to December 2002. Overall inspection indicated that CH2Cl2, C2Cl 4, and C2HCl3 had similar temporal variations while CFC-11, CFC-12, and CFC-113 showed the same emission patterns during the sampling period. Diurnal variations of halocarbons presented different patterns during ozone episode days, mainly related to emission strength, atmospheric dispersion, and photochemical lifetimes. For further statistics and source appointment, Lagrangian backward particle release simulations were conducted to help understand the potential source regions of all samples and classify them into different categories, including local Hong Kong, inner PRD, continental China, and marine air masses. With the exception of HCFC-142b, the mixing ratios of all halocarbons in marine air were significantly lower than those in urban and regional air (p < 0.01), whereas no significant difference was found between urban Hong Kong and inner PRD regional air, reflecting the dominant impact of the greater PRD regional air on the halocarbon levels. The halocarbon levels in this region were significantly influenced by anthropogenic sources, causing the halocarbon mixing ratios in South China Sea air to be higher than the corresponding background levels, as measured by global surface networks and by airborne missions such as Transport and Chemical Evolution Over the Pacific. Interspecies correlation analysis suggests that CHCl3 is mainly used as a solvent in Hong Kong but mostly as a feedstock for HCFC-22 in the inner PRD. Furthermore, CH3Cl is often used as a refrigerant and emitted from biomass/biofuel burning in the inner PRD. A positive matrix factorization receptor model was applied to the classified halocarbon samples in the greater PRD for source profiles and apportionments. Seven major sources were identified and quantified. Emissions from solvent use were the most significant source of halocarbons (71 ± 9%), while refrigeration was the second largest contributor (18 ± 2%). By further looking at samples from the inner PRD and from urban Hong Kong separately, we found that more solvent was used in the dry cleaning industry in Hong Kong, whereas the contribution of cleaning solvent in the electronic industry was higher in the inner PRD. Besides the two common sources of solvent use and refrigeration, the contributions of biomass/biofuel burning and feedstock in chemical manufacturing was remarkable in the inner PRD but negligible in Hong Kong. These findings are of help to effectively control and phase out the emissions of halocarbons in the greater PRD region of southern China Copyright 2009 by the American Geophysical Union

Fate of aerobic bacterial granules with fungal contamination under different organic loading conditions

Aerobic sludge granulation is an attractive new technology for biological wastewater treatment. However, the instability of aerobic granules caused by fungal growth is still one of the main problems encountered in granular bioreactors. In this study, laboratory experiments were conducted to investigate the fate and transformation of aerobic granules under different organic loading conditions. Bacterial granules (2-3 mm) in a poor condition with fungi-like black filamentous growth were seeded into two 1 L batch reactors. After more than 100 d of cultivation, the small seed granules in the two reactors had grown into two different types of large granules (>20 mm) with different and unique morphological features. In reactor R1 with a high organic loading rate of 2.0 g COD L-1 d-1, the black filaments mostly disappeared from the granules, and the dominance of rod-shaped bacteria was recovered. In contrast, at a low loading of 0.5 g COD L-1 d-1 in reactor R2, the filaments eventually became dominant in the black fungal granules. The bacteria in R1 granules had a unique web-like structure with large pores of a few hundred μm in size, which would allow for effective substrate and oxygen transport into the interior of the granules. DNA-based molecular analysis indicated the evolution of the bacterial population in R1 and that of the eukaryal community in R2. The experimental results suggest that a high loading rate can be an effective means of helping to control fungal bloom, recover bacterial domination and restore the stability of aerobic granules that suffer from fungal contamination. © 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.postprin