Conceptual Flowchart of Bio-Regenerative Environmental Treatment for Health (BREATHe)I-air and water Subsystem - July 2003

1 page Provider Notes:Subsystem bioreactor 1 operation interpretation by Sybil Sharvelle Related Documents: Potentially related to: WS109, WS28, WS24

Conceptual Flowchart of Bio-Regenerative Environmental Treatment for Health (BREATHe)II-air Subsystem - July 2003

1 page Provider Notes: Subsystem bioreactor 2 operation interpretation by Sybil Sharvelle Related Documents: WS109, WS25, WS24b, WS2

Simultaneous treatment of graywater and waste gas in a biotrickling filter

A set of bench scale biotrickling filters were designed and operated for simultaneous treatment of graywater and waste containing elevated levels of ammonia (NH3) and hydrogen sulfide (H2S). Preliminary experiments were conducted to optimize graywater processing in the reactors. While surfactants have been considered to be readily biodegradable, removal of carbon from graywater was not as high as expected during preliminary experiments when no waste gas was supplied to the system. Removal efficiency was not improved after several modifications to reactor design and it was hypothesized that complete removal of surfactants and their relevant biodegradation metabolites was a challenge. Therefore, surfactant biodegradation was studied in detail. Experimental work showed that while all three surfactants exhibited rapid primary biodegradation, biodegradation of by secondary byproducts was very slow. In the case of the amphoteric surfactant, disodium cocoamphodiacetate, biodegradation byproducts seemed to be recalcitrant. A mathematical model was developed to describe the biotrickling filter processes and this model was used to conduct a sensitivity analysis so that governing processes within the biotrickling filter could be determined. Important design parameters were elucidated as well as parameters inherent to the system, or intrinsic parameters. Results showed that an increase in wetted area within the biotrickling filter could significantly improve process performance. Therefore, a set of tracer test experiments was conducted to examine the effects of packing material and hydraulic loading rate on hydrodynamics in the bench scale biotrickling filters. Of the packing materials tested, the use of Rings in the biotrickling filters resulted in improved hydrodynamics. Proof of Concept was established for simultaneous treatment of graywater and waste gas in the studied biotrickling filters. Complete removal of NH3 gas loaded at 150 mg/min and H 2S loaded at 0.83 mg/min was achieved while removal of carbonaceous compounds from graywater remained stable

Parameter Forms for Subsystems: Bio-Regenerative Environmental Treatment for Health (BREATHe)I-air and water and Bio-Regenerative Environmental Treatment for Health (BREATHe)II-air

3 pages Provider Notes:Subsystem parameters and diagrams gathered from meeting with Sybil Sharvelle Related Documents:WS25, WS2

Bio-Regenerative Environmental Treatment for Health (BREATHe)I-air and water and Bio-Regenerative Environmental Treatment for Health (BREATHe)II-air Summaries

3 pages Provider Notes:06/25/03 Data from interview at NSCORT workshop. 09/23/05 Meeting with Sybil S. and Eric M. about Breathe 1 (toured facility and discussed with ESM and other files). 11/29/05 Meeting about transient state and reliability data collection project (Attendees: Connie, Sybil, Eric, Jim, Al). Reliability: Breathe 1 will continue current experiments for Sybil\u27s PhD. Eric will begin talking with Luis about experimental design. Transient State: Discussed briefly. Zee needs to provide specific data requirements. 04/14/06 Met with Eric McLamore about using Sybil\u27s biofilter model in Jun Cai\u27s control work. Model is not available. 07/26/2006: Eric completed survey Related Documents:WSR24a, WSR24

Urban water demand characterization in Sao Paulo, Brazil, using IUWM

Includes bibliographical references.Urban sprawl over the past decades have put water resources under pressure in urban areas due to constantly increasing demand and impaired quality. Particularly in developing countries, investments in this sector are still scarce. The application of the Integrated Urban Water Model - IUWM - for the characterization of current and future urban water demand in the municipality of Sao Paulo, Brazil, is pioneering in applying the model outside of the United States. The model also evaluates water conservation scenarios, cost saving options and can be of use for water utilities and urban planners

Bio-Regenerative Environmental Treatment for Health (BREATHe)I-air and water: Progress to Date and Future Plan

11 slides Provider Notes:Submitted by Sybil Sharvell

Biodegradation of Polyalcohol Ethoxylate by a Wastewater Microbial Consortium

Polyalcohol ethoxylate (PAE), an anionic surfactant, is the primary component in most laundry and dish wash detergents and is therefore highly loaded in domestic wastewater. Its biodegradation results in the formation of several metabolites and the fate of these metabolites through wastewater treatment plants, graywater recycling processes, and in the environment must be clearly understood. Biodegradation pathways for PAE were investigated in this project with a municipal wastewater microbial consortium. A microtiter-based oxygen sensor system was utilized to determine the preferential use of potential biodegradation products. Results show that while polyethylene glycols (PEGs) were readily degraded by PAE acclimated microorganisms, most of the carboxylic acids tested were not degraded. Biodegradation of PEGs suggests that hydrophobe-hydrophile scission was the dominant pathway for PAE biodegradation in this wastewater community. Ethylene glycol (EG) and diethylene glycol (DEG) were not utilized by microbial populations capable of degrading higher molecular weight EGs. It is possible that EG and DEG may accumulate. The microtiter-based oxygen sensor system was successfully utilized to elucidate information on PAE biodegradation pathways and could be applied to study biodegradation pathways for other important contaminants. Description:7 page

Evaluation of Biodegradability and Biodegradation Kinetics for Anionic, Nonionic, and Amphoteric Surfactants

The biodegradation kinetics of anionic (sodium laureth sulfate – SLES), amphoteric (disodium cocoamphodiacetate – DSCADA), and nonionic surfactants (polyalcohol ethoxylate – PAE) were assessed in this laboratory study. Similar degradation behavior was observed for all surfactants with only a fraction of the parent compound readily biodegradable. Biodegradation, as estimated by COD removal, was initially (i.e., within 24 h) rapid, however only 40–70% of the surfactant molecules were readily biodegradable. Intrinsic kinetic parameters were successfully quantified for the readily biodegradable component of the surfactant. Inhibition was not observed and microbial kinetics of SLES, DSCADA, and PAE degradation fit the Monod model well. Average μ-S curves were generated for each surfactant. Based on these results, complete degradation of the target surfactants using biological waste treatment would be limited. Description:10 page

Surfactant Biodegradation for Application to Advanced Life Support Water Recycling Systems

Complete reuse of graywater will be essential during long-duration human space missions. The highest loaded and most important component to remove from graywater is surfactant, the active ingredient in soaps and detergents. When considering a biological treatment system for processing of graywater, surfactant biodegradability becomes a very important consideration. Surfactants should be chosen that are degraded at a fast rate and yield inconsequential degradation byproducts. Experiments conducted for this research examined the biodegradation of the surfactants in Pert Plus for Kids, disodium cocoamphodiacetate (DSCADA) and sodium laureth-3 sulfate (SLES), using respirometry. Rates of CO\d2 production, or ultimate degradation, are reported. DSCADA was found to be toxic to bacteria when present at 270 ppm whereas no toxicity was observed during experiments with SLES. Several surfactants were identified that may be encountered in a biological graywater treatment system including SLES, DSCADA, sodium alkyl benzene sulphonate, and alcohol ethoxylates. Biodegradation pathways for these surfactants are discussed and potential degradation byproducts are identified. Future experiments will focus on determination of Monod growth kinetics for the above-listed surfactants as well as examination of the potential persistence of their metabolites within a water reuse system. Description:6 page