A Study on the Hydrolysis of Urea Contained in Wastewater and Continuous Recovery of Ammonia by an Enzymatic Membrane Reactor

Abstract

1. Background: Urea is the main product of the nitrogenous breakdown of protein metabolism in mammals. In this study, process intensification for enzymatic hydrolysis of urea by urease enzyme (jack bean urease) was examined in a membrane reactor. 2. Methods: Batch and continuous enzymatic hydrolysis reactions were performed at different substrate concentrations to determine the digestibility and affinity of the substrate with that of the enzyme. The hydrolysate samples were obtained by an optimized continuous enzyme membrane reactor (EMR) coupled with an ultra-filtration membrane (250 kDa). Feed concentration varied from 100 to 500 mg/L. Laboratory experiments were conducted at room temperature (20 ± 1 °C), with a flow rate of 20 mL/min, urease concentration of 0.067 g/L, ionic strength (I = 0, 0.01, 0.05), and ammonium nitrogen addition of (0, 100 mg/L, 200 mg/L, 500 mg/L). Moreover, the effect of ionic strength, ammonium nitrogen concentration, feed concentration, and enzyme concentration on urea hydrolysis was examined. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDAX) analysis were used to identify the physicochemical properties as well as the elemental composition of the Ultra-Filtration membrane used in this study. 3. Results: The study revealed that higher ionic strength and higher concentrations of NH4SO2 and ammonium nitrogen (NH3-N) inhibithydrolysis of urea by reducing the urease enzyme activity in the system over time. 4. Conclusions: Herein, a sustainable alternative for the conversion of urea to ammonia by utilizing urease in an EMR was demonstrated.

Fluorometric and Colorimetric Hybrid Carbon-Dot Nanosensors for Dual Monitoring of Urea

“…Additionally, urea has been used as a fertilizer in the agricultural sector . However, extensively using urea could threaten aquatic environments because of waste fertilizer discharge, which can hydrolyze into NH 3 and nitrogen oxide derivatives that are toxic to aquatic and human environments. , Additionally, urea has recently been used as a new energy carrier and as a source to produce environmentally friendly H 2 fuel to support clean energy research . From this variety of perspectives, rapid and reliable analytics should be developed for accurate quantification of urea in different real-world events.…”