Multicriteria assessment of advanced treatment technologies for micropollutants removal at large-scale applications

Abstract

With the introduction and discharge of thousands of new micropollutants (MPs) every year, traditional water and wastewater treatment plants may be incapable of tackling them all. With their low concentrations and diversity in nature, MP removal encounters numerous challenges. Although some MPs are effectively eliminated via conventional treatment methods, most of them can easily escape and are retained in the discharged effluent. Therefore, advanced methods such as (i) adsorption, (ii) oxidation and advanced oxidation processes (O3 and O3-based advanced oxidation processes, UV/H2O2), (iii) membrane processes, and (iv) membrane bioreactors, become an inevitable approach. Despite the unsurprisingly vast number of papers on MP treatment available at present, most of these studies were carried out at a laboratory scale while only a few pilot- and full-scale studies have experimented. Nevertheless, an in-depth assessment of real-world MP treatment methods is extremely crucial for practitioners. To date, no paper has been dedicated to look at this issue. Therefore, this paper aims to review these large-scale treatment methods. First, the paper goes through the regulations and standards which deal with MPs in water courses. It will then assess these methods in various case-studies with reference to different criteria towards serving as a reference for further practical applications.

Distribution and Removal of Pharmaceuticals in Liquid and Solid Phases in the Unit Processes of Sewage Treatment Plants

“…For example, the average footprint of an MBR (0.9 m 2 •m −3 •d) is smaller than those of conventional activated sludge processes (1.2-1.6 m 2 •m −3 •d) [70]. Activated carbon adsorption is a preferred method for micropollutants removal in pioneering European countries owing to its acceptable removal performance, technical feasibility, and cost-effectiveness [71]. In particular, Switzerland has enacted and implemented laws to implement advanced treatment technologies, such as PAC or ozone processes, in 100 out of 700 STPs (equivalent to approximately 50% of the total sewage treatment capacity of the nation) in order to prevent trace contaminants from being discharged to aquatic ecosystems [72].…”

Removal of Pharmaceuticals, Toxicity and Natural Fluorescence by Ozonation in Biologically Pre-Treated Municipal Wastewater, in Comparison to Subsequent Polishing Biofilm Reactors

“…Currently, powder-activated carbon, biofiltration and advanced oxidation processes (e.g., electrochemical, ozonation) have been used as tertiary methods to upgrade treatment processes in conventional WWTPs [15][16][17][18]. Among these processes, ozonation appears to be a suitable technology to remove pharmaceuticals sufficiently and at reasonably low operational cost [18,19]. Besides the undeniable benefits of ozone on water quality, higher toxicity in the related by-products than the original compounds can be observed during the reaction process.…”

Immobilization of Laccase in Alginate Beads

“…The partial elimination of these substances is driven by physical adsorption by the sludge [6] and cometabolism during microbial growth [7]. Therefore, the development of advanced technologies to improve the efficiency of removal and mitigate ecological effects is needed [8].…”