Energy recovery from food industry wastewater using microbial electrochemical cells and anaerobic membrane bioreactor

我们将开发用于处理食品工业排放的高浓度有机废水的创新生物技术，这将显著降低超标废水排放的附加费，并通过具有成本效益的管理和增值产品增加补充经济效益：厌氧膜生物反应器（AnMBR）的甲烷气体生产和微生物电化学电池（MEC）的过氧化氢产量。 厌氧膜生物反应器可以在不供氧的情况下有效地处理高有机废水，并回收甲烷气体，同时沿着生产清洁水。 一个中试规模的AnMBR将通过滑铁卢大学和通用电气水处理技术公司的合作，使用康内斯托加肉类包装厂排放的食品废水进行操作。 中试研究将评估食品废水的出水水质、甲烷回收率和膜污染。 将进行成本评估，包括甲烷回收、运营和维护成本、剩余污泥生产和附加费。 我们将在实验室规模的实验中评估，如果MEC可以解决溶解甲烷和适度的生化需氧量（BOD）渗透的AnMBR的限制。 实验室规模的MEC实验的成功使我们能够完成一个能量捕获厌氧废水处理技术相结合的AnMBR与MEC在食品工业中的高BOD废水。 采用创新的废水处理生物技术的食品工业将大大节省废水处理成本，并从水的再利用和增值产品中获得额外的好处，这将大大有助于加拿大食品工业的发展和自然保护。

We will develop innovative biotechnologies for treating high strength organic wastewater released from food industries, which will significantly reduce surcharge fees for over-strength wastewater effluent discharge and add supplemental economic benefits with cost-effective management and value-added products: methane gas production with anaerobic membrane bioreactors (AnMBRs) and hydrogen peroxide yield using microbial electrochemical cells (MECs). AnMBRs can effectively treat high organic wastewater without oxygen supply and recover methane gas, along with clean water production. A pilot-scale AnMBR will be operated with food wastewater released from Conestoga Meat Packers through collaborations of the University of Waterloo and GE Water and Process Technologies. The pilot study will evaluate effluent water qualities, methane recovery and membrane fouling for the food wastewater. Cost assessment will be conducted including methane recovery, operating and maintenance costs, excess sludge production and surcharge fees. We will evaluate in bench-scale experiments if MECs can resolve AnMBR limitations of dissolved methane and moderate biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) in permeates. The success of lab-scale MEC experiments enables us to complete an energy-capturing anaerobic wastewater treatment technology combining AnMBRs with MECs for high BOD wastewaters in food industries. Food industries employing the innovative wastewater treatment biotechnology will significantly save wastewater treatment costs, and derive additional benefits from water reuse and added-value products, which will considerably contribute to the growth of the food industry and natural protection in Canada.