Exploitation of Raman spectroscopy as an investigative tool for MBBR biofilm treatment systems

新的联邦废水排放法规限制从处理厂排放四种有害成分，最近已在加拿大各地实施。生物处理是最常用、最经济的废水处理手段。特别是，生物膜废水处理技术提供了一种具有成本效益和低足迹的技术，该技术已经证明了满足加拿大新的严格的联邦法规的强烈希望。生物膜由活细胞、基质和形成细胞直接环境的胞外聚合物（EPS）组成。我们建议应用拉曼光谱来研究生物膜的物理化学组成，并最终将其与废水处理的效率相关联。

New federal wastewater effluent regulations restricting the discharge of four deleterious constituents from treatment plants have been recently implemented across Canada. Biological treatment is the most common and economical means of wastewater treatment. In particular, biofilm wastewater treatment technologies offer a cost effective and low footprint technology that has demonstrated a strong promise of meeting the new stringent federal regulations in Canada. Biofilms consist of live cells, a substratum and extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) that form the immediate environment for the cells. We propose to apply Raman spectroscopy to investigate the physicochemical makeup of the biofilm, and ultimately relate it to the efficiency of the wastewater treatment.