Combined microbial and chemical contaminants in water during harmful algal blooms: Treatment challenges and advanced oxidation process development

气候变化和人类活动已经使包括加拿大在内的世界各地的淡水资源质量下降。在供水系统中，令人讨厌的藻类/蓝藻大量繁殖，杀虫剂和粪便污染物同时增加，构成了我们新的环境挑战的重要组成部分。阿特拉津杀虫剂的存在会增加水中的蓝藻和大肠杆菌。我最近的研究首次证明，蓝藻细胞进入处理厂，伴随着相关毒素和其他水生病原体的存在，包括粪便大肠菌群，会破坏整个处理过程，包括氧化过程，危及安全饮用水的生产。目前的研究和管理策略没有考虑到复合污染物的同时存在和相互作用。因此，我的短期5年目标（这个项目）是：(1)发现藻类、细菌、病毒和杀虫剂的混合物对水处理过程的影响，以便在全规模的工厂中去除这些污染物；(2)通过广泛使用的传统和先进工艺，确定微生物和化学污染物联合存在下不同生长阶段细胞和代谢物氧化的现象；(3)探索常压下的“冷”等离子体过程作为去除弹性细胞和折射化学物质的新型氧化源的应用。我的中期（测试新技术）和长期（由市政当局/监管机构实施）目标将建立在这个5年计划的成果之上，将研究扩展到更广泛的水质条件，并使用新的检测和处理工艺。我的第一个研究计划将在三个任务中执行，这些任务对应于我的短期5年目标，使用最先进的分析技术和实验室，试点和全面设置。本项目将培养博士4名，硕士2名，本科生5名（hqp11和18篇论文）。我的研究结果将为开发一种新型的原位多检测器系统奠定基础，用于快速定量同时存在的微生物/藻类。这项研究计划将提供急需的知识，以了解基本机制，从而确定影响氧化反应动力学的关键参数。这将有助于我们了解导致有毒化合物进入氧化水的潜在现象。等离子体在水净化中的应用是我研究的另一个重要的、高度创新的方面。这个项目是同类项目中的第一个，它为开发一种新的处理方案提供了知识，这种解决方案可以同时降解有弹性的微生物和化学污染物，防止水传播病原体和有毒化合物进入饮用水。

Climate change and human activities have degraded the quality of freshwater sources worldwide, including in Canada. Increased simultaneous presence of nuisance algal/cyanobacterial blooms, pesticides, and fecal contaminants in water supply systems constitute a substantial part of our new environmental challenges. Atrazine pesticide presence increases cyanobacteria and E. coli in water. My recent studies have demonstrated for the first time that breakthrough of cyanobacterial cells into treatment plants, along with the presence of associated toxins and other waterborne pathogens including fecal coliform bacteria, would derail the entire treatment including oxidation process and endanger production of safe potable water. Current research and management strategies do not take into consideration the simultaneous presence and interactions of the combined contaminants. Hence, my short-term 5-year objectives (this program) are to (1) discover impact of mixtures of algae, bacteria, viruses and pesticides on water treatment processes for removal of these contaminates in full-scale plants; (2) identify phenomena governing oxidation of cells and metabolites at different growth phases in presence of combined microbial and chemical contaminants with widely used conventional and advanced processes; and (3) explore application of “cold” plasma processes at atmospheric pressure as novel oxidation sources for removing resilient cells and refractive chemicals. My midterm (test the new tech) and long-term (implement them by municipalities/regulatory agencies) objectives will build on the outcome of this 5-year program to expand the research to broader water quality conditions and to use new detection and treatment processes. My first research program will be executed within three tasks corresponding to my short-term 5-year objectives using state-of-the-art analytical techniques and laboratories, pilot and full-scale set-up. Under this program 4 PhD, 2 MSc and 5 undergraduate students will be trained (HQP 11 and 18 papers). The outcome of my study will lay the foundation for the development of a novel in situ multi-detector system for rapid quantification of simultaneous microbial/algal presence. This research program will provide the knowledge that is urgently required to understand the fundamental mechanisms and thus identify the key parameters that impact oxidation reaction kinetics. This will help us understand the underlying phenomena that lead to breakthrough of toxic compounds into oxidized water. Application of plasma for water purification is another important, highly-innovative aspect of my research. This program is the first of its kind generating the knowledge to develop a new treatment solution that would simultaneously degrade resilient microbial and chemical contaminants preventing breakthrough of waterborne pathogens and toxic compounds into potable water.