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

我们将开发创新的生物技术来处理食品行业排放的高浓度有机废水，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经济效益：厌氧膜生物反应器(AnMBRs)生产甲烷气和微生物电化学池(MECs)生产过氧化氢。ANMBR可以在不供氧的情况下有效地处理高浓度有机废水，回收甲烷气，并生产清洁的水。通过滑铁卢大学和GE水处理技术公司的合作，将对康尼斯托加肉类包装机排放的食品废水进行中试规模的ANMBR操作。中试研究将评估食品废水的出水水质、甲烷回收和膜污染。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。我们将在小规模实验中评估MECs是否能够解决ANMBR中溶解甲烷和渗透液中适度的生化需氧量(BOD)的限制。实验室规模MEC试验的成功使我们能够完成ANMBR和MEC相结合的能量捕集厌氧废水处理技术，用于处理食品工业中的高BOD废水。采用创新废水处理生物技术的食品工业将大大节省废水处理成本，并从水再利用和附加值产品中获得更多好处，这将极大地促进加拿大食品工业和自然保护的发展。

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.