Effect of salinity on enzymatic activities in a submerged fixed bed biofilm reactor for municipal sewage treatment

• Published in: Bioresource technology 2012-10, Vol.121, p.312-319
• Main Authors: Cortés-Lorenzo, C., Rodríguez-Díaz, M., López-Lopez, C., Sánchez-Peinado, M., Rodelas, B., González-López, J.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: acid phosphatase; Acid Phosphatase - metabolism; alkaline phosphatase; Alkaline Phosphatase - metabolism; Bacteria - enzymology; biofilm; Biofilms - drug effects; Bioreactors; biotransformation; Biotransformation - drug effects; Cities; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Enzymatic activities; enzyme activity; Esterases - metabolism; Glucosidase; Glucosidases - metabolism; Influents; microorganisms; Models, Biological; Monte Carlo Method; Monte Carlo methods; NaCl; organic matter; Peptide Hydrolases - metabolism; Redundancy; Saline wastewater; Salinity; Salt effect; Sampling; sewage treatment; sodium chloride; Sodium Chloride - pharmacology; Submerged; Submerged fixed bed bioreactor; Waste Disposal, Fluid - methods; Wastewater treatment; Water Purification - methods
• ISSN: 0960-8524; 1873-2976
• DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2012.06.083

[Display omitted] ► Hydrolytic enzymes are the first step in the removal of wastewater organic matter. ► Changes in enzyme activities in a SFBBR exposed to saline wastewater were examined. ► High salinity of wastewater significantly reduced hydrolytic rates of the biofilms. The effect of salinity on the hydrolytic enzymatic activities (acid phosphatase, alkaline phosphatase, glucosidase, protease and esterase) released by the microorganisms in a submerged fixed bed bioreactor for real urban wastewater treatment was investigated. The influence of salt (NaCl) on the enzymatic activities was evaluated in four different experiments with concentrations of NaCl of 0, 3.7, 24.1 and 44.1g/L, remaining constant all other operating parameters of the bioreactor. The results show that enzymatic activities were reduced when the salinity was increased in the influent and consequently the biotransformation of organic matter in the submerged fixed bed bioreactor significantly decreased. A redundancy analysis was performed to evaluate the relationships between enzymatic activities and physic-chemical parameters analyzed in the influent. According to the results obtained with the Monte Carlo permutation test, salinity and sampling day significantly contributed to explain the variation of enzymatic activities, showing a negative correlation.