Exploring the Limits of Polyhydroxyalkanoate Production by Municipal Activated Sludge

Municipal activated sludge can be used for polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) production, when supplied with volatile fatty acids. In this work, standardized PHA accumulation assays were performed with different activated sludge to determine (1) the maximum biomass PHA content, (2) the degree of enrichment...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Environmental science & technology 2022-08, Vol.56 (16), p.11729-11738
Main Authors: Pei, Ruizhe, Estévez-Alonso, Ángel, Ortiz-Seco, Laura, van Loosdrecht, Mark C. M., Kleerebezem, Robbert, Werker, Alan
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Accumulation
Activated sludge
Bacteria
Biomass
Bioreactors - microbiology
Enrichment
Fatty acids
Fatty Acids, Volatile
Municipal wastes
Optimization
Polyhydroxyalkanoates
Polyhydroxyalkanoic acid
Sewage - microbiology
Sludge
Treatment and Resource Recovery
Volatile fatty acids
Wastewater treatment
Water Purification
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Summary:Municipal activated sludge can be used for polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) production, when supplied with volatile fatty acids. In this work, standardized PHA accumulation assays were performed with different activated sludge to determine (1) the maximum biomass PHA content, (2) the degree of enrichment (or volume-to-volume ratio of PHA-accumulating bacteria with respect to the total biomass), and (3) the average PHA content in the PHA-storing biomass fraction. The maximum attained biomass PHA content with different activated sludge ranged from 0.18 to 0.42 gPHA/gVSS, and the degree of enrichment ranged from 0.16 to 0.51 volume/volume. The average PHA content within the PHA-accumulating biomass fraction was relatively constant and independent of activated sludge source, with an average value of 0.58 ± 0.07 gPHA/gVSS. The degree of enrichment for PHA-accumulating bacteria was identified as the key factor to maximize PHA content when municipal activated sludge is directly used for PHA accumulation. Future optimization should focus on obtaining a higher degree of enrichment of PHA-accumulating biomass, either through selection during wastewater treatment or by selective growth during PHA accumulation. A PHA content in the order of 0.6 g PHA/g VSS is a realistic target to be achieved when using municipal activated sludge for PHA production.
ISSN:0013-936X
1520-5851
1520-5851
DOI:10.1021/acs.est.2c03043