Research
| Title： | Sustainable tailwater treatment: Enhancing sediment denitrification through pyrite and sawdust integration |
|---|---|
| First author： | Gong, Shihao; Hong, Pei; Liu, Xiang; Xiao, Bangding; Wu, Xingqiang; Wang, Chunbo; Tian, Cuicui |
| Journal： | JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL CHEMICAL ENGINEERING |
| Years： | 2025 |
| DOI： | 10.1016/j.jece.2025.115519 |
| Abstract： | With the acceleration of urbanization, the discharge volume of treated wastewater from sewage treatment plants has surged. However, the nitrate levels in the effluent often exceed the tolerance thresholds of natural water bodies, posing serious threats to the safety of aquatic ecosystems.This study investigates how to enhance the denitrification capacity of lake sediment by adding different electron donors, namely pyrite and sawdust. Combining pyrite with sawdust greatly enhanced nitrate removal efficiency, resulting in a 2.2 % improvement under low hydraulic load and a 29.2 % improvement under high hydraulic load. During a 13-month testing period, nitrate removal efficiency was 53.71 % higher than that of the control group, demonstrating significant stability and long-term effectiveness. Analysis of the microbial community structure showed that pyrite significantly increased the population of autotrophic denitrifying bacteria. When combined with sawdust, it further broadened the ecological niche for heterotrophic denitrifiers, thereby improving overall denitrification efficiency. This study presents a novel approach for effectively removing nitrogen residues from low-carbon wastewater, providing significant support for managing nitrogen pollution in aquatic environments. |
