Bioavailability and species transformations of micronutrients in (bio)reactors used for resource recovery and water reuse

Objectives and expected results:

Anaerobic digestion is often used for the treatment of industrial, municipal or agricultural wastewaters and can be considered as the key technology regarding renewable energy production from wastewater. It is known that metals are needed as essential cofactors for a variety of enzymes involved in methane production and their absence can cause serious damage to the anaerobic biomass. However, detailed knowledge on the fate of metals in anaerobic digesters is still in its infancy. Recent studies have shown that metals dosed as soluble salts (which is the industrial practice) do not remain in bioavailable form during their passage through anaerobic digesters. They may precipitate or may adsorb on the surfaces present in the reactors (e.g. anaerobic granules). Also organic complexes present in the reactors (humic acids, siderophors etc.) play a very important role in rendering metals unavailable for microorganisms by binding them in stabile organic complexes that cannot be transported across cell membranes. The proposed project aims to investigate (factors affecting) trace metal speciation in bioreactors for wastewater treatment using modern analytical tools (e.g., HPLC-ICP-MS). The knowledge on metal speciation will be further linked to the bioavailability of trace metals in the anaerobic systems by investigating methanogenic activity. Special attention will be paid to the hydraulic patterns inside the reactors and their effect on the retention of trace metals in the reactor.

Planned secondment(s):

Ghent University (2x4 months) and Asio (www.asio.cz/en , 2 months)

Specific entry requirements:

the applicants should preferably have an MSc degree in chemistry, environmental, civil or chemical engineering, or alike

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