Bioremediation Of Selenium Contaminated Wastewater

This book features the reduction and removal of selenium in wastewater via bioremediation. Arranged over five chapters, this book provides information regarding the interaction between micro-organisms and selenium, and it also explains the biogeochemistry of selenium in engineered ecosystems designed for wastewater treatment. The analytical approaches currently adopted by the scientific community are also described and discussed. Readers will find examples of the biological treatment of selenium contaminated wastewater, and discover a concise overview of selenium removal processes that are currently implemented at lab-scale as well as at industrial scale.

The contamination of environment and water resources by Selenium (Se) and its oxyanions from various sources are emerging contaminants of significant health and environmental concern. The primary sources include agricultural drainage water, mine drainage, residues from fossil fuels, thermoelectric power plants, oil refineries, and metal ores. Various methods and technologies have been developed which focus on the treatment of selenium-containing waters and wastewater. High concentrations of selenium in water cause various adverse impact to human health, such as carcinogenic, genotoxic, and cytotoxic effects. But in the lower concentrations, it is a useful constituent of the biological system. The range between toxicity and deficiency of selenium is minimal (40 to 400 μg per day), due to its dual nature. Selenium Contamination in Water contains the latest status and information on selenium’s origin, its chemistry and its toxicity to humans. The book represents a comprehensive and advanced reference book for students, researchers, practitioners, and policymakers in working in the field of metalloids, in particular selenium. A special emphasis is given on its geological distribution, monitoring techniques, and remedial technologies. As such, the authors critically analyze the various techniques used for the monitoring and removal of selenium from water. Featuring chapters arranged according to the major themes of the latest research, with specific case-studies from industrial experiences of selenium detection and removal, Selenium Contamination in Water will be particularly valued by researchers, practitioners, and policymakers in working in the field of metalloids including selenium.

Biofilms represent the natural living style of microbial communities and play a pivotal role in biogeochemical cycles and natural attenuation. Biofilms can be engineered for biodegradation and biotransformation of organic and inorganic contaminants, for both in situ bioremediation and ex situ treatment in bioreactors. This book focuses on microbial biofilms and their potential technological applications for sustainable development. It covers recent advances in biofilm technologies for contaminant remediation coupled to recovery of resources and serves as a complete reference on the science and technology behind biofilm mediated bioremediation and wastewater treatment.

Municipal and industrial wastewaters contain a wide spectrum of pollutants. Their effective removal presents a challenge for water treatment technology. Biosorption of nutrients and pollutants has been used in sewage treatment since the discovery of the activated sludge process. It is a passive uptake process by which pollutants are adsorbed on the surface of cell walls and/or dissolved in structures of microorganism cells that are present in sludge. Sorbed pollutants remain in the sludge and can be potentially released back into the environment depending on their condition and the reversibility of the pollutant-sludge interaction. An overview of typical biosorption applications for the removal of nutrients, organic pollutants, and metals in wastewater treatment is provided in different areas of their use for the protection of aquatic ecosystems and human health. This book will be of interest to operators of wastewater treatment plants and sludge treatment and disposal facilities as well as to researchers and university students in the field of environmental engineering.

The contamination of environment and water resources by Selenium (Se) and its oxyanions from various sources are emerging contaminants of significant health and environmental concern. The primary sources include agricultural drainage water, mine drainage, residues from fossil fuels, thermoelectric power plants, oil refineries, and metal ores. Various methods and technologies have been developed which focus on the treatment of selenium-containing waters and wastewater. High concentrations of selenium in water cause various adverse impact to human health, such as carcinogenic, genotoxic, and cytotoxic effects. But in the lower concentrations, it is a useful constituent of the biological system. The range between toxicity and deficiency of selenium is minimal (40 to 400 μg per day), due to its dual nature. Selenium Contamination in Water contains the latest status and information on selenium’s origin, its chemistry and its toxicity to humans. The book represents a comprehensive and advanced reference book for students, researchers, practitioners, and policymakers in working in the field of metalloids, in particular selenium. A special emphasis is given on its geological distribution, monitoring techniques, and remedial technologies. As such, the authors critically analyze the various techniques used for the monitoring and removal of selenium from water. Featuring chapters arranged according to the major themes of the latest research, with specific case-studies from industrial experiences of selenium detection and removal, Selenium Contamination in Water will be particularly valued by researchers, practitioners, and policymakers in working in the field of metalloids including selenium.

Selenium (Se) pollution has led to several cases of severe aquatic ecosystem deterioration due to Se poisoning caused by bioaccumulation over time. However, the removal of selenate (SeO42-) from wastewater streams with co-contaminants has been largely considered as a black box in anaerobic biological systems using mixed consortia. This research aimed at addressing the effect of wastewater characteristics, i.e. co-contaminants such as nitrate (NO3-) and sulfate (SO42-), heavy metals and pH, on the biological reduction of SeO42- and evaluating process integration for Se-laden wastewater treatment with co-contaminants. This study demonstrated that the presence of co-contaminants can actually be beneficial for Se removal provided that the concentrations are carefully monitored and appropriate operating conditions and process configurations are used. The Se removal (total Se and SeO42-) efficiency increased by ~30% in the presence of NO3- and/or SO42- compared to systems with SeO42- alone. Additionally, an integrated process of an ion exchange (IX) column and bioreactors showed improved overall removal capacity for SO42- and total Se. The knowledge and information gained from this research can help in the advancement and application of biological processes, i.e. predicting of reactor performance, solving specific design or practical problems and implementing novel treatment techniques for Se-laden mine wastewater.

This book is a compendium of research efforts and findings on the sources, occurrences, hydrochemistry, and several operating variables that influence the presence of oxyanions in aqua system. The content of this book has been designed to provide an insightful account of an array of innovative technologies for the management of the impacts of oxyanions in water, the progress and drawbacks of these technologies and those that have been effectively deployed to transform oxyanions in water to beneficial species. This book further x-rays global laws and economic policies targeted at effectively curtailing the presence of harmful oxyanions in water, challenges facing these policies, and future perspectives on how best to reduce the level of these harmful oxyanions in water to safe limit. The book is relevant to water professionals, policy makers, academics, and research students.

This volume includes the papers presented during the 1st Euro-Mediterranean Conference for Environmental Integration (EMCEI) which was held in Sousse, Tunisia in November 2017. This conference was jointly organized by the editorial office of the Euro-Mediterranean Journal for Environmental Integration in Sfax, Tunisia and Springer (MENA Publishing Program) in Germany. It aimed to give a more concrete expression to the Euro-Mediterranean integration process by supplementing existing North-South programs and agreements with a new multilateral scientific forum that emphasizes in particular the vulnerability and proactive remediation of the Euro-Mediterranean region from an environmental point of view. This volume gives a general and brief overview on current research focusing on emerging environmental issues and challenges and its applications to a variety of problems in the Euro-Mediterranean zone and surrounding regions. It contains over five hundred and eighty carefully refereed short contributions to the conference. Topics covered include (1) innovative approaches and methods for environmental sustainability, (2) environmental risk assessment, bioremediation, ecotoxicology, and environmental safety, (3) water resources assessment, planning, protection, and management, (4) environmental engineering and management, (5) natural resources: characterization, assessment, management, and valorization, (6) intelligent techniques in renewable energy (biomass, wind, waste, solar), (7) sustainable management of marine environment and coastal areas, (8) remote sensing and GIS for geo-environmental investigations, (9) environmental impacts of geo/natural hazards (earthquakes, landslides, volcanic, and marine hazards), and (10) the environmental health science (natural and social impacts on Human health). Presenting a wide range of topics and new results, this edited volume will appeal to anyone working in the subject area, including researchers and students interested to learn more about new advances in environmental research initiatives in view of the ever growing environmental degradation in the Euro-Mediterranean region, which has turned environmental and resource protection into an increasingly important issue hampering sustainable development and social welfare.