On this last quarter-feira (29), the Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP) disclosed information on a new treatment system exhausted that can reduce by up to 70% the concentration of nitrogenous compost from the sanitary sewage.
The study was carried out during the doctorate of Bruno Garcia Silva, in hydraulic and sanitation engineering at the University of São Paulo (USP), with the support of a FAPESP grant — and published in the journal Environmental Technology.
The researchers of the project will develop a new baixo custo anaerobic reator model that “works with a bacterial biofilm attached to a polyurethane foam”. Second, or differential, it is precisely a biofilm, capable of initiating a process in which bacteria grow a kind of film on a polyurethane foam.
To breed or reator, they aperfeiçoaram a mathematical model capable of foreseeing the mechanism of removal of nitrogen in biofilm formed by bacteria and, as well, transforming nitrogenous composts into nitrogen — The resulting gas is considered harmless to the environment.
The removal of nitrogenous composts, such as nitrite, nitrate and ammonia, from sewage and industry is extremely important to avoid contamination of lakes, dams, corregos and other large aquifers. Além disso, to contamination can help in the development of activities in humans, such as blue baby syndrome.
Nitrogen removal
“The removal of nitrogen is still achieved in few waste treatment stations in Brazil, while in Europe and the United States it happens with greater ease. To idea and tracer [a infraestrutura necessária] for us reality. Here, an anaerobic reactor is generally used, which generates an effluent with a low organic load, and this makes the nitrogen removal process more difficult”, Garcia tells FAPESP agency.
The work was carried out under the guidance of Professor Eugenio Foresti, from the São Carlos School of Engineering (EESC-USP) and the result of the Thematic Project “Application of the biorefinery concept to wastewater biological treatment stations: or control of environmental pollution allied to the recovery of matter and energy”. The study also involves teams from the Federal University of São Carlos (UFSCar) and the Mauá Institute of Technology.
Reference-www.tecmundo.com.br