Total Value of Phosphorus Recovery Mayer, Brooke K; Baker, Lawrence A; Boyer, Treavor H ...
Environmental science & technology,
07/2016, Volume:
50, Issue:
13
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Open access
Phosphorus (P) is a critical, geographically concentrated, nonrenewable resource necessary to support global food production. In excess (e.g., due to runoff or wastewater discharges), P is also a ...primary cause of eutrophication. To reconcile the simultaneous shortage and overabundance of P, lost P flows must be recovered and reused, alongside improvements in P-use efficiency. While this motivation is increasingly being recognized, little P recovery is practiced today, as recovered P generally cannot compete with the relatively low cost of mined P. Therefore, P is often captured to prevent its release into the environment without beneficial recovery and reuse. However, additional incentives for P recovery emerge when accounting for the total value of P recovery. This article provides a comprehensive overview of the range of benefits of recovering P from waste streams, i.e., the total value of recovering P. This approach accounts for P products, as well as other assets that are associated with P and can be recovered in parallel, such as energy, nitrogen, metals and minerals, and water. Additionally, P recovery provides valuable services to society and the environment by protecting and improving environmental quality, enhancing efficiency of waste treatment facilities, and improving food security and social equity. The needs to make P recovery a reality are also discussed, including business models, bottlenecks, and policy and education strategies.
Water scarcity and water pollution have increased the pressure on water resources worldwide. This pressure is particularly important in highly populated areas where water demand exceeds the available ...natural resources. In this regard, water reuse has emerged as an excellent water source alternative for peri-urban agriculture. Nevertheless, it must cope with the occurrence of chemical contaminants, ranging from trace elements (TEs) to organic microcontaminants. In this study, chemical contaminants (i.e., 15 TEs, 34 contaminants of emerging concern (CECs)), bulk parameters, and nutrients from irrigation waters and crop productivity (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill. cv. Bodar and Lactuca sativa L. cv. Batavia) were seasonally surveyed in 4 farm plots in the peri-urban area of the city of Barcelona. A pristine site, where rain-groundwater is used for irrigation, was selected for background concentrations. The average concentration levels of TEs and CECs in the irrigation water impacted by treated wastewater (TWW) were 3 (35±75μgL−1) and 13 (553±1050ngL−1) times higher than at the pristine site respectively. Principal component analysis was used to classify the irrigation waters by chemical composition. To assess the impact of the occurrence of these contaminants on agriculture, a seed germination assay (Lactuca sativa L) and real field-scale study of crop productivity (i.e., lettuce and tomato) were used. Although irrigation waters from the peri-urban area exhibited a higher frequency of detection and concentration of the assessed chemical contaminants than those of the pristine site (P1), no significant differences were found in seed phytotoxicity or crop productivity. In fact, the crops impacted by TWW showed higher productivity than the other farm plots studied, which was associated with the higher nutrient availability for plants.
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•The irrigation waters from a peri-urban area and a pristine site were assessed.•Irrigation waters from surface water bodies had higher abundance of contaminants•The peri-urban area had higher abundance of chemical contaminants.•It did not affect seed germination, root elongation or crop productivity.
The increasing demand for drinking water has led to the adoption of unconventional water sources, such as water reuse. Reverse osmosis (RO) and nanofiltration (NF) membranes are effective barriers ...against trace organic contaminants in potable water reuse applications. However, the use of RO is being challenged by NF, primarily due to NF's potential to achieve similar contaminant removal as RO but with higher productivity and lower energy requirements. This study compares NF and RO membranes in terms of contaminant removal and energy consumption for potable water reuse applications. RO (BW30XFR) and dense and loose NF (NF90 and NF270) membranes were tested in bench-scale systems, and RO (TW30) and NF (NF9) membrane elements were tested in an engineering scale system utilizing UF-filtered reclaimed wastewater. The highest solute passage was observed using NF270 membrane. There was no difference between NF90 and BW30XFR in terms of divalent ion passage, but NF90's total organic carbon and monovalent ion passages were higher. Both NF90 and BW30XFR highly rejected negatively charged trace organic contaminants (TOrCs), though rejections were lower for neutral and positively charged compounds. Furthermore, all compounds were highly rejected in the engineering-scale system by NF9 and TW30. These results highlight the potential of dense NF membranes as an energy-efficient barrier for contaminant removal.
•Bench- and engineering-scale systems were used to compare NF and RO membranes.•High TOC rejection by NF90 and NF270, but lower rejection of inorganics with NF270•Rejection of inorganics was similar between NF90 and RO except for monovalent ions.•Rejection of TOrCs was similar between NF90 and RO membranes.•NF9 maintained high contaminants rejection in long-term engineering-scale operations.
The emergence of the forward osmosis (FO)-reverse osmosis (RO) hybrid offers simultaneous water reuse and desalination by incorporating FO for wastewater (WW) recovery to dilute seawater (SW) before ...undergoing RO treatment. The potential of osmotic dilution within the FO-RO hybrid promises elevated FO recovery rates and decreased specific energy consumption (SEC) of RO. Yet, pushing the system to its limits remained unexplored. Employing MATLAB® for simulations across various feed-to-draw volume ratios and diverse WW salinities, the study explored the feasibility of achieving enhanced FO recovery from WW. The study extended to evaluating the adaptability of existing desalination plants to process diluted SW using LewaPlus® design software. The FO simulation confirmed the feasibility of achieving 90 % WW recovery across various operational conditions in many instances. Yet, the optimal configuration for achieving both 90 % WW recovery and RO SEC below 1 kWh/m3 was specific: an 80:20 feed-to-draw volume ratio with an initial WW salinity of 0.5 g/l in FO. This resulted in reduced SW salinity (7.4 g/l), enabling RO desalination at 0.96 kWh/m3, showcasing potential retrofitting applications for existing desalination plants based on software design response. In the comparative study to determine the optimal approach for integrated water reuse and desalination between FO-RO hybrid and independent schemes, the energy efficiency of RO in independent schemes appears favorable, but FO-RO hybrid system may offer other benefits considering its double-dense barrier protection.
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•WW served as feed (FS) and SW (35 g/l) as draw (DS) in FO-RO hybrid.•Simulated FS salinities (0.25–1.5 g/l) and FS:DS volume ratios (50:50 to 90:10)•At 0.5 g/l FS and 80:20 FS:DS (volume ratio), FO achieved 90 % FS recovery.•Osmotic dilution in FO-RO hybrid allow for RO operation below 1 kWh/m3.•Existing RO demonstrated adaptability to FO-RO integration.
Study on reuse of grey water – A Review Anuja, J; Darshan, B; Saraswathi, G ...
Journal of physics. Conference series,
08/2021, Volume:
1979, Issue:
1
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Open access
Abstract
Water scarcity is a huge problem and is been consistently increasing every year. Many of the water systems that keep ecosystems flourishing and feed a growing human population became ...stressed. Ocean, river, lake, streams are too much polluted. A lot of technologies are available on water recycling. Greywater is around 50% of household water usage but unfailing information relating to both the characteristics of greywater and the variety of recycling technologies are not available. In this review paper we have discussed the relative merits of different options available in greywater recycling and viability of onsite recycling systems.
Recovery of natural gas and oil from unconventional (shale) reservoirs relies on horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing to make it economical. Hydraulic fracturing generates vast quantities of ...flowback and produced water (FPW) and its composition exhibits huge spatial and temporal variations among shale plays. This review focuses on the characteristics and management of wastewaters originating for oil and gas extraction. Wastewater characteristics, including the quantity and chemical composition of the FPW, are discussed. The future of unconventional oil and gas industry hinges on effective management of FPW. Membrane technologies have the potential to offer solutions to sustainable reuse of this water resource. The performance of a range of membrane processes is evaluated and compared. Emerging membrane-based technologies employed in similar fields are also discussed. The results in peer-reviewed publications could offer a guide for the selection of appropriate technologies based on the desired application. Membrane fouling, lack of pilot- and full-scale experience and high energy consumption are primary challenges for membrane applications in FPW. Then challenges and future research needs are addressed, advances in membrane materials, systematic analyses of organics and electric generation from salinity gradient are promising approaches to address the issues.
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•Characteristics of shale oil & gas flowback and produced water (FPW) are evaluated.•Circos shows pollutant removals of membrane technology in FPW for the first time.•Potential membrane technologies for FPW treatment are critically reviewed.•Factors affecting the performance of membrane technologies are discussed.•Challenges and future research needs in membrane applications are compared.
Public acceptance of recycled water Fielding, Kelly S.; Dolnicar, Sara; Schultz, Tracy
International journal of water resources development,
07/2019, Volume:
35, Issue:
4
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Recycling water is not new. Yet, there are many examples from around the world of recycled water projects that have failed because of public opposition. This article reviews the literature ...investigating factors associated with public acceptance of recycled water, as well as publicly accessible reports and case studies, which have developed or tested approaches to increase public acceptance. The article concludes by summarizing the state of knowledge in this area, and advancing key research questions relating to public acceptance of recycled water that urgently need to be investigated.
Acid mine drainage (AMD) is a global environmental issue. Conventionally, a number of active and passive remediation approaches are applied to treat and manage AMD. Case studies on remediation ...approaches applied in actual mining sites such as lime neutralization, bioremediation, wetlands and permeable reactive barriers provide an outlook on actual long-term implications of AMD remediation. Hence, in spite of available remediation approaches, AMD treatment remains a challenge. The need for sustainable AMD treatment approaches has led to much focus on water reuse and resource recovery. This review underscores (i) characteristics and implication of AMD, (ii) remediation approaches in mining sites, (iii) alternative treatment technologies for water reuse, and (iv) resource recovery. Specifically, the role of membrane processes and alternative treatment technologies to produce water for reuse from AMD is highlighted. Although membrane processes are favorable for water reuse, they cannot achieve resource recovery, specifically selective valuable metal recovery. The approach of integrated membrane and conventional treatment processes are especially promising for attaining both water reuse and recovery of resources such as sulfuric acid, metals and rare earth elements. Overall, this review provides insights in establishing reuse and resource recovery as the holistic approach towards sustainable AMD treatment. Finally, integrated technologies that deserve in depth future exploration is highlighted.
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•Acid mine drainage (AMD) is a global environmental and economic challenge.•Current AMD remediation applied at real sites and its limitations are highlighted.•AMD challenges must be addressed through sustainable treatment approaches.•Water reuse and valuable resource recovery potentially offset AMD treatment cost.•Integrated processes using membranes are prospective approaches for AMD treatment.
Challenges associated with AMD can be sustainability addressed through integrated treatment approaches that attain both water reuse and valuable resource recovery.
Increased human water use combined with climate change have aggravated water scarcity from the regional to global scales. However, the lack of spatially detailed datasets limits our understanding of ...the historical water use trend and its key drivers. Here, we present a survey-based reconstruction of China’s sectoral water use in 341 prefectures during 1965 to 2013. The data indicate that water use has doubled during the entire study period, yet with a widespread slowdown of the growth rates from 10.66 km³·y−2 before 1975 to 6.23 km³·y−2 in 1975 to 1992, and further down to 3.59 km³·y−2 afterward. These decelerations were attributed to reduced water use intensities of irrigation and industry, which partly offset the increase driven by pronounced socioeconomic development (i.e., economic growth, population growth, and structural transitions) by 55% in 1975 to 1992 and 83% after 1992. Adoptions for highly efficient irrigation and industrial water recycling technologies explained most of the observed reduction of water use intensities across China. These findings challenge conventional views about an acceleration in water use in China and highlight the opposing roles of different drivers for water use projections.
Concern over dwindling water supplies for urban areas as well as environmental degradation from existing urban water systems has motivated research into more resilient and sustainable water supply ...strategies. Greywater reuse has been suggested as a way to diversify local water supply portfolios while at the same time lessening the burden on existing environments and infrastructure. Constructed wetlands have been proposed as an economically and energetically efficient unit process to treat greywater for reuse purposes, though their ability to consistently meet applicable water quality standards, microbiological in particular, is questionable. We therefore review the existing case study literature to summarize the treatment performance of greywater wetlands in the context of chemical, physical and microbiological water quality standards. Based on a cross-section of different types of wetlands, including surface flow, subsurface flow, vertical and recirculating vertical flow, across a range of operating conditions, we show that although microbiological standards cannot reliably be met, given either sufficient retention time or active recirculation, chemical and physical standards can. We then review existing case study literature for typical water supply disinfection unit processes including chlorination, ozonation and ultraviolet radiation treating either raw or treated greywater specifically. An evaluation of effluent water quality from published wetland case studies and the expected performance from disinfection processes shows that under appropriate conditions these two unit processes together can likely produce effluent of sufficient quality to meet all nonpotable reuse standards. Specifically, we suggest that recycling vertical flow wetlands combined with ultraviolet radiation disinfection and chlorine residual is the best combination to reliably meet the standards.
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•Constructed wetlands are a low energy treatment process with potential to adequately treat greywater for nonpotable reuse•Greywater contaminant removals are complex and reductions vary depending on the contaminant and operating conditions•With right disinfection measures, constructed wetlands may be a safe, low energy option for decentralized, nonpotable reuse
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