Food wastewater treatment using a hybrid biofilm reactor: nutrient removal performance and functional microorganisms on filler biofilm and suspended sludge

Abstract

In this study, a laboratory-scale hybrid biofilm reactor (HBR) was constructed to treat food wastewater (FWW) before it is discharged into the sewer. The chemical oxygen demand (COD) of 29 860 mg L⁻¹ in FWW was degraded to 200–350 mg L⁻¹ using the HBR under the operating parameters of COD load 1.68 kg m⁻³ d⁻¹, hydraulic retention time (HRT) of 426.63 h, dissolved oxygen (DO) of 8–9 mg L⁻¹, and temperature of 22–23 °C. The biomass of biofilm on the surface of filler was 2.64 g L⁻¹ for column A and 0.91 g L⁻¹ for column O. Microbial analysis revealed richer and more diverse microorganisms in filler biofilms compared to those in suspended sludge. The hybrid filler was conducive to the development of functional microbial species, including phyla Firmicutes, Actinobacteriota, and Chloroflexi, and genus level norank_f_JG30-KF-CM45, which will improve FWW treatment efficiency. Moreover, the microorganisms on the filler biofilm had more connections and relationships than those in the suspended sludge. The combination of an up-flow anaerobic sludge bed (UASB) and HBR was demonstrated to be an economical strategy for practical applications as a shorter HRT of 118.34 h could be obtained. Overall, this study provides reliable data and a theoretical basis for the application of HBR and FWW treatments.