Microcalorimetric qualitative analysis of biofilm development in porous media used in wastewater treatment by constructed wetland

Abstract

In wastewater treatment by constructed wetland, the biodegradation capability of the biomass developed in the soil is one of the most important factors. For this kind of treatment unit, soil properties are studied to improve its filtration capacity and hydraulic residence time of the wastewater. The impact of soil properties like porosity and soil components on biomass development and biodegradation capacity seem to be less studied certainly due to the complexity of microbial identification techniques currently used. The study presented here is a preliminary work to validate that calorimetric technique could be a tool in the understanding of biodegradation capacity of wastewater treatment processes. Biofilm is preliminary developed in columns filled with different porous materials of well known porosity and constitutive components. These columns are fed with the same continuous flow of synthetic solution (C, N, and P) as a substrate amending during 3 weeks. Then each week, 2 mL samples of porous media from these columns are analyzed in isothermal calorimeter for 48 h. Net heat flow is recorded before and after substrate injection. This work results in the definition of the procedure for batch experiments in calorimeter for wastewater process efficiency. The results of these experiments show that the microbial reaction due to substrate amendment is highly depending on the porous material used for biofilm growth. Indeed calorimetric signals recorded lead to conclude that biofilm grown on plastic beads has a faster and more intensive reaction to glucose amendment than biofilm grown on glass beads. At least, two glass beads samples analyzed in the calorimeter after the same duration of feeding with synthetic solution have very different response to glucose or synthetic solution.