Anammox technology for the food industry nitrogenous wastewater treatment

Abstract The conventional process of nitrogenous waste treatment through nitrification and denitrification is a lengthy and costly process that does not yield any beneficial product recovery for industries. Thus, most of the food processing industries, especially in third-world countries, have lacuna for the treatment of nitrogenous waste. The newly developed anaerobic ammonium oxidation, which cuts the cycle into half by directly oxidizing ammonia in the presence of nitrite to nitrogen gas, can show a promising future for large-scale nitrogenous waste treatment. The unique phylum Planctomycetes involved in this process is not well researched yet. The metabolism, cell cycle, and natural occurrence of the bacteria are not however fully understood. This chapter will discuss the status of Anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox) research and then will evaluate the role of anammox in the treatment of food industry wastewater. The chapter will also deal with the microbiological and biotechnological aspects of the process.