Inhibition of nitrite oxidizing bacterial activity based on low nitrite concentration exposure in an auto-recycling PN-Anammox process under mainstream conditions

Abstract For municipal wastewater with low temperature and ammonium, conventional oxygen-limited have difficulty achieving long-term stable inhibition of nitrite oxidizing bacteria (NOB) and stable nitritation. So a partial nitrification-anaerobic ammonium oxidation integrated reactor with independent partitions was used to investigate the feasibility of adding an auto-recycling system to promote low exposure of nitrite in the aerobic zone and to inhibit the NOB activity. The results showed that nitrite produced in the aerobic zone could be timely transported to the anaerobic zone for Anammox utilization, and the nitrite nitrogen concentration was diluted to keep within 1 mg/L in the aerobic zone by the effluent recycling. NOB growth was inhibited by nitrite deficiency. The maximum nitrogen removal rate of the reactor was 0.29 kg/(m 3 ·d), and the nitrate nitrogen production rate of NOB was controlled within 0.04 kg/(m 3 ·d). Nitrosomonas and Candidatus Kuenenia were found as functional species of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria and Anammox bacteria, respectively.