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Food waste is one of the important reservoirs of antibiotic resistance genes （ARGs）, and its resource utilization has potential environmental risks. Anaerobic digestion （AD） technology can concurrently achieve resource recovery and ARGs removal, which is one of the popular resource technologies for food waste management. However, the removal efficiency of ARGs during the AD process is limited, and thus the safety of digestate for agricultural use is still questioned. Therefore, how to improve the performance of ARGs removal during the AD process is critical for efficient and environmentally friendly bioconversion of food waste. This study summarized the transmission pathways and mechanisms of ARGs in food waste； discussed the effects of different operation parameters on the transmission of ARGs in food waste during the AD process； described the research progress of exogenous addition of conductive materials, feedstock pretreatment, etc., strategies to enhance the removal of ARGs； and analyzed the migration regularity and removal mechanism of ARGs in food waste during the AD process, which mainly included microbial community structure evolution, mobile genetic element changes, and environmental factor changes. Finally, this study prospected the future improvement of methane yield and ARGs removal in the AD process of food waste based on the existing research.

To achieve efficient resource utilization of fly ash and multi-source organic waste, a composting experiment was carried out to investigate the effects of fly ash on co-aerobic composting using kitchens, chicken manure, and sawdust (15:5:2). The effects of different application doses (5 % and 10 %, calculated in total wet weight of organic solid waste) of fly ash on physical and chemical properties, nutrient elements, and bacterial community structure during co-composting were evaluated. The results showed that the addition dose of 5 % and 10 % fly ash significantly increased the highest temperature (56.6 ℃ and 56.9 ℃) and extended the thermophilic period to nine days. Compared with that in the control, the total nutrient content of compost products in the treatments of 5 % FA and 10 % FA was increased by 4.09 % and 13.55 %, respectively. The bacterial community structure changed greatly throughout the composting, and the bacterial diversity of all treatments increased obviously. In the initial stage of composting, Proteobacteria was the dominant phylum of bacteria, with a relative abundance ranging from 35.26 % to 39.40 %. In the thermophilic period, Firmicutes dominated; its relative abundance peaked at 52.46 % in the 5 % FA treatment and 67.72 % in the 10 % FA treatment. Bacillus and Thermobifida were the predominant groups in the thermophilic period of composting. The relative abundance of Bacillus and Thermobifida in the 5 % FA and 10 % FA treatments were 33.41 % and 62.89 %( Bacillus ) and 33.06 % and 12.23 %( Thermobifida ), respectively. The results of the redundancy analysis (RDA) revealed that different physicochemical indicators had varying degrees of influence on bacteria, with organic matter, pH, available phosphorus, and available potassium being the main environmental factors influencing bacterial community structure. In summary, the addition of fly ash promoted the harmlessness and maturation of co- aerobic composting of urban multi-source organic waste, while optimizing microbial community structure and improving the quality and efficiency of composting.

In order to explore the source characteristics as well as the temporal and spatial variations in odor pollution in municipal waste landfills, gas samples were collected from a landfill in an eastern coastal area of China throughout winter and summer. The total concentration of malodorous substances reached 60000 μg·m -3 . There were more types of odor pollutants detected in summer than in winter, the average concentration was 30-300 times higher than that in winter, and the concentration of sulfur compounds increased by 4.7-136.7 times in summer. Oxygenated compounds had the highest concentration, and the total concentration of sulfur compounds accounted for less than 10% of malodorous substances. However, sulfur compounds contributed more than 90% to the theoretical odor concentration. Sulfur compounds such as methyl mercaptan and propane mercaptan were the key odorants in the landfill. After the landfill unit was covered, the concentration of odorous substances and the theoretical odor concentration on the surface of the landfill showed an increasing trend with time, indicating that the covering had a certain odor barrier effect; however, the landfill unit still had a large odor release potential. The similarity analysis showed that the odorous gas accumulated in the unit with temporary cover and without an exhaust system could be released to the environment through the overlapping gap of the membrane and the location of membrane rupture, resulting in more serious odor pollution around the landfill at night than that during the day.

To investigate the effects of thermophilic composting process on antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) of swine manure source at a field scale, the abundance of four erythromycin resistance genes (ermA, ermB, ermC and ermF), three β-lactam resistance genes (blaTEM, blaCTX and blaSHV) and two quinolone resistance genes (qnrA and qnrS) were quantified by quantitative PCR ( qPCR) during the composting process. The results suggested that the erm genes' copy numbers were significantly higher than those of the bla and qnr genes in the early stage of composting (P < 0.01). The maximum abundance of erm genes was ermB (9.88 x 10⁸ copies · g⁻¹), following by ermF (9.4 x 10⁸ copies · g⁻¹). At the end of the composting process, bla and qnr genes were at low levels, while erm genes were still at high levels. Even through ermF was proliferated comparing with the initial copies. These results indicated that thermophilic composting process could not effectively remove all ARGs. For some ARGs, compost may be a good bioreactor resulting in their proliferation. Application of composting products on farmland may cause transference of ARGs.

Co-processing of sewage sludge using the cement kiln can realize sludge harmless treatment, quantity reduction, stabilization and reutilization. The moisture content should be reduced to below 30% to meet the requirement of combustion. Thermal drying is an effective way for sludge desiccation. Odors and volatile organic compounds are generated and released during the sludge drying process, which could lead to odor pollution. The main odor pollutants were selected by the multi-index integrated assessment method. The concentration, olfactory threshold, threshold limit value, smell security level and saturated vapor pressure were considered as indexes based on the related regulations in China and foreign countries. Taking the pollution potential as the evaluation target, and the risk index and odor emission intensity as evaluation indexes, the odor pollution potential rated evaluation model of the pollutants was built according to the Weber-Fechner law. The aim of the present study is to form the rating evaluation method of odor potential pollution capacity suitable for the directly drying process of sludge.

Xining, Ningbo and Beijing were closen as the representative cities about biochemical treatment of kichen waste. The treatment facilities of these cities were investigated and set as the sampling points. The main compositions and the material contents were analyzed by GC/MS, the odor concertration was obtained by the Triangle odor bag method. The results showed that oxygenated hydrocarbons including alcohol, aldehyde, ketone, ester were higher than others in the odor gases, however, the largest contribution to odor pollution were sulfocompounds and the 2nd materials were terpenes; According to the research of the three enterprises, ethyl alcohol, limonene, sulfuretted hydrogen, methyl mercaptan, dimethyl sulfide, dimethyl disulfide, acetaldehyde and ethyl acetate were likely to be considered as the typical odorants from the biochemical treatment facilities of kichen waste.

A drum-type biodrying pilot scale test system was made to treat the municipal sludge. Sludge was mixed with barks according to certain proportion, and was used to study the influence of air flux on municipal sludge biodrying through parameter detection, such as temperature, moisture content, pH and volatile solid (VS). Results showed that air flux had a great influence on the effect of biodrying. When the air flux was 120 L · (h · kg)(-1), the best result was obtained, the highest sludge temperature was 66°C and the temperature could remain upon 55°C for more than 40 h. After 111 h, the moisture content reduced to 56% . The pH remained at 6.5-8.5 through the whole biodrying process. As a result, the microorganism activities would not be affected. The sludge inside the drum-type biodrying system was homogeneous. This research provides a reference about sludge treatment using a continues flow process by drum-type biodrying system.

In this research, a new method for sewage sludge (SS) disposal was introduced, by which heavy metals were implanted into sewage sludge before pyrolysis. Cu was adopted as the representative of heavy metals to test this process and was implanted in the form of CuCl2. Effects of Cu implanting concentration and reaction temperature on the residual ratio and immobilization of heavy metals in pyrolysis char were studied. Meanwhile, two leaching methods were employed with the purpose to determine the maximum capacity of heavy metal immobilization in the char. The primary research results showed that when the Cu implanting concentration was 0.5% (mass fraction), more than 90% of Cu remained in the char after carbonization, and the leachability of heavy metals in the char was related to pyrolysis temperature. Cu leaching from the char increased with increasing pyrolysis temperature. There was also a limitation for Cu implanting concentration in the sewage sludge, which was determined by the destination of the pyrolyzed char. If it went to sanitary landfill, the limitation would be 0.5%. The primary results showed that sewage sludge could be kneaded with other wastes containing heavy metals before pyrolysis to achieve co-processing.

The effects of organic chloride-PVC and inorganic chloride-NaCl on Cd partitioning during sludge incineration with adding Cd(CH3COO)2 . 2H2O to the real sludge were investigated using a simulated tubular incineration furnace. And transformation and distribution of Cd were studied in different sludge incineration operation conditions. The results indicated that the partitioning of Cd tended to be enhanced in the fly ash and fule gas as the chloride content increasing. The migration and transformation of Cd-added sludge affected by different chloride were not obvious with the increasing of chloride content. With increasing temperature, organic chloride (PVC) and inorganic chloride (NaC1) can reduce the Cd distribution in the bottom ash. However, the effect of chlorides, the initial concentration and incineration time on Cd emissions had no significant differences. Using SEM-EDS and XRD technique, different Cd compounds including CdCl2, Na2CdCl4, K2CdCl6, K2CdSiO4 and NaCdO2 were formed in the bottom ash and fly ash after adding NaCl to the sludge. In contrast, after adding PVC to the sludge, the Na2CdCl4 and CdCl2 were the main forms of Cd compounds, at the same time, K4CdCI6 and K6CdO4 were also formed. The two different mechanisms of chlorides effects on Cd partitioning were affected by the products of Cd compound types and forms.

There is a lack of observation data on greenhouse gas (GHG) and ammonia emissions from sewage sludge composting, though the emissions can result in environmental issue and nitrogen loss. In this study, GHG and ammonia emissions were monitored under different operating parameters during sludge composting with continuous aerated turning pile at full scale. Results illustrated that the reduction of amendment addition could result in low organic matter transformation (1.38% and 8.85% for the test group and the control group, respectively). Though low C/N ratio might slightly increase the ammonia emission (8.68% higher than the control group), it was helpful to reduce both GHG emission (1.70 g x kg(-1)) DC for the test group and 2.85 g x kg(-1) DC for the control group, respectively) and total nitrogen loss (16.1% and 21.8% for the test and control groups, respectively). Through applying an aertion strategy in which the airflow rate was lower in the beginning and higher in the end of sludge composting, a higher GHG emission and a lower ammonia emission were observed in the test group, e. g., 55.1% higher of GHG emission than the control, and 66.86 g x m(-2) and 72.04 g x m(-2) of ammonia emission in the test and the control, respectively. And a good conversation of total nitrogen thus occurred in the test as a result of such aeration strategy, with only 51.34% of TN loss as compared to the control.

Effects of goethite on the anaerobic fermentation process of organic fraction of municipal solid wastes, including the biogas production and characteristics of leachate, were investigated in the anaerobic digesters constructed by PVC. The results showed that the addition of goethite promoted hydrolysis and acidogenesis efficiency of solid wastes and gas production rate. The total gas volume was 163.4 L,which increased by 20% compared to the blank. The intermediate products of Fe2+ , NH+4 -N, NO-3 -N, COD and organic acids in the leachate were analyzed. Results showed that the addition of goethite reduced the system ORP to - 124 mV which could improve the activity of the anaerobic microorganism. Addition of goethite could also promote the utilization of organic acids which decreased the inhibition effects of organic acids on the anaerobic microorganism.

The emission of mercury (Hg) from the municipal solid waste incineration has inspired widespread attention, especially regarding to the deposition of Hg in the surrounding soil, which is issued to be the potential negative factor of ambient environment and human health. This study mainly focused on the distributions of Hg in the ambient soil of a municipal solid waste incinerator located in North China. The pollution of the mercury and its risks to the local environment and human health were assessed. Results showed that Hg levels were in the range of 0.015-0.25 mg x kg(-1), with an average (0.088 +/- 0.064) mg x kg(-1). The concentrations of Hg in the soil were obviously influenced by wind direction and they were relatively higher in the northwest (downwind) comparing with that in the southeast (upwind). The Kriging interpolation method was adopted to create a contour map, which intuitively displayed a spatial mercury distribution in the soil. The regions with a higher Hg concentration are mainly distributed in the north northwest, the north northeast and the west southwest of the municipal solid waste incinerator. According to the evaluation results of single factor pollution index and geoaccumulation Index, some ambient soil samples were polluted by the mercury emission from the municipal solid waste incinerator; however, the results of the health risk assessment showed that the mercury in the soil had not pose a health hazard to the local population.

The corncob was pretreated by 1.5% NaOH, 1% H2SO4, 1.5% H2O2 and alkaline hydrogen peroxide (caustic soda solution with 1.5% H2O2) combined with ultraviolet radiation. And the characteristics of carbon released, denitrification and bio-attachment capability of using pretreated corncob as carbon source for denitrification were studied in carbon release and denitrification experiments in laboratory scale. The results showed that the denitrification efficiency and the utilizability of the carbon released by the corncob pretreated by alkali or alkaline hydrogen peroxide were significantly enhanced. Especially, for the alkali pretreatment method, the nitrate removal rate could still maintain higher than 90% after 41 days of denitrification experiments. Therefore, the alkali pretreatment method could improve the carbon release performance of the corncob and is beneficial for microbial adsorption and carbon source utilization.

Because excess sludge contains high density of pathogens, it has to be treated to reduce pathogens before being disposed for land application. In this study, the effect of substrate concentration on pathogen inactivation during thermophilic anaerobic digestion was investigated. The results show that, with the increase of substrate concentration, VFAs and cumulative methane production increased. The density of total coliforms in the suspension liquid has a 2.0-3.0 orders of magnitude decline and fecal coliforms has 1.8-3.3 orders of magnitude decline after 28 days thermophilic anaerobic digestion at substrate concentration of 28-84 g x L(-1) and temperature of 55 degrees C. More than 99% of total coliforms and fecal coliforms have been killed after 28 days digestion. Salmonella spp. was not detected in the suspension and solid after anaerobic digestion. When substrate concentration was higher than 45 g x L(-1), the inactivation of total coliforms and fecal coliforms declined.

Six cement kilns were measured for emissions of PCDD/Fs in the Southwest Area, China. The results indicated that the emission levels of PCDD/Fs were 0.0029-0.0062 ng-m(-3) (Average, 0.0043 ng X m(-3)) from cement kilns which did not burn solid waste, and 0.028 ng X m(-3) from co-processing sewage sludge in cement kiln. The levels of PCDD/Fs emissions from cement manufacturing in the Southwest Area were significantly below the national emissions standard (0.1 ng x m(-3)). Emission factors of PCDD/Fs from the six cement kilns varied between 0.0089 and 0.084 microg x t(-1) cement, which were near or below the lowest emission factor reported by UNEP in 2005. Moreover, the emission factor of PCDD/Fs from co-processing sewage sludge in cement kiln was 7.6 times of the average factors from the other five cement kilns. Moreover,congener distribution of PCDD/F in stack gas from the two types of cement kilns was very different. The results showed that modern dry process cement kilns with preheating have lower emissions of PCDD/Fs. This suggested that the product of co-processing solid waste in cement kilns should be largely enhanced in China in future.

This work investigated the effects of nitrate on anoxic/anaerobic methane oxidation in the aged refuse landfilled 10-12 years by full-factor experiments. The results showed that under anoxic/anaerobic condition, nitrate could promote the removal of methane in the aged refuse. The contents of CH4 and NO3(-) -N had significant influences on the removal of CH4 and the generation of N2, and there were significant interactions as well (P < 0.05). The increasing initial CH4 content evidently enhanced the removal of CH4 and the production of N2. Furthermore, the addition of NO3(-) -N obviously improved the de-nitrification process. The results suggested that nitrate reduction could be coupled to anoxic/anaerobic oxidation of methane in the aged refuse. In the experimental condition, the effort of coupling was most effective when the concentrations of CH4 and nitrate were 30% and 110 mg x kg(-1), respectively.

The composition and evolution characteristics of inorganic anions, ammonia, heavy metals and organic compounds in leachates with different composing times were studied in a composting plant in order to clarify its composition and evolution and search for a suitable processing technology. The results showed that concentrations of EC, F-, Cl-, SO4(2-) and NH4(+) -N decreased during the composting process, while the contents of NO2(-) -N, NO3(-) -N and Org-N were related to the oxidation reduction atmosphere of leachates. The Pb, Cd, Cu, Zn and As concentrations in leachates exhibited a decrease trend during the composting process, while contents of heavy metals Cr, Ni, Fe, Mn showed an increase trend with increasing composting time. The composting leachate organics comprised mainly of protein-like substance, but also consisted of humic-like substances. The leachate organics were suitable to be treated by biochemical process firstly, and then by physico-chemical technique. The relative content of protein-like substances firstly increased and then decreased, while that of humic-like matter exhibited an opposite trend. The contents of salinity and heavy metal in compost leachates were high, which caused the improper reflux utilization of leachates. The compost leachates should be treated by the combined biochemical and physico-chemical process before emission.

The preparation conditions of porous ceramics were determined by SEM, XRD and FT-IR characterizations as well as the nickel removal ability of porous ceramics to be: the mass fraction w of sesbania powder doped was 4%, and the calcination temperature was 800 degrees C. SEM and pore structure characterization illustrated that calcination caused changes in the structure and morphology of waste ceramics. With the increase of calcination temperature, the specific surface area and pore volume decreased, while the aperture increased. EDS analyses showed that the main elements of both the original waste porcelain powder and the porous ceramics were Si, Al and O. The SEM, XRD and FT-IR characterization of porous ceramics illustrated that the structure of porous ceramics was stable before and after adsorption. The series of experiments of Ni2+ adsorption using these porous ceramics showed that when the dosage of porous ceramics was 10 g x L(-1), the adsorption time was 60 min, the pH value was 6.32, and the concentration of nickel-containing wastewater was below 100 mg x L(-1), the Ni2+ removal of wastewater reached 89.7%. Besides, the porous ceramics showed higher removal efficiency on nickel in the wastewater. The Ni(2+)-containing wastewater was processed by the porous ceramics prepared, and the adsorption dynamics and adsorption isotherms of Ni2+ in wastewater by porous ceramics were investigated. The research results showed that the Ni2+ adsorption process of porous ceramics was in accordance with the quasi second-order kinetic model (R2 = 0.999 9), with Q(e) of 9.09 mg x g(-1). The adsorption process can be described by the Freundlich equation and Langmuir equation, and when the temperature increased from 20 degrees C to 40 degrees C, the maximum adsorption capacity Q(m) increased from 14.49 mg x g(-1) to 15.38 mg x g(-1).

Incineration fly ash could be contaminated with NH3 that was slipped from the ammonia-based selective non-catalytic reduction(SNCR) process and from evaporation of municipal solid wastes' leachate involved in the wastes. This research was conducted to investigate the impacts of ammonia on leaching of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and metals from incineration fly ash in the pH range of 3.66-12.44 with an active ammonia spike. A geochemical modeling software Visual MINTEQ was adopted to calculate the chemical speciation of metals under the leaching conditions to reveal the mechanism behind the impacts. It was proved that at pH > 9, the leaching of DOC increased significantly in the presence of high concentrations of ammonia (> or = 1 357 mg x L(-1)), but there was little effect when the ammonia level in eluates was not higher than 537 mg x L(-1). At pH < 6, metals in fly ash were released mainly in the form of free metal ions and chloride complexes, which were little influenced by ammonia; while at pH 8-12, higher concentrations of ammonia (> or = 3 253 mg x L(-1)) mobilized Cd, Cu, Ni and Zn significantly due to the formation of soluble metal-ammonia complexes, and the leaching rates reached their peaks at pH around 9; however, ammonia had little impacts on Al and Pb leaching within this pH range. At pH > 12, for Cd, Cu, Ni and Zn, their leaching species were predominantly in the form of hydroxide complexes. Under the ammonia concentration of 3253 mg x L(-1), the Visual MINTEQ modeling results were compared with the experimental data, and it was proved that the leaching of Al, Pb and Zn was mainly controlled by precipitation/dissolution modeling, while Cd, Cu and Ni were controlled by precipitation/dissolution and surface complexation/precipitation processes; Visual MINTEQ modeling could well describe the leaching behaviors of Al, Cu, Pb and Zn from incineration fly ash.

A laboratory aerobic incubation experiment was conducted under a constant temperature to investigate the differentiation rule of nitrogen form among soils amended with different organic wastes composted with food waste, chicken manure, cow manure, domestic waste, vegetable residue, sludge, turf and tomato residue. Experiment utilized soils amended with 0%, 5% and 50% (m/m) of eight organic waste composts. The purpose was to understand the effect of different organic wastes on nitrogen mineralization in soil. This study deals with eight organic waste compost treatments could rapidly increase NH4(+) -N concentrations, reduce the NO3(-)-N concentrations and promote nitrogen mineralization in soil after 3-4 weeks incubation. All parameter tended to be stable. The improved amplitude of the same compost-amended soil: 30% compost treatments > 15% compost treatments > 5% compost treatments. Within the same proportion, chicken manure compost, turf compost and sludge compost product treatments' relative N mineralization was higher than other compost product treatments, and the chicken manure compost treatment's relative N mineralization was significantly higher than other compost product treatments. Food waste compost and vegetable residue compost product treatments' mineralization was low, the lowest was domestic waste compost product treatment. All compost treatments could significantly improve the values of potentially mineralizable nitrogen(N(0)), mineralization rate (k), and promote nitrogen mineralization in soil. The results illustrated that the effect of organic waste compost on the mineralization of nitrogen varied with types of compost and the amount of input compost.

The introduced pretreatment technology, WCCB (Washing + Calcination), was effective to reduce chlorides in fly ash by consuming relatively low energy for recycling fly ash as the raw material for cement industry. The washing conditions are: twice-washing, liquid/solid = 3, mixing speed = 150 r x min(-1), 1st mixing time = 5 min, and 2nd mixing time = 10 min. The original incinerator was used for the calcination process, 1 000 degrees C, 10% O2 and dwelling time of 1 hour were adopted. By adopting X-ray absorption near edge structure and X-ray diffraction, the behavior of chlorides was explained and NaCl, KCl and CaCl2 are the main form of chlorides existing in fly ash. The reagent used in the air pollution control system to neutralize the acid component in the discharged gas surely acted a very important role in the formation of chlorides. The insoluble chlorides in fly ash had a very similar structure as that of Friedel's salt, which was related with CaCl2.

In this study, we investigated characteristics and influence factors of energy consumption and pollutant discharge (ECPD) of municipal solid waste transfer stations (MSW TSs) in Beijing by assessing four parameters including the amount of waste recycled, leachate production, water consumption and electricity consumption, based on three years' average data of MSW TSs in Beijing obtained through field investigations from 2009 to 2011. Meanwhile, integral performances of the stations with and without garbage sorting capacities (Sorting TS and Compressing TS) were also analyzed. Results showed that MSW TSs in Beijing differ greatly. For each ton of MSW, masses of waste recycled, leachate productions, water consumptions and electricity consumptions generally fall in the ranges of 12.9 kg x t(-1), 5.8-49.0 kg x t(-1), 40. 3-156.7 kg x t(-1) and 1.75-5.60 kWh x t(-1), respectively. Despite overall the higher energy consumption and more pollutant discharge than Compressing TS, Sorting TS could achieve waste reduction and reuse by recycling part of the municipal solid wastes, as well as the optimization of process by sorting wastes into different ingredients for corresponding waste disposal plants, which could reduce heavy burdens of landfills and extend their lifespans.

There is a growing attention on the environmental pollution and loss of potential regeneration of resources due to the poor handling of organic wastes, while earthworm vermicomposting and larvae bioconversion are well-known as two promising biotechnologies for sustainable wastes treatments, where earthworms or housefly larvae are employed to convert the organic wastes into humus like material, together with value-added worm product. Taken earthworm ( Eisenia foetida) and housefly larvae ( Musca domestica) as model species, this work illustrates fundamental definition and principle, operational process, technical mechanism, main factors, and bio-chemical features of organisms of these two technologies. Integrated with the physical and biochemical mechanisms, processes of biomass conversion, intestinal digestion, enzyme degradation and microflora decomposition are comprehensively reviewed on waste treatments with purposes of waste reduction, value-addition, and stabilization.

Methanogenic corn stalk degrading enrichment cultures were constructed using corn stalk as the sole carbon source and eight types of environmental samples as inocula. All the cultures could degrade corn stalk within 30-50 days and the total solids (TS) removal rates were in the range of 30%-40%. In six out of eight cultures, the cumulative methane yields per gram TS were 62.1-118.4 mL x g(-1), with acetate, propionate and butyrate as the major volatile fatty acids (100-500 mg x L(-1)), and the final pH were 6.5-6.7. In the other two cultures, the cumulative methane yields per gram TS were 8.5-9.7 mL xg(-1), while the concentrations of acetate were high (1200 mg x L(-1)), and the final pH were low (5.6-5.9). The bacterial and archaeal structures in eight enrichments were investigated with a 16S rRNA genes-based clone library method. Clones belonging to the bacterial phyla Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, Synergistetes and Thermotogae were observed in abundance within the bacterial clone libraries, which accounted for 37.8%, 34.3%, 11.6% and 6.4% of the total number of bacterial clones, respectively. Within the domain Archaea, clones affiliated with the classes Methanomicrobia and Methanobacteria were found to be abundant in the archaeal clone libraries, which accounted for 61.1% and 38.9% of the total number of archaeal clones, respectively.

Thirteen sludge samples from Guangzhou, Shanghai and Dalian were collected and analysed for heavy metals to investigate the distribution and variation trend of heavy metals in sludge from wastewater treatment plants in Chinese coastal areas. The results showed that contents of heavy metals in sludge varied significantly, and the average contents exhibited an order of Cr > Zn > Cu > Pb > As > Hg > Cd. Additionally, contents of Cr, Cu and As exceeded their corresponding standard levels. Compared with contents of heavy metals in 2006 and 2001, content of Zn in sludge increased while contents of Cr, Cu and As decreased. Results also indicated that the industrial sludge was more seriously polluted than domestic sludge in terms of Zn, Cu and As. Only 23% sludge samples exceeded the standards for fertilization of sludge, suggesting that most of the sludge could be disposed by land application. These results also provide further information about the establishment of ocean disposal assessment for sludge.

Odor pollution of landfill site is a serious problem accompanied with the urbanization process that influences city life. Generally, odor emission points in landfill boundary are detected by experience, but the pollution intensity, distribution and variation in the scope of landfill boundary are difficulty to describe. In this research, odor emission points were disclosed with equal odor concentration curves that were delineated using electric nose and GPS instrument. The leakage of landfill gas and exhaust emission from biogas incineration torch was the main cause of the odor pollution in landfill area. Gas production evaluation suggested that the improvement of landfill gas consumption is the key point to control the odor pollution at the landfill site.

Experiments were carried out on laboratory-scale electrically heated tube furnace sewage sludge combustion with different adsorbents. Four solid adsorbents (calcium oxide, Alumina, fly ash and kaolin) were used to control the emission of heavy metals (Pb, Cd, Cu, Cr, Ni, Zn) during the sewage sludge incineration. The results showed that the heavy metals tended to be fixed and left over in the incineration bottom ash with the addition of calcium oxide, Alumina, fly ash and kaolin. With the increase of the solid adsorbent ratio, the residual rate of heavy metals in the bottom ash also increased. Incineration temperature had a great influence on the heavy metal adsorption effect of the solid adsorbent. The forms, melting point and boiling point of the heavy metals were found to be important factors that determined its volatility. There was huge difference in the inhibitory effect of different adsorbents on heavy metals migration. From the view of controlling heavy metal evaporation, the adsorbents kaolin and CaO were superior to the other adsorbents. The interaction between the active center of the solid adsorbent and the molecules of the heavy metal compounds depended on the distribution of these active sites and the chemical properties of the heavy metals.

The abundance variation of the functional genes (nirK, nirS and nosZ) involved in denitrification was investigated using the real-time polymerase chain reaction (real-time PCR) at different locations (top, center and bottom) of the compost pile during the agricultural waste composting. The changes in pile temperature, pH, moisture content, soluble NH4(+) -N, NO3(-) -N and water soluble carbon (WSC) were measured. The results showed that the abundance of those genes varied among the samples collected in different zones. Redundancy analysis (RDA) was applied to explore the correlations between the abundance of nirK, nirS and nosZ and the composting physic-chemical parameters. The results suggested that water soluble carbon (WSC), pile temperature and nitrate had the most significant impacts on the abundance of the three genes. The t-value biplots for each environmental variable indicated that nirK was positively related with temperature and pH (P < 0.05), nirS was positively related with temperature (P < 0.05), and nosZ was positively related with NH4(+) -N while negatively with WSC.

Using time domain reflectometry (TDR) technology, waste moisture content variation in aerobic and anaerobic landfill of MSW was monitored, in order to study its disciplinarian. The results showed that volume moisture content of waste increased with landfill time and water holding capacity of waste improved continuously. The correlation of water quantity and moisture content was positive in early aerobic landfill, but it became negative later. In anaerobic landfill, moisture content variation was caused by settlement and compression of MSW. TDR readings and waste material-based volume moisture content had a good correlation. The maximum error between them is about +/- 5% in aerobic landfill and +/- 2% in anaerobic landfill. TDR technology is applicable to measure moisture content in practical landfill engineering.

Lignocellulosic material is the most abundant renewable resource in the earth. Herbivores and wood-eating insects are highly effective in the digestion of plant cellulose, while anaerobic digestion process simulating animal alimentary tract still remains inefficient. The digestion mechanisms of herbivores and wood-eating insects and the development of anaerobic digestion processes of lignocellulose were reviewed for better understanding of animal digestion mechanisms and their application in design and operation of the anaerobic digestion reactor. Highly effective digestion of lignocellulosic materials in animal digestive system results from the synergistic effect of various digestive enzymes and a series of physical and biochemical reactions. Microbial fermentation system is strongly supported by powerful pretreatment, such as rumination of ruminants, cellulase catalysis and alkali treatment in digestive tract of wood-eating insects. Oxygen concentration gradient along the digestive tract may stimulate the hydrolytic activity of some microorganisms. In addition, the excellent arrangement of solid retention time, digesta flow and end product discharge enhance the animal digestion of wood cellulose. Although anaerobic digestion processes inoculated with rumen microorganisms based rumen digestion mechanisms were developed to treat lignocellulose, the fermentation was more greatly limited by the environmental conditions in the anaerobic digestion reactors than that in rumen or hindgut. Therefore, the anaerobic digestion processes simulating animal digestion mechanisms can effectively enhance the degradation of wood cellulose and other organic solid wastes.

In order to illustrate the degradation of tetracyclines (TCs) and their influences on process parameters during the period of chicken feces aerobic-composting, the degradation of oxytetracycline (OTC), a kind of TCs and its effects on parameters during the period of chick feces aerobic-composting including temperature, pH, and germination index were investigated using the method of aerobic-composting. The contents of OTC decreased gradually with composting time. The degradation rate was high before 10 d, and then decreased gradually. The differences in OTC degradation among the OTC treatments were also found. The degradation rate of OTC was higher at the level of 25 mg.kg-1, than that of other levels. The degradation curve of OTC could be described by the first-order kinetic model, and the correlation coefficients ranged from 0. 911 1 to 0. 9913. The impacts of OTC on chick feces composting were found. OTC could decrease the rising rate of composting temperature and make the high temperature (> or =50 degrees C) period shorter than that of the control. The values of pH, TN, WSC, and the content of NH: -N of composting were 4.58%, 12.62%, 49.06%, and 35.30% higher than those of the control. The impacts of OTC on maturity of chicken feces composting was not found when the OTC addition contents were lower than 50 mg.kg-1. However, the strong impacts of OTC on maturity of chicken feces composting were found when the OTC addition contents were higher than 50 mg.kg-1. The rates of NH+4 -N to NO-3 -N, and GI were much higher than 0. 5 and lower than 80% , respectively. Theses results suggest that OTC have strong impacts on chicken feces composting when the contents of TOC was higher than 50 mg.kg-1, although OTC have the short half-life period ranged from 1.79-4.88 d.

Microalgae cultivation based on the waste water or other reused waste can not only make rational use of the waste, but also provide cheap materials for microalgae production. In the present study, Chlorella pyrenoidosa was used to develop a new way for microalgae cultivation based on the mix culture media with different ratio of sludge extracts and SE (selenite enrichment). Results showed that after 14 d cultivation under the same cultivating condition, the absorbency of C. pyrenoidosa at 680 nm was 0. 858 and 0. 845, respectively, when the ratio between culture medium of SE and sludge extracts was 1:9 and 2:8, and the absorbency at 680 nm was 0.247 and 0.571, respectively, when the ratio between culture medium of SE and sludge extracts was 0:10 and 10:0. Our results also demonstrated that highest content of chlororphyll, beta-carotene and protein was achieved in C. pyrenoidosa cultivated in the mix medium between SE and sludge extracts with the ratio of 2: 8. Therefore, sludge extracts can be used as a good medium to cultivate C. pyrenoidosa, and the C. pyrenoidosa grew much better in this mix medium than in SE medium. In this study, the best condition for C. pyrenoidosa cultivation was achieved in the mix medium with 80% sludge extracts, and C. pyrenoidosa grew very well and the content of chlororphyll and protein was also high in the microalgae cell in this mixture medium.

The effects of natural goethite (NGt) and synthetic goethite (SGt) on the release of methane in the anaerobic biochemical system consisted of dissimilatory iron-reducing bacteria (DIRB) and methane-producing bacteria (MPB) were investigated through batch tests with sodium acetate as the carbon source. To explore the effects and mechanisms of both mineral materials on the release of methane in the anaerobic decomposition process of organic matter in the presence of DIRB, the main gas components and total organic carbon (TOC) , total inorganic carbon (TIC), and Fe2+ in the aqueous phase of the experimental process were determined and XRD analyses were conducted for the solid-phase product. Moreover, the minerals were analyzed by specific surface area (BET), X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray fluorescence (XRF). Modified Gompertz equation was used to fit the cumulative methane and carbon dioxide. Results showed that the maximum cumulative production of methane was brought forward by 60-78 days by the addition of goethite and CO2 was effectively reduced by 30% - 67% compared with the control samples. SGt was more effective than NGt in promoting the release of CH4 and reducing the CO, emission. Furthermore, the analysis of the solid product showed that the addition of goethite can fix part of CO2 by the formation of siderite.

Penicillium simplicissimum(Oudem.) Thomrn BGA can secrete lignocellulolytic enzymes, among these enzymes the highest activities of hemicellulase, cellulase, lignin peroxidase (Lip), manganese peroxidase (Mnp) and laccase are 146.82 Iu.g-1, 2.78 U.g-1, 47.97 U.g-1, 34.56 U.g-1 and 17.94 U.g-1 respectively. According to the results and the statistical analysis of SPSS, the ability of secreting lignocellulolytic enzymes by Penicillium simplicissimum significantly correlated with the structure of lignocellulose, and the biodegradation of lignocellulose was probably a kind of synergistic effect of several lignocellulolytic enzymes. In the solid-state fermentation of 30 days, the hemicellulose content has a significantly negative correlation with the fermentation days(r = -0.946, P < 0.01), there was also a significantly negative correlation between the cellulose-biodegradation and the lignin-biodegradation (r = -0.818, P<0.05). As unselected enzymes, Lip and Mnp can degrade hemicellulose and cellulose corporately when biodegrades lignin. The significant correlation is showed between Lip, Mnp and cellulose (correlation parameters are r = 0. 922, P <0.01; r = 0.807, P<0.05 respectively). In addition, the biosorption is found to have a very important effect in the removal of liquid alkali lignin by Penicillium simplicissimum. Key words:Penicillium simplicissimum; lignocellulolytic enzymes; biodegradation; biosorption; synergistic effect

At solid retention time (SRT) of 20 days, biogas production, volatile solid (VS) degradation and system stability in co-digestion systems of dewatered sludge (DS) and kitchen garbage (KG) were investigated in semi-continuous completely mixed reactors numbered R1-R5 (the DS/KG of their feeding substrate based on wet mass was 1:0, 4:1, 3:2, 2:3 and 0:1, respectively). The results showed that, with larger proportion of KG in feeding substrate, higher methane yield and biogas yield were obtained with lower methane content. For certain reactor at given SRT, KG addition could significantly improve the organic loading rate (OLR) and volume biogas production. System with more KG addition favored higher hydraulic constant k and VS reduction. The hydraulic constant k was 0.25 d(-1), 0.61 d(-1), 1.09 d(-1) and 1.56 d(-1), and the VS reduction was 37.4%, 50.6%, 60.7% and 68.2% for R1-R4, respectively, indicating higher hydrolysis rates with more KG addition, which led to increased VS reductions. With larger KG proportion in feeding substrate, pH, total alkalinity (TA), total ammonia nitrogen (TAN) and free ammonia nitrogen (FAN) showed decreasing trend. As KG addition increased by 60%, pH, TA, TAN and FAN decreased by 6%, 16%, 22% and 75%, respectively. FAN and Na+ respectively were potential inhibitory chemicals that threatened the stability of the mono-system of DS and KG. In comparison with the mono-system of DS or KG, the co-system showed higher stability by diluting toxic chemicals like ammonia or Na+ to much lower levels.

An experiment using monolith lysimeter was conducted to compare the characteristic of N loss by ammonia (NH3) volatilization between the gleyed paddy soil (G soil) and hydromorphic paddy soil (H soil) the Changshu National Agro-ecological Experimental Station of the Chinese Academy of Sciences(31 degrees 33' N, 123 degrees 38' E). Three treatments were designed for each soil type, i. e. control (no urea and straw applied), nitrogen solely and nitrogen plus wheat straw. Ammonia volatilization, flood water NH4(+) -N concentration, pH and top soil Eh were measured during the rice-growing season. Results showed that the NH3 volatilization flux and cumulative N losses by NH3 volatilization from G soil were significantly higher than those from H soil, the average cumulative N losses being about 41.8 kg x hm(-2) and 11.2 kg x hm(-2), or 15.2% and 3.8% of the fertilizer N, respectively. The average N loss by NH3 volatilization during the tillering stage was the highest among the three fertilization stages, accounting for 29.4% and 8.3% of the fertilizer N for G soil and H soil, respectively. Wheat straw returning significantly increased paddy filed NH3 volatilization losses. Comparing with the sole application of fertilizer-N, the cumulative N loss by NH3 volatilization of fertilizer-N in combination with wheat straw was increased by 19.8% and 20.6% for G soil and H soil, respectively. In addition, ammonia volatilization fluxes showed a positive relationship with the flood water NH4(+) -N concentration and pH for both soils, but the relationship with top soil Eh still needs further study.

Waste incineration is the main source of PAHs pollution of the atmosphere. In order to monitor the PAHs produced during the process of incineration, methods of quantitatively analysis for the PAHs of the atmosphere around the refuse incineration plant has been used on the basis of passive sampling technology. The result shows that the quantum of PAHs ranged 146.29-396.30 ng x d(-1), among which gaseous phase ranged 128.03-377.05 ng x d(-1), particulate phase ranged 10.698-19.251 ng x d(-1). Low ring compounds like phenanthrene, fluoranthene, fluorene make up the most of PAHs of gaseous phase in the atmosphere, in which phenanthrene reaches up to 55.1%. Pine needles are picked as passive plant samples, and the result shows that the concentration of PAHs in pine needles ranged 651.88-1 044.43 ng x g(-1). The distribution characteristics of PAHs in the soil reveals that the concentration of PAHs in the soil ranged 35.04-998.89 ng x g(-1). The PAHs distributions in passive sampling, pines and soil are extremely similar, which indicates that the passive samplings can reflect the real PAHs accumulation conditions in the environment. Besides, the results of passive sampling were compared with active sampling, and both accumulation abilities work almost the same.

Fly ash sample was collected from a MSW co-combustion with sewage sludge plant and the volatilization of heavy metals Pb, Cd, Cu and Zn was investigated before and after the water washing of fly ash, meanwhile, the influence of adding different sulphur compounds (S, NaS, Na2 SO3, Na2 SO4) on the volatilization of heavy metals was studied. The results showed that the contents of Zn, Pb and Mn were high, the Ni content was low and the Cd content reached 29.4 mg x kg(1). The contents of Pb, Cu, Zn increased, while that of Cd reduced in the fly ash after water washing. TG-DTG curves of fly ash showed highest weight loss in ranges of 579-732 degrees C and 949-1 200 degrees C, with 690 degrees C and 1 154 degrees C as the inflection point temperatures. The volatilization of different heavy metals showed great difference in the volatilization rate, following the order of Pb > Cd > Zn > Cu, in which the volatilization rate of Pb was more than 80% and that of Cu was less than 30%. After water washing, the volatilization of different heavy metals showed great difference in the volatilization rate, with the order of Zn > Pb > Cd > Cu, in which the volatilization rate of Zn was more than 20%. With the pretreatment of adding Na2 SO3 and Na2 SO4, the evaporation rates of heavy metals (Cu, Pb, Zn, Cd) were significantly decreased. After adding S, the evaporation rate of Zn was reduced, whereas the addition of Na2S reduced the evaporation rates of Cd and Zn. The evaporation rates of the four heavy metals were all reduced after adding Na2S in the washed fly ash. The evaporation rates of Cu and Zn were reduced with addition of S and Na2SO3 and the evaporation rate of Cd was reduced by adding the four sulfides. The results can provide a basis for the harmless disposal and maximized resource utilization and recycling of fly ash.

Natural steroid estrogens such as 17beta-estradiol (E2) with low concentrations (ng x L(-1)) can adversely affect the reproductive health of aquatic organisms. Batch equilibrium experiments were conducted to quantify the sorption of E2 to two agricultural soils and a river sediment from different physiographic regions in northern China, a critical step in predicting transport of estrogens in runoff from agricultural fields. Meanwhile, the effect of pig manure and its compost borne dissolved organic matter (DOM) on E2 sorption was investigated. The Freundlich isotherm provided a good fit to model the sorption of E2 to agricultural soils and the sediment (R2 > 0.76). E2 adsorption nonlinearity was found for alluvial soil, black soil and the sediment, most isotherm deviation from linearity occurred in black soil (n = 0.74). The sorption of E2 to agricultural soil and sediment was correlated to the organic carbon content of each soil/sediment (P<0.05) with K(f) values ranging from 26.2 to 57.5. It was also found that the presence of DOM decreased estrogen sorption in soils and sediment, especially manure compost borne DOM. These results suggest that E2 was mostly adsorbed on organic matter in soil and sediment, and coexisted pig manure DOM could increase mobility at low concentration level and enhance the risk of E2 transport to ground and surface waters.

A new fungal strain with high laccase production was isolated from the agricultural waste composting. It was identified as Hypocrea lixii based on morphological analysis and ITS sequence. The partial laccase gene of the new strain was successfully amplified using the primer pair Cu1AF and Cu2R. After purification and cloning of the PCR product, a 148 bp fragment of laccase gene was obtained. The laccase activity of the strain reached a peak value of 67.5 U x mL(-1) in liquid medium. The molecular mass of the purified laccase was determined to be about 60 x 10(3). The optimum temperature and pH for enzyme activity were 35 degrees C and 4.0, respectively. The half-time of the enzyme was more than 1 h at 60 degrees C. Under standard assay conditions, K(m) values was 1.00 mmol x L(-1) towards ABTS. Laccase activity was inhibited by several metal ions, such as Na+, Fe2+, Fe3+, Pb2+ and Zn2+. This strain has a good potential for application as a bioaugmentation strain in the agricultural waste composting system.

The amount of fly ash produced during coal combustion is around 400 million tons per year in China. About 65%-68% of fly ash is used in building material production, road construction, architecture and agriculture. Some of these utilization processes include high temperature procedures, which may lead to mercury re-emissions. In this study, experiments were designed to simulate the key process in cement production and steam-cured brick production. A temperature programmed desorption (TPD) method was used to study the mercury transformation in the major utilization processes. Mercury re-emission during the fly ash utilization in China was estimated based on the experimental results. It was found that mercury existed as HgCl2 (Hg2 Cl2), HgS and HgO in the fly ash. During the cement production process, more than 98% of the mercury in fly ash was re-emitted. In the steam-curing brick manufacturing process, the average mercury re-emission percentage was about 28%, which was dominated by the percentage of HgCl2 (Hg2 Cl2). It is estimated that the mercury re-emission during the fly ash utilization have increased from 4.07 t in 2002 to 9.18 t in 2008, of which cement industry contributes about 96.6%.

The volatilization of heavy metals Pb, Cd, Cu and Zn were studied at 900 degrees C and 1 000 degrees C with different residence time, meanwhile the influence of chlorination agents CaCl2, MgCl2, NaCl, FeCl3 and AlCl3 on heavy metals volatilization was studied. The results showed that the volatilization of heavy metals had great differences with the volatilization rate followed the order Pb > Cd > Zn > Cu, in which the volatilization rate of Pb was more than 80% and that of Cu was less than 30%. In the thermal disposal process, the volatilization rate influenced by temperature was greater than that by the residence time, and the volatile elements Pb and Cd were particularly evident in the volatilization. After adding chlorides in fly ash, the volatilization of heavy metals changed significantly, and the volatilization rate of the low volatile elements Cu and Zn increased significantly compared with Pb and Cd. With the content of chloride increasing, the volatilization rate of heavy metals increased, but different types of chloride compounds on heavy metal transformation were quite different, in which the promotion effect of NaCl on heavy metals Cd, Zn and Cu was less than that of other chlorinating agents. The results can provide strategies for the harmless disposal and maximize resource utilization and recycling of fly ash.

Waste disposal is one of the sources of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from urban human activities. According to the method recommended by IPCC Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories 2006, a calculation model was established to assess GHG emissions of waste disposal in Xiamen. Then GHG emissions from waste disposal in Xiamen during the year of 2005-2010 were estimated, including solid waste landfill, solid waste incineration and wastewater treatment. The results showed that total GHG emissions quantified in carbon dioxide equivalents (CO2e) from waste disposal was 406.3 kt in 2005, and increased to 704.6 kt in 2010. Because of the improvement of wastewater treatment process and rapid increasing municipal solid waste (MSW), the main source of emissions was from wastewater treatment turning to solid waste landfill. GHG emissions from solid waste landfill accounted for about 90% of total emissions from solid waste disposal process in 2005, and the proportion decreased to 75% in 2010. GHG emissions (quantified in CO2e) from waste water treatment reached the highest value 325.5 kt in 2007. Chemical raw materials and chemical industry have been the highest CH4 emission industry during 2005-2010, which accounted for more than 55% of total CH4 emission from industrial wastewater treatment.

In order to discuss the anti-Thiobacillus corrosion performance of geopolymer solidification MSWI fly ash, the research simulated the Thiobacillus corrosion process by experiment, investigated the change of mass, compressive strength, leaching concentration. The results showed that geopolymer had a good anti-corrosion ability: weight loss within 1%, the compressive strength still reached 21.88 MPa after 28 days, the corrosion resistance coefficient was above 0.9. The maximum leaching concentration of Cr, Cu, Zn, Cd, Hg, Pb were 107.7 microg x L(-1), 22.71 microg x L(-1), 39.18 microg x L(-1), 0.56 microg x L(-1), 34.84 microg x L(-1) and 3.03 microg x L(-1), respectively. And the leaching concentration of geopolymer reduced with the immersion time, showed a good anti-Thiobacillus corrosion performance. Through the X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscope spectra of geopolymer, we investigated the microstructure and mechanism of geopolymer anti-corrosion.

In this study, PCR-DGGE was used to analyze the microbial community structure in lactic acid fermentation from kitchen waste. The results showed that with Lactobacillus amylophilus inoculation, both the microbial diversity and lactic acid production in the open fermentation system were higher than those in the sterilized fermentation system. These results indicated that the microbial diversity and the lactic acid production have great correlation in the kitchen waste fermentation system. Through analyzing the sequence of some DNA bands excised from the DGGE gel, it showed that in addition to the inoculation of Lactobacillus amylophilus there were some indigenous lactic acid bacteria, such as Lactobacillus sp., Lactobacillus casei, Lactobacillus plantarum and indigenous hydrolytic bacteria, such as Pseudomonas sp.. These indigenous bacteria can help to promote lactic acid production. PCR-DGGE is feasible for analyzing the dynamic changes of microbial community structure in kitchen waste with complicated composition.

In order to deeply explore the mechanism of sludge reduction in OSA system, carbon balance was performed in an anoxic-oxic-settling-anaerobic (A + OSA) system and a reference AO system to investigate effects of inserting a sludge holding tank in sludge cycle line on the sludge reduction process. Meanwhile, carbon mass change in each reaction unit was identified in terms of solid, liquid and gas phases. The causes of excess sludge reduction in A + OSA system were deduced. The carbon balance results show that when the hydraulic retention time in the sludge holding tank is 7.14 h, carbon percent in solid phase of the sludge reduction system is nearly 50% higher than that of the reference system, supporting the consequence that sludge reduction rate of 49.98% had been achieved. The insertion of a sludge holding tank in the sludge return circuit can be effective in sludge reduction. Carbon changes in each unit reveal that the amount of carbon consumed for biosynthesis in the anoxic and oxic tanks (main reaction zone) of the sludge reduction system is higher than in that of the reference system. Sludge decay is observed in the sludge holding tank. Furthermore, CH4 released from the sludge holding tank is significantly higher than that from the main reaction zone. The DGGE profiles show that there are hydrolytic-fermentative bacteria in the sludge holding tank related to sludge decay. The excess sludge reduction in the A + OSA system could be a result of the combination of sludge decay in the sludge holding tank and sludge compensatory growth in the main reaction cell.

The carbon dioxide (CO2) in flue gas was used to remove the sodium in the red mud (RM) , a kind of alkaline solid waste generated during alumina production. The reaction characteristics and mechanism of sodium removal by the synergistic action of CO2 and RM were studied with different medium pH, reaction time and temperature. It was demonstrated that the remove of sodium by RM was actually the result of the synergistic action of sodium-based solid waste in RM with the CO2-H2O and OH(-)-CO2 systems. The sodium removal efficiency was correlated with pH, reaction temperature and time. The characteristics of RM before and after sodium removal were analyzed using X-ray diffractometer (XRD) and scanning electron microscope (SEM), and the results showed that the alkaline materials in the red mud reacted with CO2 and the sodium content in solid phases decreased significantly after reaction. The sodium removal efficiency could reach up to 70% with scientific procedure. The results of this research will offer an efficient way for low-cost sodium removal.

In order to enhance the efficiency of anaerobic digestion of excess sludge, acid-alkali pretreatment method was studied. Three different pretreatment methods (alkali alone,acid-alkali, alkali-acid) were compared to investigate their impacts on hydrolysis and acidification of activated sludge. In addition, their influences on methane-producing in subsequent anaerobic digestion process were also studied. The results showed that the soluble chemical oxygen demand (SCOD) of alkaline treatment alone was about 16% higher than the combining of acid and alkali treatment, SCOD concentration increased to 5406.1 mg x L(-1) after 8 d pretreatment. After treated by acid (pH 4.0, 4 d) and alkali (pH 10.0, 4 d), the acetic acid production and its content in short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) were higher than other pretreatment methods. And the acetic acid production (as COD/VSS) could reach 74.4 mg x g(-1), accounting for 60.5% of SCFAs. After acid-alkali pretreatment, the C: N ratio of the sludge mixed liquor was about 25, and the C: P ratio was between 35-40, which was more favorable than C: N and C: P ratio of alkali alone and alkali-acid to subsequent anaerobic digestion. The control experiments showed that, after acid-alkali pretreatment, anaerobic digestion cumulative methane yield (CH4/VSS(in)) reached to 136.1 mL x g(-1) at 15 d, which was about 2.5-, 1.6-, and 1.7-fold of the blank (unpretreated), alkali alone pretreatment and alkali-acid pretreatment, respectively. After acid-alkali pretreatment for 8 d and anaerobic digestion for 15 d, the removal efficiency of VSS was about 60.9%, and the sludge reduction effect was better than other pretreatments. It is obvious that the acid-alkali pretreatment method was more favorable to anaerobic digestion and sludge reduction.

Using sub-milliFiltration (SMF) module get the sludge of the system divide into high concentration part and low concentration part, in order to make the high concentration part retain activated sludge to strengthen removal rate of organics and the low concentration part meet the need of MBR. Discussing the sludge concentration partition effect under the conditions of small reflux ratio(R 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0), In addition, investigating the COD removal efficiency of the system with SMF Module, comparing the measured and theoretical value of the MLVSS at each small reflux ratio. Results show that: the method of sludge concentration partition at small reflux ratio condition is feasible, the MLSS of the low concentration part is below 9 g x L(-1) and the high concentration part is above 20 g x L(-1); average removal rate of COD is above 90%; measured value of the two part is related to theoretical value.

The drying behaviors of four typical municipal solid waste (MSW) components (including waste paper, textile, pericarp and wood) were studied under low temperature. Effects of temperature on drying characteristic, thin layer drying models, effective moisture diffusion coefficient and activation energy were investigated in this paper. Experimental results showed that with increasing temperature, the drying rate increased, but the added value reduced gradually. Four mathematical models were used to simulate drying curves of MSW components. Modified Page model was found to give better predictions when moisture content was more than 25%. Based on the Fick's second law, the effective moisture diffusion coefficient for waste paper, textile, pericarp and wood were 8.24 x 10(-8)-23.67 x 10(-8), 7.73 x 10(-8)-12.56 x 10(-8), 3.57 x 10(-8)-14.18 x 10(-8) and 6.51 x 10(-8)-23.84 x 10(-8)m2 x s(-1). The activation energy determined through Arrhenius equation were 25.26, 10.75, 32.16 and 29.49 kJ x mol(-1), respectively. Carried on the similar dry experiments to practical MSW, It was found that Modified Page model was also suitable for simulating the drying process of practical MSW, its effective moisture diffusion coefficient and activation energy were 6.78 x 10(-8)-18.65 x 10(-8)m2 x s(-1) and 22.36 kJ x mol(-1), respectively.