Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 2, 2026

A Novel Bioreactor for High Density Cultivation of Diverse Microbial Communities
Published on: December 25, 2015
Mechanism, kinetics and application studies on enhanced activated sludge by interior microelectrolysis
Xiaoyi Yang1, Yu Xue, Wenna Wang
1Department of Thermal Energy Engineering, BeiHang University, Xueyuan Road 37#, Haidian, District, Beijing 100083, PR China. yangxiaoyi@buaa.edu.cn
Enhanced activated sludge by interior microelectrolysis (EAIM) effectively removes COD from textile wastewater. This advanced method outperforms traditional activated sludge and interior microelectrolysis, offering an efficient and economical solution.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Engineering
- Water Treatment Technologies
- Applied Chemistry
Background:
- Textile wastewater poses significant environmental challenges due to its complex composition and high chemical oxygen demand (COD).
- Traditional activated sludge processes and interior microelectrolysis (IME) have limitations in treating such recalcitrant wastewater effectively.
- There is a need for advanced oxidation processes that enhance efficiency and adaptability for textile effluent treatment.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the kinetics, mechanism, and application of enhanced activated sludge by interior microelectrolysis (EAIM) for textile wastewater treatment.
- To compare the performance of EAIM with traditional activated sludge and standalone interior microelectrolysis.
- To elucidate the contributions of different mechanisms to COD removal in the EAIM process.
Main Methods:
- Kinetics study of the EAIM process, analyzing COD removal rates.
- Decomposition of COD removal into contributions from flocculation, activated sludge, and electrophoresis/redox.
- Comparative analysis of EAIM against traditional activated sludge and interior microelectrolysis.
Main Results:
- All studied processes, including EAIM, followed first-order kinetics.
- In EAIM, COD removal is attributed to flocculation (49.6%), activated sludge (30.1%), and electrophoresis/redox (20.3%), assuming no interaction.
- EAIM demonstrated superior COD removal efficiency, adaptability to complex wastewater compositions, and a wide pH operating range.
Conclusions:
- The EAIM-aerobic process is an efficient and economical method for treating textile wastewater.
- EAIM offers significant advantages over conventional methods in terms of performance and operational flexibility.
- Understanding the synergistic mechanisms within EAIM provides a basis for optimizing textile wastewater treatment strategies.
Related Concept Videos
Microbial Wastewater Treatment
Microbial Fuel Cells
Biological Treatment of Effluent and Waste Water
Environmental Applications of Microorganisms
Bioreactor Controls-II
Microbial Bioremediation of Hydrocarbons

