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Updated: May 3, 2026

Development of Sulfidogenic Sludge from Marine Sediments and Trichloroethylene Reduction in an Upflow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket Reactor
Published on: October 15, 2015
[Study on the biotransformation of sulfate and ammonia in anaerobic conditions]
Li Zhang1, Yong Huang2, Yi Yuan3
1School of Environmental Science and Technology, Suzhou University of Science and Technology, Suzhou 215011, China. helene25@163.com
Abstract:
The anaerobic biological transformation characteristics of sulfate and ammonia were investigated in the upflow anaerobic biofilm reactor under inorganic nutrition condition by controlling different hydraulic retention time, NH4(+)-N and SO4(2-)-S ratio and HCO3- concentration in the influent. The results showed that NH4+ and SO4(2-) were synchronously removed. The maximum NH4(+) -N and SO4(2-) -S removal rate was 47.6 mg x (L x d)(-1) and 16.9 mg x (L x d)(-1), respectively, and the highest stable removal efficiency was more than 80% and 43%. Obviously NO3(-) -N generated in the reaction and the maximum NO3(-) -N concentration was 77.6 mg x L(-1) in the effluent. Throughout the process S2- was not detected, but there was elemental sulfur generated attached to the surface of the biological sludge. During the whole process, different control conditions led to different n(NH4(+) -N) and n(SO4(2-) -S) conversion ratios, which showed that anaerobic biological NH4(+) and SO4(2-) transformation was not a simple serial reaction, more complex reactions and conversion pathways occurred in the reactor.
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