Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 12, 2026

A Novel Bioreactor for High Density Cultivation of Diverse Microbial Communities
Published on: December 25, 2015
An integrated membrane bioreactor system with iron-dosing and side-stream co-fermentation for enhanced nutrient
Ruo-Hong Li1, Bing Li2, Xiao-Yan Li1
1Shenzhen Engineering Research Laboratory for Sludge and Food Waste Treatment and Resource Recovery, Graduate School at Shenzhen, Tsinghua University, China; Environmental Engineering Research Centre, Department of Civil Engineering, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong, China.
Abstract:
An integrated membrane bioreactor (MBR) system was developed for enhanced nutrient (N and P) removal and effective P recovery in wastewater treatment. The system consisted of an iron-dosing MBR and side-stream fermentation for P removal and recovery and side-stream denitrification for N removal. Around 98.1% of the total phosphorus (TP) in wastewater was removed by ferric iron-induced precipitation and membrane filtration in the aerobic MBR, and nearly 53.4% of the TP could be recovered via anaerobic fermentation from the MBR sludge. In addition, the fermenter that allowed acidogenic co-fermentation with food waste provided sufficient soluble organics for biological denitrification, and an overall 91.8% total N removal was achieved through the side-stream denitrification. High-throughput sequencing was applied to analyse the microbial communities in the integrated system, and important functional bacteria were identified for nitrification, denitrification, acidogenic fermentation and dissimilatory iron reduction through the different components of the system.
Related Concept Videos
Microbial Fermentation
Fermentation
Fermentation is a type of metabolic process that occurs in the absence of oxygen, where organic molecules such as glucose are broken down to produce energy. During this process, the...
Gene Regulation in Microbial Communities: Quorum Sensing
What are Populations and Communities?
Stream Function
Absorption of Nutrients
Enterocytes, which are specialized polar epithelial cells, line the mucosa of the small intestinal walls. These cells...

