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Development of Sulfidogenic Sludge from Marine Sediments and Trichloroethylene Reduction in an Upflow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket Reactor
Published on: October 15, 2015
Phase transformation and microbial succession during oily sludge treatment: A comparison of bioaugmentation and
Zhengqi Xu1, Fucheng Teng1, Song Xie2
1School of Minerals Processing and Bioengineering, Central South University, Changsha 410083, China; Key Laboratory of Biometallurgy, Ministry of Education, Changsha 410083, China.
Abstract:
Oily sludge is a hazardous petrochemical waste whose remediation is constrained by a stable oil-water-solid structure. This study systematically compared bioaugmentation (TB) and Fenton oxidation (TC) in terms of oil removal efficiency, microstructural transformation, and overall treatment performance. Bioaugmentation achieved higher oil removal (73.38%) than Fenton oxidation (66.56%). Physicochemical analyses (SEM, FTIR, XRD, and GC-MS) showed that TB transformed the compact sludge matrix into a looser and more porous structure, accompanied by redistribution of hydrocarbons from long-chain to shorter fractions, indicating effective phase destabilization rather than sole chemical oxidation. Microbial community analysis, conducted exclusively for TB, revealed a clear temporal shift in community composition that coincided with the major oil removal phase, suggesting a close association between microbial succession and treatment performance. Overall, this study indicates that bioaugmentation promotes oil removal through coupled microstructural disruption and biological transformation of hydrocarbons, highlighting its potential as a sustainable alternative to conventional chemical oxidation for oily sludge remediation.
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