Influence of roxithromycin as antibiotic residue on volatile fatty acids recovery in anaerobic fermentation of waste activated sludge

Chen H 1 , Zeng X 1 , Zhou Y 2 , Yang X 3 , Lam SS 4 , Wang D 5

Affiliations 

  • 1 College of Environment and Resources, Xiangtan University, Xiangtan 411105, China
  • 2 College of Resources and Environment, Hunan Agricultural University, Changsha 410128, China
  • 3 Korea Biochar Research Center, O-Jeong Eco-Resilience Institute (OJERI) & Division of Environmental Science and Ecological Engineering, Korea University, Seoul 02841, Republic of Korea. Electronic address: knuyx0309@gmail.com
  • 4 Pyrolysis Technology Research Group, Institute of Tropical Aquaculture and Fisheries Research (Akuatrop) & Institute of Tropical Biodiversity and Sustainable Development (Bio-D Tropika), Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, 21030 Kuala Nerus, Terengganu Malaysia
  • 5 College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Hunan University, Changsha 410082, China
J Hazard Mater, 2020 07 15;394:122570.
PMID: 32244145 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2020.122570

Abstract

The removal of antibiotics and resistance genes in wastewater treatment plants has attracted widespread attention, but the potential role of residual antibiotics in the disposal of waste activated sludge (WAS) has not been clearly understood. In this study, the effect of roxithromycin (ROX) on volatile fatty acid (VFA) recovery from WAS anaerobic fermentation was investigated. The experimental results showed that ROX made a positive contribution to the production of VFAs. With the increase of ROX dosages from 0 to 100 mg/kg TSS, the maximum accumulation of VFAs increased from 295 to 610 mg COD/L. Mechanism studies revealed that ROX promoted the solubilization of WAS by facilitating the disruption of extracellular polymeric substances. In addition, ROX enhanced the activity of acetate kinase and inhibited the activities of α-glucosidase and coenzyme F420, and showed a stronger inhibitory effect on methane production than the hydrolysis process, thus resulting in an increase in VFA accumulation. These findings provide a new insight for the role of antibiotics in anaerobic fermentation of WAS.

* Title and MeSH Headings from MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.

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