Path to zero emission of nitrous oxide in sewage treatment: is nitrification controllable or avoidable?

Min Zheng; James Lloyd; Peter Wardrop; Haoran Duan; Tao Liu; Liu Ye; Bing-Jie Ni

doi:10.1016/j.copbio.2024.103230

Path to zero emission of nitrous oxide in sewage treatment: is nitrification controllable or avoidable?

Curr Opin Biotechnol. 2024 Dec 2:91:103230. doi: 10.1016/j.copbio.2024.103230. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Min Zheng¹, James Lloyd², Peter Wardrop², Haoran Duan³, Tao Liu⁴, Liu Ye⁵, Bing-Jie Ni³

Affiliations

¹ Water Research Centre, School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of New South Wales, Sydney NSW 2052, Australia. Electronic address: [email protected].
² Melbourne Water, 990 La Trobe St, Docklands VIC 3000, Australia.
³ Water Research Centre, School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of New South Wales, Sydney NSW 2052, Australia.
⁴ Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong 999077, PR China.
⁵ School of Chemical Engineering, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia QLD 4072, Australia.

PMID: 39631213
DOI: 10.1016/j.copbio.2024.103230

Abstract

Amid growing concerns over climate change, the need to reduce nitrous oxide (N₂O) emissions from sewage treatment is more urgent than ever. Sewage treatment plants are significant sources of N₂O due to its production as an intermediate in nitrification and its release into the air during aeration. Effective management of the nitrification process is therefore vital for controlling or eliminating these emissions. Despite substantial efforts to quantify and understand N₂O emissions from sewage treatment, success in reducing them has been limited. This review discusses and proposes promising solutions for reducing N₂O emissions in sewage treatment, evaluates the potential of various strategies, and identifies ways to accelerate their development and implementation.

Publication types

Review