Scholarlink

<p>This study investigates harakeke (New Zealand flax) fibre/PLA composites as biodegradable biocarriers to enhance nitrification in Moving Bed Biofilm Reactor (MBBR) wastewater treatment systems. Biocarriers containing 30% mass harakeke fibres were compared with conventional polyethylene (K3), neat PLA, and raw harakeke fibre rings. Harakeke/PLA biocarriers promoted faster biofilm establishment, accelerated nitrifier colonization, and achieved superior ammoniacal-N reduction. Specifically, harakeke/PLA carriers achieved a 74% median ammoniacal-N reduction, compared with neat PLA (68%), K3 (65%), and raw harakeke fibres (65%). The improved performance is attributed to higher carbon availability and increased surface roughness, supporting microbial growth. Raw harakeke fibre rings initially showed rapid biofilm formation and high nitrification rates but disintegrated after seven weeks, highlighting the need for structural reinforcement. Integrating harakeke with PLA provided both enhanced nitrification and structural stability. Harakeke/PLA biocarriers offer a sustainable alternative to conventional K3 carriers, reducing microplastic pollution and landfill waste. By accelerating biofilm development and reactor start-up, these biocarriers improve treatment performance, and spent carriers could be composted. These findings advance the development of environmentally responsible, cost-effective technologies for wastewater bioremediation.</p> Graphical Abstract <p></p>

错误：搜索内容不能为空，请输入英文关键词
错误：关键词超出字数限制，请精简
高级检索

Wastewater Nitrification Performance of Novel Harakeke (Phormium tenax) Fibre-PLA Biocarriers

  • 期刊论文

  • 出版模式：

    开放获取

  • 发表日期：

    2026年4月12日

查看全文
  • Harizah B. Hariz,
  • Hossein Najaf Zadeh,
  • Christian Gauss,
  • Kim Pickering,
  • Rupert J. Craggs

摘要

This study investigates harakeke (New Zealand flax) fibre/PLA composites as biodegradable biocarriers to enhance nitrification in Moving Bed Biofilm Reactor (MBBR) wastewater treatment systems. Biocarriers containing 30% mass harakeke fibres were compared with conventional polyethylene (K3), neat PLA, and raw harakeke fibre rings. Harakeke/PLA biocarriers promoted faster biofilm establishment, accelerated nitrifier colonization, and achieved superior ammoniacal-N reduction. Specifically, harakeke/PLA carriers achieved a 74% median ammoniacal-N reduction, compared with neat PLA (68%), K3 (65%), and raw harakeke fibres (65%). The improved performance is attributed to higher carbon availability and increased surface roughness, supporting microbial growth. Raw harakeke fibre rings initially showed rapid biofilm formation and high nitrification rates but disintegrated after seven weeks, highlighting the need for structural reinforcement. Integrating harakeke with PLA provided both enhanced nitrification and structural stability. Harakeke/PLA biocarriers offer a sustainable alternative to conventional K3 carriers, reducing microplastic pollution and landfill waste. By accelerating biofilm development and reactor start-up, these biocarriers improve treatment performance, and spent carriers could be composted. These findings advance the development of environmentally responsible, cost-effective technologies for wastewater bioremediation.

Graphical Abstract