Application of Membrane Bioreactor Integrated With Ultraviolet Disinfection for Simultaneous Greywater Treatment and Sars-Cov-2 Removal Publisher



Shamskilani M¹ ; Najafi Chaleshtori S² ; Navid S³ ; Babaei A⁴ ; Shayegan J⁴ ; Farsirad S⁵
Source: International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology Published:2023

Abstract

One of the innovative approaches to supplying water demands for irrigation and recreational purposes is the treatment and reuse of greywater. However, during the coronavirus pandemic, greywater has the potential to be polluted by SARS-CoV-2. Therefore, it is unsafe to reuse it during the peak of the COVID-19 outbreak. In this research, a membrane bioreactor combined with an ultraviolet disinfection system is applied to treat the greywater and remove the SARS-CoV-2 virus up to the required quality for irrigation or flush tank purposes. The results showed membrane bioreactor could remove 94.3 ± 1.2% of initial chemical oxygen demand and be partially successful in virus removal. Fifty percent of secondary treated effluent samples were still positive for SARS-CoV-2 RNA. The results also illustrated that ultraviolet disinfection could reduce faecal and total coliform by more than 99% and eliminate the SARS-CoV-2 virus. The tertiary treated effluent biochemical oxygen demand, chemical oxygen demand, and total coliform were 1.7 ± 0.2 mg/l, 18 ± 1.2 mg/l, and below 3 MPN/100 mL, respectively. Moreover, all of the samples of the tertiary treated effluent were negative for coronavirus RNA. Therefore, the tertiary treated effluent characteristic satisfied Iran’s standards for wastewater reuse in irrigation. © 2023, The Author(s) under exclusive licence to Iranian Society of Environmentalists (IRSEN) and Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University.