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Papers by Joanna Surmacz-Górska

Lecture notes in civil engineering, 2024

Science of The Total Environment, Aug 1, 2023

Water Science and Technology, Sep 1, 2011

A biofilm system with Kaldnes biofilm carrier was used in these studies to cultivate bacteria res... more A biofilm system with Kaldnes biofilm carrier was used in these studies to cultivate bacteria responsible for both partial nitritation and Anammox processes. Due to coexistence of oxygen and oxygen-free zones within the biofilm depth, both processes can occur in a single reactor. Oxygen that inhibits the Anammox process is consumed in the outer layer of the biofilm and in this way Anammox bacteria are protected from oxygen. The impact of oxygen concentration on nitrogen removal rates was investigated in the pilot plant (2.1 m 3), supplied with reject water from the Himmerfjärden Waste Water Treatment Plant. The results of batch tests showed that the highest nitrogen removal rates were obtained for a dissolved oxygen (DO) concentration around 3 g O 2 m À3. At a DO concentration of 4 g O 2 m À3 , an increase of nitrite and nitrate nitrogen concentrations in the batch reactor were observed. The average nitrogen removal rate in the pilot plant during a whole operating period oscillated around 1.3 g N m À2 d À1 (0.3 + 0.1 kg N m À3 d À1) at the average dissolved oxygen concentration of 2.3 g O 2 m À3. The maximum value of a nitrogen removal rate amounted to 1.9 g N m À2 d À1 (0.47 kg N m À3 d À1) and was observed for a DO concentration equal to 2.5 g O 2 m À3. It was observed that increase of biofilm thickness during the operational period, had no influence on nitrogen removal rates in the pilot plant.

An anaerobic ammonium oxidation (Anammox) process was established in a moving-bed biofilm reactor... more An anaerobic ammonium oxidation (Anammox) process was established in a moving-bed biofilm reactor. The research question concerned an interrelation between activated sludge and biofilm in the system. Reaction courses in the Anammox reactor were assessed by the use batch tests for nitrogen uptake rates. The tests were done with the aim of recognizing contribution of different bacterial populations in performing nitrogen elimination in the Anammox process. It was demonstrated that activated sludge and biofilm cultures collaborated in the execution of nitrogen removal in the Anammox reactor.

This paper summarizes an investigation carried out on Polish terrain occupied by Russian Federati... more This paper summarizes an investigation carried out on Polish terrain occupied by Russian Federation military troops. The investigation identified natural environmental devastation, pollution, and contamination. Quantitative estimation of the devastation and its economic evaluation are provided. The results of the investigation are as follows: 406 ha have been contaminated by petrochemical products; 22.7 ha are chemically polluted; and 6,500 ha of underground water, as well as 17.5 ha of surface water, cannot be classified. On 15,300 ha the soil has been degraded, of which landfills comprise an area of 98 ha. No toxic warfare agents have been detected, nor any radioactivity levels exceeding those characteristic of the given region.

All in-text references underlined in blue are linked to publications on ResearchGate, letting you... more All in-text references underlined in blue are linked to publications on ResearchGate, letting you access and read them immediately.

Water Science and Technology, Apr 1, 2007

Due to negative environmental effects of nitrogen discharge to recipients and increasingly string... more Due to negative environmental effects of nitrogen discharge to recipients and increasingly stringent effluent standards, effective nitrogen removal is necessity. Biological methods are the simplest and cheapest way to treat wastewater; however, it may become an extremely expensive option when high influent nitrogen concentrations are measured and there is a lack of biodegradable organic carbon. Therefore, there is a great need to find new solutions and improve existing technologies. The deammonification is an excellent example of such a new process that requires considerably low amounts of organic carbon and oxygen in comparison to conventional nitrification/denitrification. The main objective of presented research was to investigate an Anammox process accompanied with autotrophic nitrification and heterotrophic denitrification in one rotating biological contactor (RBC). During the research period, it was possible to carry out the Anammox process in low temperature below 20 8C. Additionally, it was found that the process is insensitive to high nitrite concentration in the reactor, up to 100 g NO 2-N m 23 , resulting only in a temporary decrease in removal rates. Furthermore, analysis of data indicated that the Stover-Kincannon model can be used for the description of ammonium and nitrite removal processes.

Environmental Engineering and Pollution Prevention, 1996

Water Science and Technology, Mar 27, 2017

In this research work the effects of orange azo dye over ammonia oxidizing bacteria (AOB) and ana... more In this research work the effects of orange azo dye over ammonia oxidizing bacteria (AOB) and anammox bacteria activities were tested. Adsorption onto the biomass was detected with both types of biomass however no biological decolourization occurred. Performed batch tests indicated that concentrations lower than 650 mg orange /L stimulated AOB activity while anammox bacteria activity was inhibited at concentrations higher than 25 mg orange /L. Long-term performance of both processes was tested in the presence of 50 mg orange /L. In the case of the partial nitritation process both the biomass concentration and the specific AOB activity increased after 50 days of orange azo dye addition. Regarding the anammox process, specific activity decreased down to 58% after 12 days of operation; however, initial values were restored 54 days after stopping the dye addition.

Journal of Biotechnology, 2006

The start-up of an Anammox process was studied in a membrane sequencing batch reactor (MSBR) in w... more The start-up of an Anammox process was studied in a membrane sequencing batch reactor (MSBR) in which a submerged hollow fibre membrane module was used to retain the biomass. The reactor was seed with Anammox biomass and fed using the Van de Graaf medium. During a first operating stage, salt precipitation was observed and interfered with microbial activity and caused a decrease of the nitrogen removal rate of the reactor from 100 to only 10 mg l −1 per day. Salt precipitation was avoided by diminishing adequately the Ca and P concentrations of the Van de Graaf medium during the last operating stage. This action increased quickly the activity of the system, and nitrogen removal rate reached up to 710 mg l −1 per day with almost full nitrite removal. Sporadic flotation of the sludge was observed in the MSBR. The use of the membrane avoided biomass wash-out from the system. Moreover, a surprising fact was that Anammox biomass did not grow in flocs in the MSBR, but in granules. This fact showed that this kind of microorganisms have a trend to grow in aggregates. Results indicated that the use of the MSBR could be a suitable system for nitrogen removal by using the Anammox reaction.

CRC Press eBooks, May 21, 2013

Archives of Environmental Protection, Dec 1, 2015

Antibiotics are a group of substances potentially harmful to the environment. They can play a rol... more Antibiotics are a group of substances potentially harmful to the environment. They can play a role in bacterial resistance transfer among pathogenic and non-pathogenic bacteria. In this experiment three representatives of medically important chemotherapeutics, confi rmed to be present in high concentrations in wastewater treatment plants with HPLC analysis were used: erythromycin, sulfamethoxazole and trimethoprim. Erythromycin concentration in activated sludge was not higher than 20 ng L-1. N-acetylo-sulfamethoxazole concentration was 3349 ± 719 in winter and 2933 ± 429 ng L-1 in summer. Trimethoprim was present in wastewater at concentrations 400 ± 22 and 364 ± 60 ng L-1 , respectively in winter and summer. Due to a wide variety of PCR-detectable resistance mechanisms towards these substances, the most common found in literature was chosen. For erythromycin: erm and mef genes, for sulfamethoxazole: sul1, sul2, sul3 genes, in the case of trimethoprim resistance dhfrA1 and dhfr14 were used in this study. The presence of resistance genes were analyzed in pure strains isolated from activated sludge and in the activated sludge sample itself. The research revealed that the value of minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) did not correspond with the expected presence of more than one resistance mechanisms. Most of the isolates possessed only one of the genes responsible for a particular chemotherapeutic resistance. It was confi rmed that it is possible to monitor the presence of resistance genes directly in activated sludge using PCR. Due to the limited isolates number used in the experiment these results should be regarded as preliminary.

Environment Protection Engineering, 2007

The pharmaceuticals present in the municipal sewage reach the municipal sewage treatment plants, ... more The pharmaceuticals present in the municipal sewage reach the municipal sewage treatment plants, but most often fail to be completely removed in there. Therefore, in the case where they constitute a substantial part of the sewage stream (hospitals, clinics, pharmacological production plants) their chemical pretreatment seems justifiable. A method based on the modification of Fenton's reaction has been suggested. It consisted in replacing peroxide hydrogen with compressed air and enhancing the reaction by UV rays and copper cations Cu +2 as catalysts. All the process parameters have been determined experimentally. The possibility of implementing the method in industry has been taken into consideration, therefore the values of the parameters such as pH and aeration intensity were established on a lower level despite the fact that their higher values were more effective.