TY - JOUR
T1 - Copper-induced stimulation of nitrification in biological rapid sand filters for drinking water production by proliferation of Nitrosomonas spp.
AU - Wagner, Florian Benedikt
AU - Diwan, Vaibhav
AU - Dechesne, Arnaud
AU - Fowler, Jane
AU - Smets, Barth F.
AU - Albrechtsen, Hans-Jørgen
PY - 2019
Y1 - 2019
N2 - Copper is a co-factor of the ammonia monooxygenase, an essential enzyme for the activity of ammonia oxidizing prokaryotes (AOP). Copper dosing at less than 1 µg/L stimulated ammonium removal in the poorly-nitrifying biological filters of three full-scale drinking water treatment plants. Upon copper dosing, the ammonium concentration in the effluent decreased from up to 0.18 to less than 0.01 mg NH4+-N/L. To investigate how copper dosing affected the filter microbial community, we applied amplicon sequencing and qPCR targeting key nitrifying groups, including complete ammonia oxidizing (comammox) Nitrospira. Copper dosing increased the abundance of different nitrifiers. Multiple Nitrosomonas variants (betaproteobacterial ammonia oxidizers), which initially collectively represented 1% or less of the total community, increased almost 10 fold. Comammox Nitrospira were abundant and increased too, but their relative abundance within the AOP decreased because of Nitrosomonas proliferation. No other consistent change in the filter communities was detected, as well as no adverse effect of copper on the filters functionality. Our results show that copper dosing in three independent plants was associated with consistent growth of AOP and that efficient nitrification was achieved through the joint contribution of comammox Nitrospira and an increasing fraction of betaproteobacterial ammonia oxidizers.
AB - Copper is a co-factor of the ammonia monooxygenase, an essential enzyme for the activity of ammonia oxidizing prokaryotes (AOP). Copper dosing at less than 1 µg/L stimulated ammonium removal in the poorly-nitrifying biological filters of three full-scale drinking water treatment plants. Upon copper dosing, the ammonium concentration in the effluent decreased from up to 0.18 to less than 0.01 mg NH4+-N/L. To investigate how copper dosing affected the filter microbial community, we applied amplicon sequencing and qPCR targeting key nitrifying groups, including complete ammonia oxidizing (comammox) Nitrospira. Copper dosing increased the abundance of different nitrifiers. Multiple Nitrosomonas variants (betaproteobacterial ammonia oxidizers), which initially collectively represented 1% or less of the total community, increased almost 10 fold. Comammox Nitrospira were abundant and increased too, but their relative abundance within the AOP decreased because of Nitrosomonas proliferation. No other consistent change in the filter communities was detected, as well as no adverse effect of copper on the filters functionality. Our results show that copper dosing in three independent plants was associated with consistent growth of AOP and that efficient nitrification was achieved through the joint contribution of comammox Nitrospira and an increasing fraction of betaproteobacterial ammonia oxidizers.
U2 - 10.1021/acs.est.9b03885
DO - 10.1021/acs.est.9b03885
M3 - Journal article
C2 - 31593453
SN - 0013-936X
VL - 53
SP - 12433
EP - 12441
JO - Environmental Science and Technology
JF - Environmental Science and Technology
IS - 21
ER -