A survey of filamentous organisms at the deer Island treatment plant
Abstract The Deer Island Treatment Plant (DITP) treating both domestic and industrial wastewater, has a peak flow capacity of up to 1270 million gallons per day (MGD) (3342 m3 min−1). The DITP contains a Pilot Plant, which consists of two identical pure oxygen activated sludge treatment trains, each with a maximum capacity of 1 MGD (2.63 m3 min−1) to simulate the maximum flow of the full size facility. This study documents the community of filamentous organisms living in the activated sludge under various operational conditions in the Pilot Plant. Sixteen types of filamentous organisms were identified. The major filamentous organisms present in the Pilot Plant were Type 1701, Type 0041, Sphaerotilus natans, Microthrix parvicella, and Nocardia sp. Nocardia sp. was quite dominant in the early stages of the experimental period during high ambient temperatures (summer), indicating that temperature is one determining factor in the distribution of Nocardia sp. Thiothrix sp. was very sensitive to the dissolved oxygen (DO) level, with low DO values favoring the growth of the organisms. Microbiological observations made during the start‐up and stable operation of the full‐scale secondary treatment plant (maximum capacity 780 MGD) are also reported. No dominant filamentous species existed during the start‐up period. Type 0803 and Type 1701, indicators of low oxygen level for the applied food to microorganism ratio, confirmed the low DO conditions of activated sludge tanks.
Biodiversity and monitoring of colorless filamentous bacteitrtn sulfide aquatic systems of North Caucasus region
Bacterial mats in sulfide aquatic systems of North Caucasus are basically composed by the species of genera Thiothrix and Sphaerotilus. Additionally, several non-filamentous sulfur-oxidizing bacteria were isolated from the mats and several minor 16S rRNA phylotypes were found in clone libraries from these mats. The minor components were affiliated with Proteobacteria, Chlorobia, Cyanobacteria and Firmicutes. Even in an individual mat population heterogeneity of Thiothrix spp. was revealed by analysis of 16S rRNA gene and RAPD-PCR. Five Thiothrix isolates were described as new species Thiothrix caldifontis sp. nov. and Thiothrix lacustris sp. nov. In the Thiothrix-Sphaerotilus type of bacterial mat the proportion of dominant organisms might be influenced by sulfide concentration in the spring water. The higher sulfide concentration (more than 10 mg/1) in the spring water is more favorable for the development of bacterial mats with dominant Thiothrix organisms than for Thiothrix-Sphaerotilus type of sulfur mat.
Structural and physiological characteristics of some sheathed bacteria
The fine structure and growth of two gram-negative and two gram-positive strains of sheathed bacteria, isolated from activated sludge, have been studied. Their anatomy is quite different fromSphaerotilus natans. The cells are rectangular, tightly joined together, non-motile and enclosed by a sheath which is thin in the gram-negative strains and rather electron-dense in the two larger gram-positive strains. The four strains grow slowly and form pink filamentous flocs in liquid media.