Stabilizing Brine Microbial Cultures via Cation Ratio Adjustment

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing biological treatment systems are inefficient in high saline environments due to the inability of microorganisms to thrive in brine solutions with elevated salt concentrations, as they require lower salt levels and specific oxygen conditions, limiting their ability to degrade pollutants like perchlorate and nitrate effectively.

Innovation Solution

A composition and method that adjust the divalent to monovalent cation ratio in brine solutions to at least 0.05, allowing for stable microbial growth and pollutant degradation under anaerobic/anoxic conditions, using soluble divalent metal complexes like magnesium or calcium to create a biologically compatible environment for microorganisms to reduce pollutants to non-detectable levels.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If traditional biological treatment systems are used in high saline environments, then microorganisms can degrade pollutants under normal conditions, but microorganisms cannot thrive or maintain stable growth in brine solutions with elevated salt concentrations

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvemicrobial growth stabilityVSAvoidtolerance to high salt concentration

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The patent changes the chemical parameters of the brine solution by adjusting the divalent to monovalent cation ratio to at least 0.05. This parameter change creates a stabilized brine environment that enables microorganisms to thrive and maintain stable growth while degrading pollutants in high saline conditions, resolving the contradiction between microbial stability and salt tolerance.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

2Quantity of substance

If salt concentration in brine solution is increased to handle industrial waste streams, then the system can process more contaminated water, but biological treatment efficiency decreases because microorganisms cannot function in high salinity

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesalt concentration in brineVSAvoidpollutant degradation rate

Core Design Contradiction:

Quantity of substanceVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent modifies the cation ratio parameter in the brine solution (divalent to monovalent ratio ≥ 0.05) to create a stabilized high-salinity environment. This allows the system to maintain high salt concentration for processing contaminated water while preserving microbial functionality and pollutant degradation rates, thus resolving the contradiction between quantity of salt and productivity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

3Adaptability or versatility

If microorganisms are adapted to grow in high salt environments, then they can degrade pollutants in brine, but the cultural stability and sustained proliferation of the biological culture deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveability to degrade pollutants in brineVSAvoidcultural stability of microorganism population

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSStability of the object's composition

Solution Approach 1:

The patent stabilizes the brine environment by controlling the divalent to monovalent cation ratio at ≥ 0.05. This parameter stabilization allows microorganisms to maintain both their adaptability to degrade pollutants in brine and their cultural stability for sustained proliferation, resolving the contradiction between adaptability and composition stability.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

Applied Scientific Principles

This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.

Function Achieved in This Case

This approach enables the stable growth and proliferation of microorganisms capable of degrading pollutants in high saline solutions, achieving pollutant reduction rates similar to those in freshwater systems, and allows for the reuse of treated brine solutions, conserving resources and reducing disposal costs.

Implementation Method 1

the composition includes an effective amount of a divalent cation, where the effective amount of the divalent cation is sufficient to produce a divalent/monovalent cation ratio in the brine solution of at least a 0.05 mole/mole or a divalent/monovalent cation ratio greater than or equal to 0.05 mole/mole

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectCation ratio effect:

Implementation Method 2

microorganisms capable degrading a desired pollutant in a brine solution

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectBiological degradation: Decomposition (biological)

Data Source

PatentUS8772014B2Method for stabilization of biological cultures to allow biological treatment of brines

Publication Date: 2014.07.08 UNIV HOUSTON SYST

AI summary

A process is disclosed for the biological treatment under anaerobic/anoxic conditions for the degradation of pollutants present in brine solution used in waste water management, in industrial waste brine solutions and in waste oil field brine solutions, especially waste brine solutions contaminated with perchlorate and nitrate. A culture capable of reducing perchlorate and nitrate in spent ion-exchange regenerant brine containing at least 30 g/L NaCl under anaerobic/anoxic conditions was used to demonstrate the process. A stabilized brine solution is also disclosed in which a culture capable of degrading a given pollutant can be proliferate.