Co-Variation between Distribution of Microbial Communities and Biological Metabolization of Organics in Urban Sewer Systems

Distribution characteristics and biodiversity of microbial communities were studied in a 1200 m pilot sewer system. Results showed that the dominant microorganisms, fermentation bacteria (FB), hydrogen-producing acetogen (HPA), sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) and methanogenic archaea (MA) changed significantly along the sewer systems, from start to the end. The distribution of the functional microorganisms could induce substrate transformation and lead to the accumulation of micromolecular organics (i.e., acetic acid, propionic acid and amino acid). However, substrate transformation induced by these microbes was affected by environmental factors such as oxidation-reduction potential, pH and dissolved oxygen. Changes in environmental conditions along the sewer resulted in the variation of dominant bioreactions. FB were enriched at the beginning of the sewer, while SRB and MA were found toward the end. Furthermore, based on Spearman rank correlation analysis of microbial communities, environmental factors and substrates, covariation between microbial community distribution and organics metabolization along the sewer was identified. This study could provide a theoretical foundation for understanding wastewater quality variation during transportation from sewers to treatment plants, therefore, promoting optimization of design and operation of wastewater treatment.