A novel method of growing fungi is disclosed which uses an engineered artificial media and produces high density filamentous fungi biomats that can be harvested with a minimum of processing and from which fungal products such as antibiotics, proteins, and lipids can be isolated, the method resulting in lowered fungus cultivation costs for energy usage, oxygenation, water usage and waste stream production.

A process for enhanced anaerobic digestion of sludge by alcoholization of food waste, comprising steps of: (1) ethanol prefermentation of food waste—feeding the food waste having been crushed into a uniform grain size into an ethanol production reactor, where the food waste is subjected to rapid and efficient anaerobic fermentation activated by addition of yeast and pH adjustment to produce ethanol and obtain a fermentation broth and a fermentation residue; (2) sludge pretreatment—pretreating the sludge after mixing with the fermentation residue; and (3) methanogenesis of anaerobic digestion—subjecting products resulting from the sludge pretreatment to be mixed with the fermentation broth and then to methanogenesis of anaerobic digestion in a methane production reactor. With this process, the sludge and the food waste can be treated efficiently via multi-phase reactions, and the resource recovery and biogas quality can be enhanced.

The present invention relates to compositions and methods for the remediation of contaminated solids and liquids. In particular, embodiments of the present invention relate to the bioremediation of solids and liquids by a composition comprising a biocatalyst or mixture of biocatalysts. The present invention also relates to methods for producing the bioremediation compositions and methods for applying the bioremediation compositions to contaminated sites, including treatment, storage, and disposal facilities, as well as various contaminated water sources, such as aquifers and reservoirs.

A hybrid hydrogel carrier for high-salinity wastewater treatment and a preparation method thereof are disclosed. The hybrid hydrogel carrier includes a functional microorganism and a conductive hydrogel carrier, wherein the functional microorganism is a halotolerant species; the conductive hydrogel carrier is a compatible conductive hybrid hydrogel, and magnetic triiron tetraoxide (Fe.sub.3O.sub.4) particles and a compatible substance are uniformly distributed on the surface and inside. The preparation method includes dissolving an aniline solution and a phytic acid solution in a polyvinyl alcohol solution, and cooling the mixed solution to obtain solution I; dispersing a microbial solution, the compatible substance and the Fe.sub.3O.sub.4 particles into the solution I to obtain solution II; dissolving ammonium persulfate in deionized water to prepare an ammonium persulfate solution, after cooling the solution, mixing quickly with the solution II to obtain solution III, then freezing and thawing the solution III repeatedly to obtain the hybrid hydrogel carrier.

The present invention relates to compositions and methods for the remediation of contaminated solids and liquids. In particular, embodiments of the present invention relate to the bioremediation of solids and liquids by a composition comprising a biocatalyst or mixture of biocatalysts. The present invention also relates to methods for producing the bioremediation compositions and methods for applying the bioremediation compositions to contaminated sites, including treatment, storage, and disposal facilities, as well as various contaminated water sources, such as aquifers and reservoirs.

The present invention provides a process for the treatment of sewage sludge with enzymes, which process comprises treating a sewage sludge resulting from the treatment of municipal or industrial waste water with a composition comprising a fermentation supernatant product from a Saccharomyces cerevisiae culture and a non-ionic surfactant, wherein said fermentation supernatant product is free of active enzymes, at conditions suitable for generating said active enzymes from said sewage sludge in situ.

A method for removing organic or inorganic micropollutants from aqueous solutions includes adding a biomass of biomaterial to the solutions, the biomaterial being an active or inactive biological organism, such as a yeast, having affinity for biosorption (adsorption by the biomass)of an organic or inorganic micropollutant present in the solution at, or below, a parts-per-billion concentration, and controlling the pH and temperature of the solution, as well as contact time and agitation, to be within a range suitable for biosorption of the at micropollutant by the biomaterial. The amount of biomass added to the solution may be calculated according to the amount of solution, the concentration of the micropollutant in the solution, and the total amount of the micropollutant that can be biosorbed by a particular quantity of the inactive or active biomaterial. In a preferred embodiment, the biomaterial is obtained from Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

A novel method of growing fungi is disclosed which uses an engineered artificial media and produces high density filamentous fungi biomats that can be harvested with a minimum of processing and from which fungal products such as antibiotics, proteins, and lipids can be isolated, the method resulting in lowered fungus cultivation costs for energy usage, oxygenation, water usage and waste stream production.

The microorganism preparation feeding method of the invention employs an automatic microorganism preparation feeding apparatus which includes a cold storage apparatus for refrigeration-storing a seed microorganism belonging to the aerobic microorganism group including at least one species of aerobic microorganisms capable of decomposing oil and fat contained in oil/fat-including wastewater and a growth tank for growing the seed microorganism so as to produce the microorganism preparation, wherein the seed microorganism belonging to the aerobic microorganism group is maintained in a live state by means of the cold storage apparatus, the seed microorganism is periodically grown by means of the growth tank so as to produce a predetermined microorganism preparation, and the produced predetermined microorganism preparation is fed to the oil/fat-including wastewater. The method includes refrigeration-storing, as the seed microorganism, a microorganism whose population density is 1×10.sup.7 CFU/mL to 5×10.sup.9 CFU/mL in the cold storage apparatus; growing, as a source material, the seed microorganism of a predetermined volume by means of the growth tank so as to produce the predetermined microorganism preparation whose volume is 50 to 500 times the predetermined volume of the seed microorganism and whose population density is 1×10.sup.7 CFU/mL to 2×10.sup.10 CFU/mL; and feeding the produced microorganism preparation to the oil/fat-including wastewater.

A fungus having manganese oxidation capacity is provided. The fungus can oxidize Mn.sup.2+ in a water body into a water-insoluble manganese oxide; and the Mn.sup.2+ oxidizing fungus is Cladosporium sp. XM01 strain with the accession number of CGMCC NO. 21083. The Cladosporium sp. XM01 strain is used to oxidize Mn.sup.2+ in a natural water body, and has stable operation within a range of room temperature (15-30° C.) and a range of neutral pH (6.0-7.5) and high Mn.sup.2+ oxidation efficiency; moreover, the XM01 strain may oxidize Mn.sup.2+ cyclically, thereby achieving the in-situ remediation of water bodies or soils polluted by heavy metals or trace organic substances. The manganese oxides generated through oxidization in the growth process of the strain have a good application potential in sewage treatment, water environment restoration, soils and other fields.