Autotrophic nitrogen removal in membrane-aerated biofilms: Archaeal ammonia oxidation versus bacterial ammonia oxidation

Recent discovery of ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) not only substantially improved our understanding of the global nitrogen cycle, but also provided new possibilities for nitrogen removal from wastewater. In particular, compared to ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB), the high ammonia oxidation under oxygen-limited conditions driven by AOA is potentially more suitable for autotrophic nitrogen removal in a single-stage membrane aerated biofilm...