Schmidt, Jordan

Jordan Schmidt is the Senior Director of Technology & Innovation for LuminUltra Technologies. He hold a MASc and PhD in Civil Engineering from Dalhousie University and a BsC in Environmental Engineering from University of Alberta. Jordan has been working in the field of engineered microbial systems for more then 10 years, at LuminUltra he balances his time between working on growing and supporting microbes and killing and suppressing microbes depending on what industry he's working with.

Titles from this speaker

Description: More Food for Thought: Using True F:M to Predict and Understand Treatment...

More Food for Thought: Using True F:M to Predict and Understand Treatment Performance at Refinery and Industrial WWTPs

Abstract

The Food-to-Microorganism Ratio (F:M) is a common operating and design parameter used to determine the appropriate amount of biomass in a WWTP bioreactor to oxidize the constituents in the influent wastewater. Food is typically represented as the 5-day carbonaceous biochemical oxygen demand (cBOD5), while the quantity of Microorganisms is typically represented by the mixed liquor suspended solids (MLSS) or the mixed liquor volatile suspended solids (MLVSS). F:M targets are typically rooted in municipal wastewater experience and range from 0.2 to 0.6 kg-BOD / kg-MLVSS / day. The conventional measurement of both the Food and Microorganism parameters have significant drawbacks especially for monitoring, operating, and controlling industrial WWTP's. Measuring the cBOD5 takes 5 days to complete which makes it difficult to use for real-time process-based decision making or control. Industrial WWTP's often measure the Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) instead of cBOD5 since it is quicker (3 hours) but it does not differentiate between biodegradable and non-biodegradable compounds and is subject to various interferences. MLSS and MLVSS are also poor representations of active biomass. Those values include both active and dead biomass as well as other non-biological inert material fractions. The biologically-active portion of the suspended solids widely varies and fluctuates based on food availability. This paper will review two case studies of refinery wastewater treatment plants using a 'True F:M' approach for proactive biomonitoring, where cellular ATP (cATP) is used as an alternative parameter for F:M calculations (Mason et. al., 2019). Two treatment plants were studied, including one that uses a Moving Bed Biofilm Reactor (MBBR) biological process and another that uses a Conventional Activated Sludge (CAS) process. ATP was chosen because it can be rapidly measured (<10 minutes) and provides an accurate quantitative measurement of the living microorganism concentrations present in the biomass. ATP is the energy carrier in all living organisms, therefore quantification of cATP provides a direct measurement of active biomass. For F:M calculations, cATP (ng/mL) can be readily converted to active volatile suspended solids (AVSS, mg/L) using established conversion factors. Previous work by Mason et. al. (2019) demonstrated this approach using total organic carbon (TOC) and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentrations to estimate food availability; however, these measurements were not available at the sites in this study, so the conventional five-day BOD (BOD5) and soluble COD (sCOD) were used. sCOD was selected for the MBBR system, as its measurements can be completed rapidly compared to BOD. BOD¬5 was used for the CAS system as sCOD measurements were not available. Performance metrics such as nitrification and sludge settleability were reviewed. This 'True F:M' is also easily applied to other industrial WWTP's.

SpeakerSchmidt, Jordan

Presentation time

09:10:00

09:30:00

Session time

08:30:00

10:50:00

SessionOptimization of Petroleum Refinery Wastewater Treatment

Session number303

TopicIndustrial Issues and Treatment Technologies

Author(s)

J. Schmidt

Author(s)J. Schmidt1;

Author affiliation(s)LuminUltra Technologies, NS1

SourceProceedings of the Water Environment Federation

Document typeConference Paper

PublisherWater Environment Federation

Print publication date Oct 2020

DOI10.2175/193864718825157863

Volume / Issue

Content sourceWEFTEC

Word count19

Description: Reviewing Nitrification and Ammonia Oxidation in a Complex and Highly Loaded Food...

Reviewing Nitrification and Ammonia Oxidation in a Complex and Highly Loaded Food and Beverage WRRF

Abstract

In an effort to understand options to improve EBPR stability, research into the sidestream EBPR process configurations has increased. Understanding the carbon generation rate of S2EBPR is key to determining if the process may improve EBPR performance. CWS has investigated methods to describe this apparent fermentation rate and evaluated AFR implications for fullscale performance. The results indicate that differences in measurement methodology can cause the resulting AFR to vary greatly. This paper will provide a case study of the Lone Star Dairy Products wastewater pretreatment plant, including a description of ADI-BVF® technology used to anaerobically digest the raw wastewater, process benefits of low-rate anaerobic digestion of dairy wastewater, upgrades made to the previous pretreatment system, and a review of the operating results in the two years since the pretreatment plant expansion.

This study was a retroactive data analysis of a packaged dairy plant water resource recovery facility (WRRF) in southern USA. using ATP and F:M as process indicators of nitrification

SpeakerSchmidt, Jordan

Presentation time

14:30:00

15:00:00

Session time

13:30:00

15:00:00

SessionFood & Beverage: Upgrades and Troubleshooting

Session locationRoom S403a - Level 4

TopicFacility Operations and Maintenance, Intermediate Level, Sustainability and Climate Change, Water Reuse and Reclamation

Author(s)

Schmidt, Jordan

Author(s)J. Schmidt 1; D. Mason 2 ; J. Schmidt 1; A. Manning 3;

Author affiliation(s)LuminUltra Technologies Ltd., Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada 1; Veolia Water Technologies & Solutions, United States 2 ; LuminUltra Technologies Ltd. 1; LuminUltra Technologies Ltd 3;

SourceProceedings of the Water Environment Federation

Document typeConference Paper

PublisherWater Environment Federation

Print publication date Oct 2023

DOI10.2175/193864718825158992

Volume / Issue

Content sourceWEFTEC

Word count16

Description: WEF-PHC22-Proceedings cover-2400x3200

Where Next? Wastewater-Based Epidemiology as a Tool for Antimicrobial Resistant Pathogen Surveillance

Abstract

Introduction The use of wastewater-based epidemiology has grown significantly since the onset of the global COVID-19 pandemic. Wastewater surveillance for SARS-CoV-2 has shown to be a useful and non-invasive method for detecting trends in pathogen infection rates at the community level and mitigating outbreaks. With the expanding adoption and incorporation of wastewater-based epidemiology for public health data, the current infrastructure and testing frequency can be built upon to bring us the next generation of wastewater-based epidemiology with additional applications. The analysis of wastewater could quickly become an efficient method for the surveillance of other public health threats such as the prevalence of antimicrobial resistant pathogens at a community or global scale. Antimicrobial drug resistance has rapidly become a major global threat and concern to public health due to the prescribing and inappropriate use of antibiotics leading to genetic mutations and the emergence of antimicrobial drug resistance pathogens. Antimicrobial resistance can cause patients to become infected with pathogens that cannot be treated with antibiotics currently on the market, leading to increased mortality rates, and ultimately strain on health care systems. Antimicrobial drug resistance has been declared as one of the top 10 public health threats facing humanity by the World Health Organization (WHO 2020). Antimicrobial stewardship plans are an important component of a health care system to reduce antimicrobial resistance and decrease the spread of infections caused by antimicrobial resistant organisms. Wastewater-based epidemiology could be useful tool in antimicrobial stewardship plans to help monitor infection rates. Although a global issue, specific populations of concern for the infection of antimicrobial resistant drugs include healthcare facilities such as hospitals and long-term care homes where infection rates and the use of antimicrobial drugs are high. Currently, the surveillance of antibiotic resistant pathogens is typically within clinical settings however the use of wastewater testing for the surveillance of these pathogens could detect prevalence at a community level using a non-invasive, non-cultured-based method. The objective of this research is to analyze anti-microbial resistant pathogen markers in wastewater samples for its application in wastewater-based epidemiology as a global surveillance method for anti-microbial resistant pathogens. Materials and Methods Remnant wastewater samples collected from partner organizations across North America for SARS-CoV-2 analysis through LuminUltra's SARS-CoV-2 Wastewater Testing Mail-in Laboratory Service will be used for this study. Genetic material will be extracted from a minimum of 100 wastewater samples collected from August-December 2021 using the GeneCount® SARS-CoV-2 Wastewater Test Kit. The extracted genetic material will be sent to ChromaCode Inc. for antimicrobial resistance marker analysis by RT-qPCR using their Multidrug Resistance (MDR) panel assay. The MDR panel tests for common gram-positive and gram-negative multi-drug resistance markers including Extended Spectrum -Lactamases and Carbapenemases which are enzymes secreted by select bacteria making them resistant to the effects of antibiotics. Polymyxin Resistance markers, Vancomycin Resistance markers in enterococci and Toxigenic C. difficile are also analyzed in the assay. Toxigenic C. difficile, commonly known as C. diff, is a gram-positive spore-forming bacteria known to be resistant to several antibiotics. Table 1 summarized the anti-microbial resistance markers and corresponding targets within that group used in the ChromaCode MDR panel assay. The remnant samples sent to ChromaCode for analysis will be selected based on their original sampling location with a strong focus on relevant communities of concern such as long-term care homes and hospitals where these populations are susceptible to infections and antibiotic use. The MDR panel assay is typically performed using clinical specimens such as rectal and perirectal swabs or in pure colonies however this research will determine its application using extracted genetic material from wastewater samples. Anticipated Conclusions The MDR panel assay is expected to be successful in the detection of the targets from the extracted material of a wastewater sample, leading to the application of wastewater-based epidemiology for the surveillance of anti-microbial drug resistant pathogens. The anticipated outcome of this research will be to further the utility of and conversation about wastewater based epidemiology past COVID-19, ensuring that the infrastructure and momentum caused by the current pandemic can be utilized for further public health threats.

The following conference paper was presented at the Public Health and Water Conference & Wastewater Disease Surveillance Summit in Cincinnati, OH, March 21-24, 2022.

SpeakerSchmidt, Jordan

Presentation time

16:05:00

16:25:00

Session time

8:30:00

17:00:00

SessionWastewater Disease Surveillance Summit

Session numberWDSS

Session locationDuke Energy Convention Center, Cincinnati, Ohio

Topicwastewater

Author(s)