Sulfide Management in Wastewater Systems

Hydrogen sulphide generation within sewer and treatment networks arises principally from the microbial reduction of sulphate under anaerobic conditions. Left unmanaged, dissolved sulphide and its gaseous form, H₂S, pose significant risks including odour nuisance, metal corrosion, worker health hazards and indirect contributions to greenhouse gas emissions. Traditional control measures—such as chemical dosing with iron salts, in-pipe aeration or nitrate addition—have provided reliable sulphide abatement but often at the expense of elevated operational costs, downstream process interference and increased environmental footprint. Recent advances focus on integrating resource recovery, optimising in-situ chemical generation, deploying real-time monitoring and harnessing biological oxidation pathways. A systems-level perspective is now being adopted, coupling influent treatment with on-site production of dosing chemicals, refining sensor-driven control strategies and modelling microbial dynamics to achieve cost-effective, sustainable sulphide management across urban water infrastructures.

Research from Nature Portfolio

Recent studies have demonstrated the potential of electrochemical processes to link biogas upgrading with wastewater sulphide control. An iron-oxidising electrochemical cell has been developed to strip H₂S, CO₂ and NH₃ from biogas streams, yielding a solid iron carbonate by-product. When dosed into raw wastewater or sludge, this electrochemically produced iron salt precipitates dissolved sulphide and phosphate, simultaneously enhancing sludge settleability and dewaterability. By replacing imported iron salts with an on-demand, locally generated reagent, utilities can reduce supply-chain vulnerability, lower chemical costs and achieve high-quality biogas recovery while maintaining or improving sulphide removal performance.

Sulfide Management in Wastewater Systems publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in sulfide management in wastewater systems across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Hydrogen sulphide (H₂S): A toxic, odorous gas formed by microbial reduction of sulphate in anaerobic environments.

Sulphate-reducing bacteria (SRB): Anaerobic microorganisms that use sulphate as an electron acceptor, producing sulphide.

Sulphide precipitation: Chemical reaction whereby dissolved sulphide ions form insoluble metal sulphides, removing sulphide from solution.

Sulphide-oxidising bacteria (SOB): Aerobic or microaerophilic microorganisms that oxidise sulphide to elemental sulphur or sulphate, mitigating H₂S concentrations.

References

1. Integrated urban water management by coupling iron salt production and application with biogas upgrading. Nature Communications (2023).
2. Non-negligible greenhouse gases from urban sewer system. Biotechnology for Biofuels and Bioproducts (2019).
3. A critical review of chemical uses in urban sewer systems. Water Research (2023).
4. Comparison of Online Sensors for Liquid Phase Hydrogen Sulphide Monitoring in Sewer Systems. Water (2021).
5. Model Parameters for Aerobic Biological Sulfide Oxidation in Sewer Wastewater. Water (2021).