Phosphorus and Cu 2+ removal by periphytic biofilm stimulated by upconversion phosphors doped with Pr 3+ -Li .

Upconversion phosphors (UCPs) can convert visible light into luminescence, such as UV, which can regulate the growth of microbes. Based on these fundamentals, the community composition of periphytic biofilms stimulated by UCPs doped with Pr3+ -Li+ was proposed to augment the removal of phosphorus (P) and copper (Cu). Results showed that the biofilms with community composition optimized by UCPs doped with Pr3+ -Li+ had high P and Cu2+ removal rates. This was partly due to overall bacterial and algal abundance and biomass increases. The synergistic actions of algal, bacterial biomass and carbon metabolic capacity in the Pr-Li stimulated biofilms facilitated the removal of P and Cu2+ . The results show that the stimulation of periphytic biofilms by lanthanide-doped UCPs is a promising approach for augmenting P and Cu2+ removal.