This dissertation consists of five papers concerning nitrification in chloraminated drinking water distribution systems in a one and a half year field study. Seven finished waters were produced from different treatment processes and distributed to eighteen pilot distribution systems (PDSs) that were made pipes taken from actual distribution systems. Unlined cast iron (UCI), galvanized steel (G), lined cast iron (LCI), and PVC pipes were used to build the PDSs. All finished waters were stabilized and chloraminated before entering the PDSs. This dissertation consists of five major parts. (1) System variations of nitrates, nitrites, DO, pH, alkalinity, temperature, chloramine residuals and hydraulic residence times (HRT) during biological nitrification are interrelated and discussed relative to nitrification, which demonstrated Stoichiometric relationships associated with conventional biochemical nitrification reactions. Ammonia is always released when chloramines are used for residual maintenance in drinking water distribution systems, which practically insures the occurrence of biological nitrification to some degree. Biological nitrification was initiated by a loss of chloramine residual brought about by increasing temperatures at a five day HRT, which was accompanied by DO loss and slightly decreased pH. Ammonia increased due to chloramine decomposition and then decreased as nitrification began. Nitrites and nitrates increased initially with time after the chloramine residual was lost but decreased if denitrification began. Dissolved oxygen limited nitrifier growth and nitrification. No significant alkalinity variation was observed during nitrification. Residual and nitrites are key parameters for monitoring nitrification in drinking water distribution systems. (2) Using Monod kinetics, a steady state plug-flow kinetics model was developed to describe the variations of ammonia, nitrite and nitrate-N concentrations in a chloraminated distribution system. Active AOB and NOB biomass in the distribution system was determined using predictive equations within the model. The kinetic model used numerical analysis and was solved by C language to predict ammonia, nitrite, nitrate variation. (3) Nitrification control strategies were investigated during an unexpected episode and controlled study in a field study. Once nitrification began, increasing chloramine dose from 4.0 to 4.5 mg/L as Cl2 and Cl2:N ratio from 4/1 to 5/1 did not stop nitrification. Nitrification was significantly reduced but not stopped, when the distribution system hydraulic retention time was decreased from 5 to 2 days. A free chlorine burn for one week at 5 mg/L Cl2 stopped nitrification. In a controlled nitrification study, nitrification increased with increasing free ammonia and Cl2:N ratios less than 5. Flushing with increased chloramine concentration reduced nitrification, but varying flush frequency from 1 to 2 weeks had no effect on nitrification. (4) HPC variations in a chloraminated drinking water distribution system were investigated. Results showed average residual and temperature were the only water quality variables shown to affect HPC change at a five day distribution system hydraulic residence time was five days. Once nitrification began, HPC change was correlated to HRT, average residual and generated nitrite-N in the distribution system. (5) Biostability was assessed for water treatment processes and distribution system pipe by AOCs, BDOCs, and HPCs of the bulk water, and by PEPAs of the attached biofilms. All membrane finished waters were more likely to be biologically stable as indicated by lower AOCs. RO produced the lowest AOC. The order of biofilm growth by pipe material was UCI > G > LCI > PVC. Biostability decreased as temperature increased.

This thesis discusses the mechanisms associated with the removal of organic matter, nitrogen and phosphorus in wastewater-fed high rate algae ponds (HRAP) designed to operate as triplicates. Research was conducted at the San Luis Obispo Water Reclamation Facility (SLOWRF) as a pilot-scale study of nine 30-square meter ponds one foot in depth. During period of study, triplicates were operated at hydraulic retention times (HRT) of 4, 3 or 2-days. Main objectives for the study were to determine minimum HRTs required to achieve secondary and tertiary treatment. Experimental conditions such as CO2 supplementation, nighttime aeration and operation of ponds in series were employed to evaluate optimal conditions for efficient nutrient removal. Ponds were continuously fed primary effluent with the following water quality characteristics: 5-day total biochemical oxygen demand (TBOD5) of 124mg/L, 5-day soluble carbonaceous biochemical oxygen demand of 67mg/L (scBOD5), total suspended solids (TSS) of 66mg/L, volatile suspended solids (VSS) of 65mg/L, total ammonia nitrogen (TAN) of 34mg/L-N, oxidized nitrogen of 1.1mg/L-N, total K̇jeldahl nitrogen (TKN) of 42mg/L-N and dissolved reactive phosphorus (DRP) of 3.3mg/L-P. Nutrient removal efficiencies were compared between summer months (April – October) and winter months (November – February). Average pond temperatures during summer and winter were 20.4 °C and 14.9 °C, respectively. Average TAN removal efficiencies of 2-day HRT ponds ranged from 62% in winter to 78% in summer. Operation of ponds at an increased 3-day HRTs resulted in corresponding seasonal increases of TAN removal by 14% and 12%. In 4-day HRT ponds operating in series after a 3-day HRT set, TAN removal efficiency was 98% in winter and 99% in summer. Aeration increased nitrification and nitrate concentrations in 2-day HRT ponds to10mg/L-N ± 4.4mg/L-N. DRP concentrations and BOD removal efficiencies within replicate ponds were similar throughout seasonality. DRP was 1.2mg/L-P ± 0.66mg/L-P at a 4-day HRT operating in series, 2.2mg/L-P ± 0.57mg/L-P at a 3-day HRT and 2.6mg/L-P ± 0.58mg/L-P at a 2-day HRT. Aeration had no measureable effect on BOD removal. BOD removal efficiency was 97% at a 4-day HRT in series with a 3-day HRT and 95% at 3-day and 2-day HRTs.

In order to meet increasingly stringent total nitrogen limits, supplemental carbon must be added to improve the performance of the biological nutrient removal process. An industrial by-product that contained ethylene glycol and propylene glycol was used as a substitute carbon source for methanol in this study. The objectives of this study were to investigate the efficiency of using the glycol mixture as carbon source, including the calculation of denitrification rate and yield at two different initial concentrations of glycols. Possible inhibition effect on nitrification was also investigated. Three SBR reactors were operated by adding methanol, a low dosage of glycol, and a high dosage of glycol into the reactors. The low dosage glycol reactor exhibited the best performance, with the highest denitrification rate of 11.55 mg NOx-N/g MLVSS"h and the lowest yield of 0.21 mg VSS/mg COD. Small nitrite accumulation was observed in the low dosage glycol reactor (COD=185"•15 mg/L), but effluent quality was not influenced. Excess glycol in the reactor caused deteriorated performance. The high dosage glycol reactor (COD=345"•20 mg/L) performed with the lowest denitrfication rate of 8.56 mg NOx-N/g MLVSS"h and the highest yield of 0.55 mg VSS/ mg COD. The reactor with the high dosage of glycol also inhibited the lowest nitrification rate of 1.15 mg NH3-N oxidized/g MLVSS"h, which indicated that excess glycol may cause nitrification inhibition. / Master of Science

New possibilities of nutrients removal by additions of magnesium compounds were studied in primary treatment and supernatant of side stream in wastewater treatment. The precipitation product from this method is magnesium ammonium phosphate (MAP) socalled struvite. High efficiencies on NH4-N and PO4-P removals have been demonstrated up to over 90 % respectively in side stream from dewatering of digested sludge. In order to find out the nutrient removal efficiency in raw wastewater and the feasibility of MAP recycling in wastewater treatment, the postulations of combining MAP and nitrification-denitrification process, and MAP and partial nitritation-anmmox process were carried out by experimental works in the laboratory at Land and Water Resources Department, KTH. It was found that 92-97 % of PO4-P and 57 % of NH4-N were removed from raw wastewater by Mg2+ addition at pH10 to pH10.5. The research work revealed that recycling of MAP by nitrification-denitrification and partial nitritation-anmmox processes may be a feasibly process combination. In MAP and nitrification -denitrification process, the released ammonium was mostly oxidized to nitrate in nitrification phase and ready for denitrification. Based on presented results on MAP and partial nitritation-anmmox process, it was found that the released ammonium was consumed by anammox bacteria.

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

This research first examined nitrification inhibition caused by different classes of industrially relevant chemicals on activated sludge and found that conventional aerobic nitrification was inhibited by single pulse inputs of every chemical tested, with 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene (oxidant) having the most severe impact, followed by alkaline pH 11, cadmium (heavy metal), cyanide, octanol (hydrophobic) and 2,4-dinitrophenol (respiratory uncoupler). Of the different chemicals tested, the oxidative and hydrophobic chemicals showed severe nitrification inhibition relative to other treatment processes and therefore deserved further investigation. For oxidative chemicals, we hypothesized that the more severe inhibition was because nitrifying bacteria lack one or more of the microbial stress response mechanisms used to mediate the toxic effect of oxidative chemicals. During these experiments, we showed that a rapid (minutes) antioxidant potassium efflux mechanism does not exist in two nitrifying bacteria, Nitrosomonas europaea and Nitrospira moscoviensis. Furthermore, we showed that another important antioxidant molecule, glutathione, was not oxidized as readily as in a non-nitrifying bacterium. Furthermore, we hypothesized that hydrophobic chemical-induced nitrification inhibition recovered more quickly because of the presence of membrane modification stress response mechanisms. While testing this hypothesis, we showed that N. europaea modified its cell membrane in response to hydrophobic chemicals using a long-term (hours) membrane modification mechanism that required the synthesis of new fatty acids, but it did not contain a short-term (minutes) response mechanism involving a cis/trans isomerase. Therefore, investigating these nitrifier stress responses showed that nitrifiers lack short-term stress responses that may be used to rapidly detect inhibition, indicating that conventional methods of detecting nitrification inhibition, like differential respirometry and nitrate generation rate (NGR), are still the fastest and easiest methods to use. Because several conventional methods exist, we also investigated differences between differential respirometry and a UV method we developed to measure NGR. During these tests, we showed that the UV NGR method provided a more reliable measure of nitrification inhibition than differential respirometry, and that the time to maximum nitrification inhibition depended on the properties of the chemical toxin, which implies that longer exposure times may be needed to accurately predict nitrification inhibition. / Ph. D.