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Infiltration of Wastewater in a Newly Started Pilot Sand-Filter System: III. Transformation of Nitrogen

Dep. of Microbiol., Swedish Univ. of Agric. Sci., S-750 07 Uppsala, Sweden;

Fred Nyberg

Dep. of Water Resour. Eng., Royal Inst. of Technol., S-100 44 Stockholm, Sweden.

^* Corresponding author.

ABSTRACT

The objective of the study was to monitor the chemical dynamics associated with N transformations from start-up until a steady state was reached in a pilot sand-filter system consisting of a three-chambered septic tank, a sand filter with a one person capacity, and eight columns. The system was loaded with 67 L m^–2 d^–1 of an artificial wastewater. The untreated wastewater contained 114 mg Kjeldahl N L^–1 and 0.12 mg NH⁺₄-N L^–1. Mineralization reached a steady state in the septic tank after 2 wk of operation; thereafter, 65 ± 6% of the effluent N was NH⁺₄-N. In the column effluent the concentrations of NH⁺₄-N increased during the first 6 wk of operation, whereafter a stabilization at 60 to 80 mg NH⁺₄-N L^–1 occurred. The mean proportion of effluent N in mineralized form for the whole period was 88 ± 6%. Three weeks after start-up, all effluent N from the sand filter was in mineralized form and remained high for the rest of the study period. The effluent concentrations of NH⁺₄-N increased rapidly during the first 2 wk after which it decreased to less than 3 mg L^–1. The concentration of NO^–₃-N was initially low. It then increased until about Day 30 when it stabilized at 64 to 71 mg NO^–₃-N L^–1. Elevated concentrations of NO^–₂-N were observed between Days 8 and 45. Nitrifying activity reached a steady state after 6 wk of operation. During this state a considerable amount of nitrification took place in the upper 1.5 cm and all wastewater N had been nitrified after 15 cm of percolation. By the end of the operating period the total amount of influent N in the septic tank had been reduced by 17%. Corresponding reductions for the columns and sand filter were 18 and 33%, respectively.

Contribution by the Dep. of Microbiology, Swedish Univ. of Agric. Sci., S-750 07 Uppsala, Sweden.

Work funded by the research council at the National Swedish Environment Protection Board (SNV).

Received for publication July 11, 1988.

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