Premium
Bioavailability of Dissolved Organic Nitrogen in Treated Effluents
Author(s) -
UrgunDemirtas Meltem,
Sattayatewa Chakkrid,
Pagilla Krishna R.
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
water environment research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.356
H-Index - 73
eISSN - 1554-7531
pISSN - 1061-4303
DOI - 10.2175/106143007x221454
Subject(s) - bioavailability , effluent , environmental chemistry , bioassay , chemistry , biomass (ecology) , nitrogen , dissolved organic carbon , wastewater , total organic carbon , algae , nitrification , bioreporter , botany , environmental engineering , biology , environmental science , agronomy , ecology , biochemistry , bioinformatics , organic chemistry , reporter gene , gene expression , gene
The research objective was to assess dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) bioavailability in wastewater effluents from a pilot‐scale nitrification plant and a laboratory‐scale total nitrogen (TN) removal plant. The DON bioavailability was assessed using a 14‐day bioassay protocol containing bacterial and algal inocula. Nitrogen species, dissolved organic carbon, chlorophyll a , and biomass (as total suspended solids and culturable cell counts) concentrations were measured to assess DON bioavailability. The results showed an increase in algal chlorophyll a concentration, with a concurrent increase in algal biomass over time; increased bacterial counts and a decrease in DON concentration over time; and increased carbon‐to‐nitrogen ratio at the end of the 14‐day bioassay, indicating effluent DON bioavailability to algae and bacteria. Approximately 18 to 61% of the initial DON in low‐total‐nitrogen wastewater effluent (TN = 4 to 5 mg/L) sample was bioavailable. The results show that bacteria and algae uptake and release DON during their growth.