Fate of Nutrients in Secondary Treated Municipal Wastewater during Percolation through the Soil Media

Abstract

The fate of nutrients (phosphorous and nitrogen species) was investigated in secondary treated municipal wastewater (STMWW) during percolation through soil media by using an experimental set‐up that consists of multiple soil columns. The columns were packed with silt loam soil samples and were operated under two different wetting and drying cycles to represent the typical operational conditions in a soil aquifer treatment (SAT) system. Dissolved oxygen, oxidation–reduction potential, ammonium nitrogen, nitrite nitrogen, nitrate nitrogen, total nitrogen, and phosphate phosphorus concentrations were measured in samples collected from different sampling ports along the columns. Average removal values of 62.8, 67.1, and 97.1% were achieved over 75 cm of effective soil depth over 25 weeks of operation for ammonium nitrogen, total nitrogen and phosphate phosphorus, respectively. The removal performance of nutrients typically increased by soil depth and no decrease in removal performance was observed up to end of the study. Consequently, SAT system can be considered to be an effective and low cost advanced treatment method for polishing residual nutrients in a STMWW.

The effect of soil types on nitrogen and phosphorus removal from secondary treated municipal wastewater by using soil-aquifer treatment system

“…KTT kolonunda filtrasyon oranının düşük olmasına bağlı olarak atıksuyun havuzlanması sırasında mikrobiyal faaliyetler için daha uygun bir ortam oluşmuş ve ilk 10 cm derinlikte TT kolonuna göre daha fazla bir giderim verimi elde edilmiştir. Bu bulgular literatürde TAAS ile ilgili daha önce yapılan çalışmalar ile uyumlu olarak tespit edilmiştir [27], [31], [35], [36], [46].…”

“…Daha önce yapılan çalışmalar İAKA'nın TAAS için en ideal atıksular olduğunu göstermiştir [45]. Toprak tipi ve özellikleri hem atıksuyun filtrasyonu açısından hem de toprağın organik madde içeriği ve katyon değişim kapasitesi (KDK) gibi fiziko-kimyasal özellikleri açısından TAAS veriminde etkilidir [20], [46]. İri taneli toprakta iyi bir filtrasyon sağlanırken kirletici unsurlar daha az tutulur, ince taneli toprakta ise tam tersidir.…”

Use of Treated Municipal Wastewater for Agricultural Irrigation

“…Bu besin elementlerinin fazlalığı aşırı bitki büyümesi, yüzey ve yeraltı sularının kirlenmesi gibi olumsuz etkiler oluşturmaktadır. Fosfor toprak ortamından süzülürken adsorpsiyon ve çökelme ile giderilirken azot oksijen ile yükseltgenerek yeraltı suyunda ciddi problemlere neden olabilecek nitrata dönüşmektedir [27], [52], [60].…”

Operational and Environmental Conditions for Efficient Biological Nutrient Removal in an Urban Wastewater Treatment Plant

“…The nutrient removal from urban wastewater ( i.e ., nitrogen compounds such as ammonium, nitrite, nitrate, and phosphate) is of capital importance in order to preserve the quality of the receiving water and meet increasingly stringent effluent discharge standards , because nitrogen and phosphorus have been identified as the two main nutrients involved in aquatic eutrophication . In this sense, biological nutrient removal (BNR) is the most common process for getting rid of these pollutants.…”

“…Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are complex systems, with different physicochemical and biological phenomena taking place simultaneously. Wastewater collected from municipalities and communities must ultimately be returned to receiving water or to the land, although due to the limited water resource, particularly in arid and semi‐arid zones, a great attention is being paid into reclamation and reuse of wastewater from municipalities . In all cases, water quality standards are becoming more and more stringent; for this reason, not only the optimization of each one of the systems and processes involved in obtaining quality water for discharge or reuse is needed, but also launching public awareness campaigns issued by the regional administration and aimed at the population are needed, that encourage proper waste separation and the responsible use of water.…”