New Zealand Journal of Agricultural Research abstracts
Nitrification options for pig wastewater treatment
Ariel A. Szögi1
Matias B. Vanotti1
J. Mark Rice2
Frank J. Humenik3
Patrick G. Hunt1
1USDA-ARS
Coastal Plains, Soil, Water and Plant Research Centre
2611 W. Lucas Street
Florence, SC 29501
USA
email: szogi@florence.ars.usda.gov
2North Carolina State University
Biological and Agricultural Engineering Department
Box 7625, Raleigh, NC 27695
USA
3North Carolina State University
CALS, Animal Waste Management Programs
Box 7927
Raleigh, NC 27695
USA
Abstract Nitrification is a necessary and often
limiting process in animal waste treatment for removal of nitrogen as N2
through biological nitrification/denitrification systems. We evaluated
three technologies for enhancing nitrification of pig lagoon wastewater
prior to denitrification: overland flow, trickling filter, and a
bioreactor using nitrifying pellets. The overland flow system consisted
of a 4 × 20-m plot with 2% slope with a subsurface
impermeable barrier receiving a total N loading rate of 64–99 kg N
ha–1 day–1. Total N removal efficiency ranged
from 36 to 42%, and 7% of the total N application was recovered in the
effluent as nitrate. The trickling filter consisted of a 1-m3
tank filled with marl gravel media which supported a nitrifying
biofilm. Lagoon wastewater was applied as a fine spray on the surface
at hydraulic loading rates of 684 litres m–3 day–1
and total N loading rates of 249 g m–3 day–1.
The media filter treatment transformed up to 57% of the inflow total N
into nitrate when wastewater was supplemented with lime. The nitrifying
pellets technology used acclimated nitrifying cells immobilised in 3–5
mm polymer pellets. Pig wastewater was treated in an aerated fluidised
reactor unit with a 15% (w/v) pellet concentration. Nitrification
efficiencies of more than 90% were obtained in continuous flow
treatment using total N loading rates of 438 g N m–3 day–1
and hydraulic residence time of 12 h. Two conclusions are
suggested from this research: (1) that substantial nitrification of pig
lagoon wastewater can be attained particularly using aerobic treatments
with enriched nitrifying populations, and (2) that large mass removal
of N from pig wastewater may be possible by sequencing nitrification
and denitrification unit processes.
Keywords animal wastewater; ammonia removal;
nitrification; nitrifiers; hogs; swine; pigs; piggery
A04039; Received 30 April 2004; accepted 20 September 2004; Online
publication date 15 December 2004
New Zealand Journal of Agricultural Research, 2004, Vol. 47:
439–448
0028–8233/04/4704–0439 © The Royal Society of New Zealand 2004
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