Turnover and loss of nitrogenous compounds during composting of food wastes

Few people have so far explored into the research of the dynamics of various nitrogenous compounds (including water-soluble nitrogen) in composting of food wastes. This study aimed to investigate the solid-phase nitrogen, water-soluble nitrogen, nitrogen loss together with ammonia volatilization in the process of food wastes composting. A laboratory scale static aerobic reactor in the experiment was employed in the composting process of a synthetic food waste, in which sawdust was used as the litter amendment. In the experiment, oxygen was supplied by continuous forced ventilation for 15 days. The results have shown that the concentrations of total nitrogen and organic nitrogen decrease significantly in the composting process, whereas NH₄ ⁺-N concentration increases together with little fluctuation in NO₃ ^?-N. After composting, the total content of the water-soluble nitrogen compounds in the compost greatly increased, the total nitrogen loss amounted to 50% of the initial nitrogen, mainly attributed to ammonia volatilization. 56.7% of the total ammonia volatilization occurred in the middle and late composting of the thermophilic stage. This suggested that the control at the middle and late composting of thermophilic stage is the key to nitrogen loss in the food waste compost.     

不同时期添加蘑菇渣对落叶堆肥过程的影响

研究不同时期添加蘑菇渣对落叶堆肥过程的影响.结果表明:堆肥降温期添加蘑菇渣有利于提高有机质的降解率,堆肥末期各处理有机质降解率分别为15.85%,10.17%,12.90%和15.16%;有利于吸收固定堆肥中的氨,减少氨的挥发,降低堆肥的pH值.在堆肥初始一次性添加蘑菇渣,有利于堆肥总氮的积累,提高堆肥产品中胡敏酸和腐殖质含量,降低堆肥总氮损失率.在堆肥初始和降温期分次添加蘑菇渣有利于堆肥硝态氮的合成,富里酸的分解以及HA/FA的增加.在整个堆肥过程中,各处理HA和HA/FA均呈增加趋势,FA呈降低趋势,较好地反映了落叶堆肥的腐熟程度.在堆肥不同阶段添加蘑菇渣各有其优点,综合后认为在堆肥初始添加蘑菇渣的效果最为理想.     

添加剂对厨余垃圾堆肥氮素转化与氮素损失的影响

采用静态好氧工艺,就不同添加剂对厨余垃圾堆肥氨挥发与氮素损失影响方面进行比较试验。试验设4个处理:A0,对照;A1,添加30 mL.kg-1(以干基计,下同)高温保氮菌剂;A2,添加1 mol.kg-1化学保氮剂;A3,同时添加30 mL.kg-1高温保氮菌剂和1 mol.kg-1化学保氮剂。堆肥结束时,与对照相比,A1、A2和A3处理堆肥全氮含量分别提高8.4%、38.4%和43.1%,有机氮含量分别提高9.9%、64.3%和68.8%,氨氮含量分别降低11.3%、86.5%和86.5%,厨余氨氮释放率分别降低13.4%、84.0%和86.5%,堆肥氮损失率分别下降17.5%、61.5%和67.2%。加入添加剂均可减少厨余垃圾堆肥氨挥发,降低堆肥氮损失。单独添加时,化学保氮剂较高温保氮菌剂作用大;但就3种处理比较而言,菌剂与化学药剂联合添加效果最好。     

Nitrogen dynamics in the sediments of a wetland coastal ecosystem of southern India

The study area, Kuttanad Waters is a part of the Cochin estuarine system on the west coast of India. Kuttanad is well known for its agricultural activity and so the major contribution to the inorganic ions of nitrogen will be from fertilisers applied in agriculture. Based on observed salinity the stations have been divided into three zones. The fresh water zones had higher quantities of silt and clay whereas the estuarine zone was more sandy. The chemical speciation scheme applied here distinguishes three forms of ammoniacal nitrogen species: exchangeable, fixed, and organic ammoniacal nitrogen. No significant trends were observed in the seasonal distribution of total, exchangeable, fixed and organic nitrogen. A significant concentration of exchangeable ammonia was observed in the sediment due to their predominantly reducing environment, which restricts nitrification. High NH₄-N concentrations in the pore waters, along with the sedimentary composition leads to a significantly high quantity of fixed NH₄-N. The low values for N org is due to high mineralisation or deamination of organic nitrogen     

河北省承德地区秸秆堆肥特性及腐熟度评价

以河北省承德地区的油葵秸秆、玉米秸秆、大豆秸秆与鸡粪为原料,设置4种不同配比（F1、F2、F3、F4）,于2009年秋末接种EM菌进行堆肥试验.通过对堆肥过程中堆体的温度、含水率、NH4＋-N、NO3--N、pH值、C/N、T值的测定,研究了不同配比对堆肥腐熟度的影响.采用大白菜种子发芽指数（GI）评价了堆肥的腐熟度和...     

Nitrification and denitrification in biological activated carbon filter for treating high ammonia source water

Since the ammonia in the effluent of the traditional water purification process could not meet the supply demand, the advanced treatment of a high concentration of NH₄ ⁺-N micro-polluted source water by biological activated carbon filter (BACF) was tested. The filter was operated in the downflow manner and the results showed that the removing rate of NH₄ ⁺-N was related to the influent concentration of NH₄ ⁺-N. Its removing rate could be higher than 95% when influent concentration was under 1.0 mg/L. It could also decrease with the increasing influent concentration when the NH₄ ⁺-N concentration was in the range from 1.5 to 4.9 mg/L and the dissolved oxygen (DO) in the influent was under 10 mg/L, and the minimum removing rate could be 30%. The key factor of restricting nitrification in BACF was the influent DO. When the influent NH₄ ⁺-N concentration was high, the DO in water was almost depleted entirely by the nitrifying and hetetrophic bacteria in the depth of 0.4 m filter and the filter layer was divided into aerobic and anoxic zones. The nitrification and degradation of organic matters existed in the aerobic zone, while the denitrification occurred in the anoxic zone. Due to the limited carbon source, the denitrification could not be carried out properly, which led to the accumulation of the denitrification intermediates such as NO₂ ^?. In addition to the denitrification bacteria, the nitrification and the heterotrophic bacteria existed in the anoxic zone.     

Lethal effects of ammonia and nitrite onPenaeus chinensis juveniles

Juveniles of the prawnPenaeus chinensis (3.96 ±0.18 cm, 0.36±0.06 g) reared in Taiwan in 1989 were exposed to different concentrations of ammonia and nitrite, by a static renewal method in 33 seawater at pH 7.94 and at 26 °C. The 24, 48, 96 and 120 h LC₅₀ (median lethal concentration) of ammonia were 3.29, 2.10, 1.53 and 1.44 mg l^–1 for NH₃-N (un-ionized ammonia as nitrogen) and 79.97, 51.14, 37.00 and 35.09 mg l^–1 for ammonia-N (un-ionized plus ionized ammonia as nitrogen). The 24, 96, 120, 144 and 192 h LC₅₀ of nitrite-N were 339, 37.71, 29.18, 26.98 and 22.95 mg l^–1. The LC₅₀ decreased with increasing exposure time. During the first 96 h,P. chinesis juveniles were more susceptible to ammonia than nitrite. However, prawns were less tolerant to nitrite than ammonia when exposed for more than 96 h. The threshold was found at 120 and 192 h for ammonia and nitrite, respectively, on the toxicity curves. Incipient LC₅₀ was 1.44 mg l^–1 for NH₃-N, 35.09 mg l^–1 for ammonia-N and 22.95 mg l^–1 for nitrite-N. The safe value forP. chinensis juveniles was 0.14, 3.51 and 2.30 mg l^–1, respectively.     

Pollutant removal by an integrated vertical-flow constructed wetland treating simulated river water by reoxygenation

The effects and mechanism of chemical oxygen demand (COD), nitrogen, and phosphorus concentration removal by an integrated vertical-flow constructed wetland were studied in the wetland system during one inlet–outlet operating period, in two typical stages (each stage is connective 24 h, sampled once every 4 h). The concentration of ammonia decreased along the flow direction in the system, while levels of nitrate (NO₃^?-N) increased. In one operating period, total nitrogen (TN) concentration fell with rising operation time due to evacuative reoxygenation. The TN and NH₃-N removal rates in the system were 26.6% and 97.5%, respectively. COD decreased rapidly in the early stages and more gradually in the direction of water flow of the wetland system. Average total phosphorus (TP) removal rate was 20.71%. TN and NO₃^?-N levels in water of the wetland had a tendency to decline gradually with increasing operation time. Ammonia concentrations displayed only a small variation with operation time. The results also indicated that the wetland was able to maintain its temperature. The oxygen content differed during the various operating stages and exerted a marked influence on COD, TP, and TN removal.     

Pretreatment for dissolved organic nitrogen testing by gas stripping

ABSTRACT

Total dissolved nitrogen (TDN), including dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) and dissolved organic nitrogen (DON), is of significant importance in aquatic systems due to its roles in numerous environmental processes, such as nutrients for agriculture activities, sources for lake and estuary eutrophication, and one of the major factors contributing to disinfection byproduct formation. The distribution and impact of DIN on these processes are relatively well-understood; however, information on DON is extremely limited, as there is no direct method for its quantification. DON is conventionally determined by subtracting DIN from TDN. However, significant errors may be introduced if DIN is the predominant species in samples with high concentrations of TDN. In order to deal with this challenge, pretreatment method for nitrogen gas stripping was investigated using 56 water samples collected from various ecosystems. The results indicated that after nitrogen gas stripping pretreatment, removal % of ammonia nitrogen (NH₃–N) was more than 87.5%, and the ratios of removal of NH₃–N/removal of TDN (β) were over 86.5% for most of 56 samples with high [NH₃–N], indicating a high efficiency for removal of NH₃–N, and that NH₃–N was the predominant nitrogen species removed for the samples with high [NH₃–N]. Therefore, nitrogen gas stripping is an appropriate pretreatment method for DON testing when NH₃–N is the dominant inorganic nitrogen species.     

外源铁、磷对堆肥腐熟的影响及“腐殖酸-Fe-P”复合体的形成初探

针对堆肥过程中氮素损失严重,产品品质低下的问题,试验以FeCl3和Ca3（PO4）2（干质量比1∶1）混合物分别按10%（处理A）和15%（处理B）的比例添加到堆肥原料中,以未加任何外源物质的处理作为对照,进行添加外源铁、磷是否会促进堆肥腐熟、提高产品品质的研究。结果表明,与对照处理相比,外源铁、磷对堆肥油菜籽（Brassica napus）发芽率指数影响不大,但产品的氮素含量明显提高,分别高于对照1.42%和1.17%;外源铁、磷加速有机质的分解,有机质分解率分别高于对照处理13%和3.3%;外源铁、磷对堆肥产品腐殖酸结合的Fe含量分别为对照处理的4.4倍和1.98倍,铁结合的磷含量分别为9.12、5.91g·kg-1,对照处理仅为2.21g·kg-1,并通过相关文献讨论,提出堆肥体中可能形成了＂腐殖酸-Fe-P＂三元复合体的假设。从作用和成本上来看,处理A的添加比例较处理B合适。     

Process evaluation of an alternating aerobic-anoxic process applied in a sequencing batch reactor for nitrogen removal

In order to improve the nitrogen removal efficiency and save operational cost, the feasibility of the alternating aerobic-anoxic process (AAA process) applied in a sequencing batch reactor (SBR) system for nitrogen removal was investigated. Under sufficient influent alkalinity, the AAA process did not have an advantage over one aerobicanoxic (OAA) cycle on treatment efficiency because microorganisms had an adaptive stage at the alternating aerobic-anoxic transition, which would prolong the total cycling time. On the contrary, the AAA process made the system control more complicated. Under deficient influent alkalinity, when compared to OAA, the AAA process improved treatment efficiency and effluent quality with NH₄ ⁺-N in the effluent below the detection limit. In the nitrification, the average stoichiometric ratio between alkalinity consumption and ammonia oxidation is calculated to be 7.07 mg CaCO₃/mg NH₄ ⁺-N. In the denitrification, the average stoichiometric ratio between alkalinity production and NO₃ ^?-N reduction is about 3.57 mg CaCO₃/mg NO₃ ^?-N. As a result, half of the alkalinity previously consumed during the aerobic nitrification was recovered during the subsequent anoxic denitrification period. That was why the higher treatment efficiency in the AAA process was achieved without the supplement of bicarbonate alkalinity. If the lack of alkalinity in the influent was less than 1/3 of that needed, there is no need for external alkalinity addition and treatment efficiency was the same as that under sufficient influent alkalinity. Even if the lack of alkalinity in the influent was more than 1/3 of that needed, the AAA process was an optimal strategy because it reduced the external alkalinity addition and saved on operational cost.     

Impact of photosynthesis and transpiration on nitrogen removal in constructed wetlands

To determine the impact of photosynthesis and transpiration on nitrogen removal in wetlands, an artificial wetland planted with reeds was constructed to treat highly concentrated domestic wastewater. Under different meteorological and hydraulic conditions, the daily changes of photosynthesis and transpiration of reeds, as well as nitrogen removal efficiency were measured. It was found that net photosynthesis rate per unit leaf area was maintained on a high level (average 19.0 μmol CO₂/(m²·s)) from 10:00 to 14:00 in July 2004 and reached a peak of 21.1 μmol CO₂/(m²·s) when Photon Flux Density was high during the day. Meanwhile, TN and NH₄ ⁺-N removal efficiency rose to 79.6% and 89.6%, respectively—the maximum values observed in the test. Correlation coefficient analysis demonstrated a positive correlation among photon flux density, net photosynthetic rate, transpiration rate, and TN and NH₄ ⁺-N removal efficiency. In contrast, there was a negative correlation between stomatal conductance and TN and NH₄ ⁺-N removal efficiency. Results suggest that the photosynthesis and transpiration of wetland plants have a great impact on nitrogen removal efficiency of wetlands, which can be enhanced by an increase in the photosynthesis and transpiration rate. In addition, the efficiency of water usage by reeds and nitrogen removal efficiency could be affected by the water level in wetlands; a higher level boosts nitrogen removal efficiency.     

高温堆肥碳氮循环及腐殖质变化特征研究

堆肥化处理，是指依靠自然界广泛分布的细菌、放线菌、真菌等微生物，对有机物有控制地进行生物降解，使之转化为腐殖质的生物化学处理技术。作者采用畜禽粪便条垛式高温堆肥实验方法，研究了堆肥过程中碳氮循环及腐殖质变化特征。结果表明，堆肥过程中，碳素和氮素变化最大，表现为二者总量的减少，其中以碳素总量减少较多，氮素总量次之，从而导致碳氮质量分数比降低。腐殖酸总量、胡敏酸和富里酸总量均呈下降趋势，但腐殖酸占有机碳的比例以及胡敏酸与富里酸质量分数比却在提高，速效养分含量也在升高，表明堆肥过程是一个有机质数量减少、有机质质量提高的过程。     

Biological production of nitrite in seawater

The relative importance of 3 different sources for biological production of nitrite in seawater was studied. Decomposition of fecal pellets of the copepod Calanus helgolandicus (at a concentration of approximately 12 g-at N/l), in seawater medium, released small amounts of ammonia over a 6 week period. It nitrifying bacteria were added to the fecal pellets nitrite was barely detectable over the same period. Decomposition of phytoplankton (present at a concentration of about 8 g-at particulate plant N/l) with added heterotrophic bacteria, released moderate amounts of ammonia over a 12 week period. If the ammonia-oxidizing bacterium Nitrosocystis oceanus was added to the decomposing algae, nitrite was produced at a rate of 0.2 g-at N/l/week. Heterotrophic nitrification was not observed when 7 open-ocean bacteria were tested for their ability to oxidize ammonia. The diatom Skeletonema costatum, either non-starved or starved of nitrogen, produced nitrite when growing with 150 or 50 g-at NO ₂ ^- -N/l at a light intensity of about 0.01 ly/min. When nitrate in the medium was exhausted, S. costatum assimilated nitrite. If starved of vitamin B₁₂, both non-N-starved and N-starved cells of S. costatum produced nitrite in the medium with 150 g-at NO ₃ ^- -N/l. Nitrate was not exhausted and cell densities reached 2x10⁵/ml due to vitamin B₁₂ deficiency. If light intensity was reduced to 0.003 ly/min under otherwise similar conditions, cells did not grow due to insufficient light, and nitrite was not produced. In the sea, it appears that, in certain micro-environments, decomposition of particulate matter releases ammonia with its subsequent oxidation to nitrite. The amounts of these nutrients and the rate at which they are produced are dependent upon the nature of the materials undergoing decomposition and the associated bacteria. In certain other areas of the sea, where phytoplankton standing stock is high and nitrate is non-limiting, excretion by these organisms is a major source of nitrite.     

石灰预处理对树叶堆肥过程中养分转化的影响

以树叶干质量的0%、1.00%、2.50%和4.00%的石灰预处理树叶,24h后分别将预处理后的树叶与鸡粪联合堆肥,研究不同用量石灰预处理树叶对树叶堆肥过程中养分转化的影响。试验在自制的堆肥反应器内进行,采用间歇式强制通风的方式,进行为期59d的堆肥试验。结果表明:石灰预处理树叶24h可以有效的降低树叶中的有机质质量分数,以4.00%的石灰预处理的树叶其有机质降幅达6.00%;石灰预处理24h后,各处理pH相差不大;EC的变化与pH相似;预处理前后,各处理总氮、总磷和总钾的质量分数相差不大。用石灰预处理后的树叶堆肥有利于堆肥有机质的降解,尤以2.50%石灰预处理的效果最好;有利于堆肥w(C)/w(N)的降低,其降低幅度与石灰用量成正比;有利于减少堆肥过程中氮素的损失,且氮素损失与石灰使用量呈反比;有利于堆肥NH4 -N质量分数的降低;提高堆肥终产品NO3--N的质量分数,其质量分数与石灰用量呈正比;有利于堆肥中钾的浓缩;对堆肥的pH、EC、w(NH4 -N)/w(NO3--N)和总磷的影响不大。综合考虑试验结果后认为,以4.00%石灰预处理的效果最为理想。     

奶牛粪便翻堆式与槽式堆肥过程气体排放规律及养分损失原位监测

为探究奶牛粪便翻堆式与槽式堆肥过程中温室气体和氨气(NH₃)排放规律及养分损失情况,采用原位监测的方法,通过静态采气箱和气体在线监测设备,分别对奶牛粪便翻堆式和槽式堆体开展为期36 d的气体监测。结果表明,翻堆式堆肥过程中甲烷(CH₄)、氧化亚氮(N2_O)和NH₃排放主要集中于翻堆阶段;槽式堆肥过程中CH₄和NH₃排放主要集中于堆肥前期,N2_O排放则主要集中于堆肥中后期。堆体管理措施及物料特性显著影响堆肥气体的排放。翻堆式堆肥过程中翻堆对气体排放的影响大于堆肥理化因子如温度、含水率以及pH值;而槽式堆肥过程中,降低堆体的平均温度可同时减缓堆肥过程中CH₄、二氧化碳(CO₂)和NH₃的释放。从养分损失来看,翻堆式和槽式堆肥过程中碳素总损失量分别占堆肥物料初始总碳含量(TC)的27.16%和21.53%,其中约80%以上的碳素损失来自CO₂-C。而堆肥过程中氮素总损失量分别占堆肥物料初始总氮含量(TN)的18.67%和13.44%,其中约80%以上的氮素损失来源于NH₃N。该研究表明,在保证堆体物料腐熟的前提下,降低翻堆频率可显著减缓翻堆式堆肥过程中温室气体和NH₃的排放;降低槽式堆肥堆体的温度可显著减少堆肥过程中CH₄、CO₂和NH₃的排放。该研究结果对于减少堆肥过程气态污染物排放和养分损失,提高堆肥效率具有重要的指导意义。     

Role of glutamine synthetase in ammonia assimilation by symbiotic marine dinoflagellates (zooxanthellae)

The dinoflagellate symbionts (zooxanthellae) present in many reef corals aid in the survival of the symbiotic unit in nitrogen deficient tropical waters by providing additional routes of nitrogen uptake and metabolism. The enzymatic pathway of ammonia assimilation from seawater and the re-assimilation of coral ammonium waste by zooxanthellae was studied by examining the affinity of glutamine synthetase for one of its substrates, ammonia. Glutamine synthetase activity was measured in dinoflagellates of the species Symbiodinium microadriaticum found in symbiotic association with various marine coelenterates. Michaelis-Menten kinetics for the substrate ammonia were determined for freshly isolated dinoflagellates from Condylactis gigantea (apparent NH₃ K_m=33 M) and for cultured dinoflagellates from Zoanthus sociatus (apparent NH₃ K_m=60 M). On the basis of the low apparent K_ms for NH₃, it appears that ammonia assimilation by these symbiotic dinoflagellates occurs via the glutamine synthetase/glutamate synthase pathway. Additionally, the uptake of exogenous ammonium by an intact coelenterate-dinoflagellate symbiosis was strongly inhibited by 0.5 mM methionine sulfoximine, and inhibitor of glutamine synthetase.     

Removing nitrogen and phosphorus from simulated wastewater using algal biofilm technique

Algal biofilmtechnology is a new and advanced wastewater treatment method. Experimental study on removing nitrogen and phosphorus from simulated wastewater using algal biofilm under the continuous light of 3500 Lux in the batch and continuous systems was carried out in this paper to assess the performance of algal biofilm in removing nutrients. The results showed that the effect of removing nitrogen and phosphorus by algal biofilm was remarkable in the batch system. The removal efficiencies of total phosphorus (TP), total nitrogen (TN), ammonia-nitrogen (NH₃-N), and chemical oxygen demand (COD) reached 98.17%, 86.58%, 91.88%, and 97.11%, respectively. In the continuous system, hydraulic retention time (HRT) of 4 days was adopted; the effects of removing TP, TN, NH₃-N, and COD by algal biofilm were very stable. During a run of 24 days, the removal efficiencies of TP, TN, NH₃-N, and COD reached 95.38%, 83.93%, 82.38%, and 92.31%, respectively. This study demonstrates the feasibility of removing nitrogen and phosphorus from simulated wastewater using algal biofilm.     

Significance of ammonia in determining the N:P ratio of the sea water off Barbados,West Indies

N:P atomic ratios calculated on NO₃-N alone for the upper waters of the tropical Atlantic Ocean off Barbados are very low, being only 9.8:1. Absolute values are also low, the integrated values between O and 100 m for NO₃-N and PO₄-P being 0.59 and 0.06 g-at l^-1, respectively. However, when ammonia is included as a nitrogen source the ratio becomes 28.8:1. This is the average value obtained from 42 samples taken over a 21-month period, and suggests that phosphorus, and not nitrogen, is the more critical nutrient in phytoplankton growth off Barbados.     

新型调理剂CTB-2污泥堆肥的氧气时空变化特征研究

采用新型CTB-2调理剂与城市污泥进行堆肥,研究了堆肥过程中氧气、温度的时空变化特征。结果表明,m（CTB-2调理剂）：m（污泥）=1：2能够有效降低污泥容重,改善堆体结构;堆体能够快速升温至高温期并持续7d以上,最终完成无害化;采用该比例的调理剂能够保证堆体的通风供氧,使堆体各层通风后的氧气体积分数都恢复至19％以上,最低氧气体积分数维持在数17％以上;堆肥过程中堆体的氧气体积分数、耗氧速率和温度都具有明显的层次效应,堆体耗氧速率呈先升高后降低的趋势,堆体通风后的氧气和最低氧气体积分数均随着堆肥的进行而增加。