Nitrogen Removal from Returned Liquors
In: Water and environment journal, Band 7, Heft 5, S. 492-496
ISSN: 1747-6593
AbstractDuring recent years it has become clear that, particularly to protect the quality of sea waters, nitrogen and phosphorus discharges have to be substantially reduced. Nitrogen reduction can take place by conventional biological treatment. However, the problem can be partly, or perhaps completely, resolved by treating the returned liquors resulting from sludge dewatering. These normally create a substantial load on sewagetreatment works; in fact the nitrogen in the returned liquors can contribute 15–25% of the total nitrogen load entering the works. It therefore seems appropriate, particularly with a view to future nitrogenreduction requirements, to treat the returned liquors before they are returned to the works'inlet. Since 1987, Watergroup has been working on these problems, and the company now has full‐scale plants at Frederikshavn, Denmark (population equivalent 130 000) and Eslöv, Sweden (population equivalent 250 000). Normally this treatment can be carried out at a considerably lower cost, per kg nitrogen removed, than when applying traditional methods. An additional advantage is that the method makes it possible to reuse the nitrogen content of the returned liquor, e.g. in the form of ammonium sulphate which is an excellent fertilizer.