TECHNICAL PAPERS
Jun 1, 2006

EDTA, NTA, Alkylphenol Ethoxylate and DOC Attenuation during Soil Aquifer Treatment

Publication: Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 132, Issue 6

Abstract

Removals of dissolved organic carbon (DOC), ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA), nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA) and carboxylated alkylphenol polyethoxylate metabolites (APECs) were studied at the Sweetwater (Tucson, Ariz.) soil aquifer treatment site that treated chlorinated secondary effluent. The site was operated in a first phase by flooding irregularly for weeks interrupted by days of drying and in a second phase by a regular schedule of flooding for 3 days and drying for 4 days. The average hydraulic loading rates were 0.13 and 0.17mday in the first and second phases, respectively. During drying, oxygen intruded at least 3m deep into the unsaturated subsurface causing nitrification of the ammonium that was retained in the top layer during flooding. Nitrification increased nitrate concentrations to >200mgL but most was removed to <10mgL during transport to 38m depth. At 38m depth, removals of DOC, EDTA, NTA, and APECs during the first phase were 85, 80, 90, and 98%, slightly higher (<7%) than during the second phase. Most of the DOC removal occurred during transport to 3m and most of the trace organics removal occurred during transport from 3 to 38m depth.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), and the American Water Works Association Research Foundation (AWWARF). Valuable contributions to this work by Dr. Yoshiko Fujita (INEEL, Idaho Falls, Id.) and Dr. David Quanrud (University of Arizona) are acknowledged.

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Information & Authors

Information

Published In

Go to Journal of Environmental Engineering
Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 132Issue 6June 2006
Pages: 674 - 682

History

Received: Nov 28, 2005
Accepted: Nov 28, 2005
Published online: Jun 1, 2006
Published in print: Jun 2006

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Authors

Affiliations

H. Harold Yoo
Graduate Student Research Assistant, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Stanford Univ., Stanford, CA 94305-4020.
Jennifer H. Miller
Project Engineer, Malcolm Pirnie, Inc., Suite 1120, One South Church Ave., Tucson, AZ 85701.
Kevin Lansey
Professor, Dept. of Civil Engineering and Engineering Mechanics, Univ. of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85701.
Martin Reinhard
Professor, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Stanford Univ., Stanford, CA 94305 (corresponding author).

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