Acetate Limitation and Nitrite Accumulation during Denitrification
Publication: Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 125, Issue 3
Abstract
Nitrite accumulated in denitrifying activated sludge mixed liquor when the carbon and electron source, acetate, was limited. If acetate was added to obtain a carbon-to-nitrogen (C:N) ratio in the range of 2:1 to 3:1, nitrate was completely consumed at the same rate with no nitrite accumulation, indicating that nitrate concentration controlled the respiration rate as long as sufficient substrate was present. However, when acetate was reduced to a C:N ratio of 1:1, while nitrate continued to be consumed, >50% of the initial nitrate-nitrogen accumulated as nitrite and 29% persisted as nitrite throughout an endogenous denitrification period of 8–9 h. While nitrite accumulated during acetate-limited denitrification, the specific nitrate reduction rate increased significantly compared with the rate when excess acetate was provided as follows: 0.034 mg-NO3-N/mg-mixed liquid volatile suspended solids/h versus 0.023 mg-NO3-N/mg-mixed liquid volatile suspended solids/h, respectively. This may be explained by nitrate respiration out-competing nitrite respiration for limited acetate electrons. Complete restoration of balanced denitrification and elimination of nitrite accumulation during denitrification required several weeks after the C:N ratio was increased back to 2:1.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
References
1.
Almeida, J. S., Reis, M. A. M., and Carrondo, M. J. T. ( 1995). “Competition between nitrate and nitrite reduction in denitrification by Pseudomonas fluorescens.” Biotechnol. Bioengrg., 46(5), 476–484.
2.
Batchelor, B. ( 1982). “Kinetic analysis of alternative configurations for single-sludge nitrification/denitrification.” J. Water Pollution Control Fed., 54(11), 1493–1504.
3.
Betlach, M., and Tiedje, J. ( 1981). “Kinetic explanation for accumulation of nitrite, nitric oxide, and nitrous oxide during bacterial denitrification.” Appl. Envir. Microbiology, 42(6), 1074–1084.
4.
Blaszczyk, M. ( 1993). “Effect of medium composition on the denitrification of nitrate by Paracoccus denitrificans.” Appl. Envir. Microbiology, 59(11), 3951–3953.
5.
Clark, F., Francke, H., and Strohecker, J. ( 1975). “Biological denitrification of high nitrate solution.” Proc., 30th Purdue Ind. Waste Conf., Ann Arbor Science, Ann Arbor, Mich., 768–783.
6.
Cook, N., and Silverstein, J. ( 1989). “Biological denitrification of polluted groundwater.” Completion Rep. No. 153, Colorado Water Resources Research Institute, Colo.
7.
Coyne, M. S., and Tiedje, J. M. ( 1990). “Induction of denitrifying enzymes in oxygen-limited Achromobacter cycloclastes continuous culture.” FEMS Microbiol. Ecol., 73, 263–270.
8.
Design of municipal wastewater treatment plants, Vol. II . (1992). WEF MOP No. 8 and ASCE Manual No. 76, Water Environment Federation, Alexandria, Va., and ASCE, New York, 913.
9.
McKenney D. J., Drury, C. F., Findlay, W. I., Mutus, B., McDonnell T., and Gajda, C. ( 1994). “Kinetics of denitrification by Pseudomonas fluorescens: Oxygen effects.” Soil Biol. Biochem., 26(7), 901–908.
10.
Samuelsson, M. O., Cadez, P., and Gustafsson, L. ( 1988). “Heat production by the denitrifying bacterium Pseudomonas fluorescens and the dissimilatory ammonium producing bacterium Pseudomonas putrefaciens during anaerobic growth with nitrate as the electron acceptor.” Appl. Envir. Microbiology, 54, 2220–2225.
11.
“Standard methods for the examination of water and wastewater.” (1995). 19th Ed., American Public Health Association, AWWA, WEF, Washington, D.C.
12.
Thomsen, J. K., Geest, T., and Cox, R. P. ( 1994). “Mass spectrometric studies of the effect of pH on the accumulation of intermediates in denitrification by Paracoccus denitrificans.” Appl. Envir. Microbiology, 60(2), 536–541.
13.
Tiedje, J. M. ( 1988). “Ecology of denitrification and dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium.” Biology of anaerobic microorganisms, Alexander J. B. Zehnder, ed., Wiley, New York.
14.
van Rijn, J., Tal, Y., and Barak, Y. ( 1996). “Influence of volatile fatty acids on nitrite accumulation by a Pseudomonas stutzeri strain isolated from a denitrifying fluidized bed reactor.” Appl. Envir. Microbiology, 62(7), 2615–2620.
15.
Wilderer, P. A., Jones, W. L., and Dau, U. ( 1987). “Competition in denitrification systems affecting reduction rate and accumulation of nitrite.” Water Res., 21(2), 239–245.
16.
Wilson, T., and Newton, D. ( 1973). “Brewery wastes as a carbon source for denitrification at Tampa, Florida.” Proc., 28th Purdue Ind. Waste Conf., Ann Arbor Science, Ann Arbor, Mich., 138–149.
17.
Wu, Q., Knowles, R., and Niven, D. F. ( 1994). “O2 regulation of denitrification in Flexibacter canadensis.” Can. J. Microbiol., 40, 916–921.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 125 • Issue 3 • March 1999
Pages: 234 - 242
History
Received: Jul 9, 1998
Published online: Mar 1, 1999
Published in print: Mar 1999
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.