title: Recent developments in chelate degradation.
abstract: Chelating agents are used in various industrial processes to inactivate transition metals by forming cyclic complexes. As nitrogen containing compounds, these substances increase the nitrogen load in wastewater. Also, they increase the heavy metal concentrations in the wastewater effluent. It has been long recognised that EDTA and DTPA are relatively recalcitrant compounds and thus pass through wastewater treatment without adequate removal. A number of interesting studies on the degradability of EDTA and DTPA--either by advanced oxidation processes or biological processes--have been carried out recently. This review focuses mainly on these two compounds.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Environmental Protection Technology, Helsinki University of Technology, HUT, Finland.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sillanpää
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Pirkanniemi
mesh_terms: D002614:Chelating Agents / Q000378:metabolism*; D004492:Edetic Acid / Q000378:metabolism*; D005068:Eutrophication; D019216:Metals, Heavy; D010084:Oxidation-Reduction; D004369:Pentetic Acid / Q000378:metabolism*; D014865:Waste Disposal, Fluid; D014871:Water Microbiology; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000378:metabolism*; D014876:Water Pollution / Q000517:prevention & control*
chemical_list: D002614:Chelating Agents; D019216:Metals, Heavy; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; D004369:Pentetic Acid; D004492:Edetic Acid