Chemo-denitrification of nitrate-polluted water.
Nitrate-nitrogen reduction was studied in the presence of ferrous iron and a copper catalyst. In a batch system, it was found that the reduction was very fast at pH 8.1 and slow at pH 7.5. A temporary accumulation of nitrate and hydroxylamine was noted. It was found that the reduction of nitrite-nitrogen in the presence of ferrous iron partly continued to ammonium. Decreasing the amount of reagents led to a slower reduction rate but a lower accumulation of nitrite and hydroxylamine. A continuous system was described whereby more than 50% of the initial nitrate could be removed.
Van Hecke
K
K
Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of Ghent, Coupure 653, 9000 Ghent, Belgium.
Van Cleemput
O
O
Baert
L
L