Removal of High Concentrations of Ammonium from Groundwater in a Pilot-Scale System through Aeration at the Bottom Layer of a Chemical Catalytic Oxidation Filter

Wushou Zhang; Ruifeng Zhang; Yanfeng Yang; Tinglin Huang; Gang Wen

doi:10.3390/ijerph16203989

Removal of High Concentrations of Ammonium from Groundwater in a Pilot-Scale System through Aeration at the Bottom Layer of a Chemical Catalytic Oxidation Filter

Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2019 Oct 18;16(20):3989. doi: 10.3390/ijerph16203989.

Authors

Wushou Zhang^{1

2}, Ruifeng Zhang³, Yanfeng Yang^{4

5}, Tinglin Huang^{6

7}, Gang Wen^{8

9}

Affiliations

¹ Key Laboratory of Northwest Water Resource, Environment and Ecology, MOE, Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology, Xi'an 710055, China. wushou-qingsheng@163.com.
² Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Environmental Engineering, Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology, Xi'an 710055, China. wushou-qingsheng@163.com.
³ School of Urban Planning and municipal engineering, Xi'an Polytechnic University, Xi'an 710048, China. ruifengzhangtry@163.com.
⁴ Key Laboratory of Northwest Water Resource, Environment and Ecology, MOE, Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology, Xi'an 710055, China. yangyanfeng0920@163.com.
⁵ Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Environmental Engineering, Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology, Xi'an 710055, China. yangyanfeng0920@163.com.
⁶ Key Laboratory of Northwest Water Resource, Environment and Ecology, MOE, Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology, Xi'an 710055, China. huangtinglin@xauat.edu.cn.
⁷ Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Environmental Engineering, Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology, Xi'an 710055, China. huangtinglin@xauat.edu.cn.
⁸ Key Laboratory of Northwest Water Resource, Environment and Ecology, MOE, Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology, Xi'an 710055, China. wengang@xauat.edu.cn.
⁹ Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Environmental Engineering, Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology, Xi'an 710055, China. wengang@xauat.edu.cn.

Abstract

To remove high concentrations of ammonium from groundwater, pure oxygen and compressed air were fed into a chemical catalytic filter and the ammonium removal efficiency was investigated. The experimental results showed that the oxygen content is the critical limiting factor for ammonium removal. Aeration with 40 mL/min pure oxygen or 100 mL/min compressed air from the bottom of the filter supplied adequate oxygen and approximately 4.2 mg/L of ammonium was removed in this process. Moreover, when the aeration device was moved to 1/3 of the height of the filter bed, the required flow rates of pure oxygen and compressed air decreased further and the turbidity removal was improved. Pouring ozone gas into the filter system, which can inactivate bacteria effectively, can also obtain the remarkable ammonium removal, indicating that ammonium removal was mainly due to the chemical catalytic oxidation in this process rather than the biodegradation. This study provides a novel method for removing high concentrations of ammonium from groundwater.

Keywords: ammonium; chemical catalytic oxidation; drinking water; filtration.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Ammonium Compounds / isolation & purification*
Catalysis*
China
Filtration / methods*
Groundwater / chemistry*
Oxidation-Reduction*
Water Pollutants, Chemical / isolation & purification*
Water Purification / methods*

Substances

Ammonium Compounds
Water Pollutants, Chemical