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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Florence, South Carolina » Coastal Plain Soil, Water and Plant Conservation Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #267837
Title: Advances in biological nitrogen treatment of animal wastewater: Nitrification and anammox

Author
item Vanotti, Matias
item Szogi, Ariel
item FUJII, TAKAO - Sojo University
item Hunt, Patrick
item FURUKAWA, KENJI - Kumamoto University

Submitted to: Agronomy Abstracts
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 7/5/2011
Publication Date: 10/16/2011
Citation: Vanotti, M.B., Szogi, A.A., Fujii, T., Hunt, P.G., Furukawa, K. 2011. Advances in biological nitrogen treatment of animal wastewater: Nitrification and anammox [abstract]. American Society of Agronomy-Crop Science Society of America-Soil Science Society of America International Annual Meetings, October 16-19, 2011, San Antonio, Texas.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Biological nitrogen removal (BNR) is regarded as the most efficient and economically feasible method available for removal of nitrogen from municipal wastewaters. Its use for economical treatment of animal wastewaters required development of new technologies and systems adapted to the higher-strength characteristics of these wastes and a different purpose for treatment. Nitrification of raw flushed manure was most effective after solid-liquid separation treatment. The discovery of a high-performing nitrifying bacterial sludge adapted to high ammonia concentrations (>2500 mg nitrogen per liter) and low water temperatures (5° Celsius) significantly reduced BNR plant footprint and costs. Nitrification-denitrification with a Modified Ludzack-Ettinger process consistently removed >90% of the total nitrogen from swine wastewater with varying nitrogen concentrations during animal production from 660 to 2700 mg nitrogen per liter. Although anaerobic digestion is an excellent process for energy recovery from liquid manure, the digested effluent rich in ammonia is costly to treat with conventional BNR due to the low carbon remaining for denitrification. Fortunately, an autotrophic anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox) process is being developed that provides effective BNR to digested liquid manure. In the anammox process, the ammonia is oxidized to nitrogen gas under anaerobic conditions. Compared to conventional nitrification-denitrification, a partial nitritation-anammox mode to eliminate the ammonia from wastewater reduces 58% of the oxygen requirement and 100% of the carbon requirement. A novel anammox bacteria Brocadia caroliniensis was discovered in swine manure; it has exhibited exceptionally-high ammonia removal rates, up to 3.6 kilogram/cubic meter/day. Therefore, anammox is a key technology for development of more economical and energy efficient BNR systems in the future.