Abstract:
The electrochemical nitrogen removal efficiency in a bio-electrochemical denitrification part of Complete Autotrophic Nitrite-nitrification and Electrochemical Bio-denitrification Combined Process (CANNED) was studied before the biofilm inoculation stage under pure electrochemical conditions, which was 24 h HRT and 0.052 mA/cm
2 electric current density, when the influent nitrogen forms were NO
2--N, NH
4+-N and NO
2--N+NH
4+-N, respectively. The results were shown as follows: When only NO
2--N was added and the NO
2--N influent concentration increased from 100 mg /L to 400 mg /L, NO
2--N was removed partially by the bio-electrochemical part but the NO
2--N removal efficiency reduced gradually from 40% to about 20%, which was might due to the oxidation of HClO produced from the influent constant Cl
- concentration. When only NH
4+-N was added and the influent NH
4+-N concentration increased from 100 mg/L to 400 mg/L, the bio-electrochemical part NH
4+-N removal efficiency was kept about 35%. This was mainly because that NH
4+-N was supplied in the form of NH
4Cl in the influent and the concentration of Cl
- and HClO reacted with NH
4+-N increased with the NH
4+-N increasing accordingly. When NO
2--N and NH
4+-N were both added, the removal efficiency of each individual ion was almost the same as the NO
2--N and NH4+-N were added separately. The results showed that NH
4+-N and NO
2--N were removed partially by the influent Cl
- and there was no electrochemical interaction of the NH
4+-N and NO
2--N removal under the electrochemical conditions in the bio-electrochemical part of CANNED.