Influence of Temperature on the Removal Efficiency of Organic Matter and Ammonia from Micro-Polluted Source Water

Abstract

Temperature is an important factor influencing the treatment effect of biological aerated filters (BAFs). In this study, BAFs incorporating biological manganese oxides (BMOs) were used to treat micro-polluted source water containing organic masses and ammonia, and the influence of temperature on the removal efficiency of the pollutants was investigated. The results showed that after the formation of biogenic manganese oxides (BMOs) in the filter layer, the removal efficiency of CODMn significantly improved. When the water temperature was approximately 24 °C, 16 °C, and 6~8 °C, the removal rates of CODMn, ammonia, and manganese were 60.64, 42.55, and 20.48; 98.40, 95.58, and 85.04; and 98.70, 97.63, and 96.38%, respectively. The influence of water temperature on the removal efficiency of the pollutants was hierarchically structured as follows: CODMn > ammonia > manganese. Analysis of the removal efficiencies of the pollutants along the filter layer showed that CODMn had been eliminated in every filtration layer, and ammonia and manganese were mainly removed in the 0~0.4 m and 0~0.8 m regions of the filter layer, respectively. With a decreasing water temperature, the concentrations of CODMn, ammonia, and manganese along the filter layer increased. The biological CODMn, manganese, and ammonia removal processes were all first-order kinetic reactions. With a decreasing water temperature, the kinetic constant k gradually decreased, and the reaction half-life (t1/2) gradually increased.