Optimization of Ammonical Nitrogen Removal Using Biological Nitrification Process and Surface Response Method

High concentrations of ammonia in drinking water resources can cause complications and diseases in human, as well as environmental problems such as eutrophication. The aim of this study was to investigate the removal of ammonia nitrogen from wastewater using the nitrification and modeling by response surface method (RSM).

Experiments were performed in a batch mood and in a laboratory scale by evaluating the amount of ammonium in effluent. The ammonium removal efficiency was optimized according to RSM and the central composite design (CCD).

The results of this study showed that by increasing the contact time and decreasing the ammonium load, the efficiency of the system was increased. The best conditions for nitrification were determined as follows; 38 hours of hydraulic retention time and 173.6 mg/L of inlet ammonium concentrations. Under this condition a maximum efficiency of about 70% was obtained.

Due to the high correlation coefficients, the ammonium removal model was significant and the surface response method was a suitable method for optimizing and modeling.