BOD

The amount of oxygen used in the degradation process is called the biochemical oxygen demand (BOD). A standard test has been devised to measure BOD in which the oxygen utilized by microorganisms in contact with the wastewater over a 5-day period at 20°C is measured. 

The process is designed from a knowledge of physical concentrations, whereas aqueous effluent treatment systems are designed from a knowledge of BOD and COD. Thus we need to somehow establish the relationship between BOD, COD, and the concentration of waste streams leaving the process. Without measurements, relationships can only be established approximately. The relationship between BOD and COD is not easy to establish, since different materials will oxidize at different rates. To compound the problem, many wastes contain complex mixtures of oxidizable materials, perhaps together with chemicals that inhibit the oxidation reactions. 

If the composition of the waste stream is known, then the theoretical oxygen demand can be calculated from the appropriate stoichiometric equations. As a first level of approximation, we can assume that this theoretical oxygen demand would be equal to the COD. Then, experience with domestic sewage indicates that the average ratio of COD to BOD will be on the order 1.5 to 2. The following example will help to clarify these relationships. 

Example 11.1 A process produces an aqueous waste stream containing 0.1 mol% acetone. Estimate the COD and BOD of the stream. 

In aerobic processes, the mean sludge residence time is typically 5 to 10 days. The hydraulic residence time is typically 0.2 to 0.3 days. Suspended growth aerobic processes are capable of removing up to 95 percent of BOD. 

Attached growth processes are capable of removing up to 90 percent of BOD and are thus less effective than suspended growth methods. 

Table 11.2 provides a summary of the main features of aerobic and anaerobic wastewater treatment. Aerobic treatment processes are generally restricted to BOD < 1000 mg/liter unless pure oxygen is used for aeration. 

They are designed to improve effluents from secondary treatment processes by removing suspended material and with it some of the remaining BOD. 

Ultrafiltration. Ultrafiltration was described under pretreatment methods. It is used to remove finely divided suspended solids, and when used as a tertiary treatment, it can remove virtually all the BOD remaining after secondary treatment. 

Environmental Aspects. Airborne particulate matter (187) and aerosol (188) samples from around the world have been found to contain a variety of organic monocarboxyhc and dicarboxyhc acids, including adipic acid. Traces of the acid found ia southern California air were related both to automobile exhaust emission (189) and, iadirecfly, to cyclohexene as a secondary aerosol precursor (via ozonolysis) (190). Dibasic acids (eg, succinic acid) have been found even ia such unlikely sources as the Murchison meteorite (191). PubHc health standards for adipic acid contamination of reservoir waters were evaluated with respect to toxicity, odor, taste, transparency, foam, and other criteria (192). BiodegradabiUty of adipic acid solutions was also evaluated with respect to BOD/theoretical oxygen demand ratio, rate, lag time, and other factors (193). 

Several methods have been developed to estimate the oxygen demand in waste water treatment systems. Commonly used laboratory methods are biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), chemical oxygen demand (COD), total oxygen demand (TOD), total organic carbon (TOC), and theoretical oxygen demand (ThOD). 

Olefins are produced primarily by thermal cracking of a hydrocarbon feedstock which takes place at low residence time in the presence of steam in the tubes of a furnace. In the United States, natural gas Hquids derived from natural gas processing, primarily ethane [74-84-0] and propane [74-98-6] have been the dominant feedstock for olefins plants, accounting for about 50 to 70% of ethylene production. Most of the remainder has been based on cracking naphtha or gas oil hydrocarbon streams which are derived from cmde oil. Naphtha is a hydrocarbon fraction boiling between 40 and 170°C, whereas the gas oil fraction bods between about 310 and 490°C. These feedstocks, which have been used primarily by producers with refinery affiliations, account for most of the remainder of olefins production. In addition a substantial amount of propylene and a small amount of ethylene ate recovered from waste gases produced in petroleum refineries. 

Properties. Silver difluoride melts at 690°C, bods at 700°C, and has a specific gravity of 4.57. It decomposes in contact with water. Silver difluoride may react violently with organic compounds, quite often after an initial induction period. Provisions must be made to dissipate the heat of the reaction. Small-scale experiments must be mn prior to attempting large-scale reactions. 

The extremely nonpolar character of PFCs and very low forces of attraction between PFC molecules account for their special properties. Perfluorocarbons bod only slightly higher than noble gases of similar molecular weight, and their solvent properties are much more like those of argon and krypton than hydrocarbons (2). The physical properties of some PFCs are Hsted in Table 1. 

The physical properties of hydrofluorocarbons reflect their polar character, and possibly the importance of intermolecular hydrogen bonding (3). Hydrofluorocarbons often bod higher than either their PFC or hydrocarbon counterparts. For example, l-C H F bods at 91.5°C compared with 58°C for n-Q and 69°C for Within the series of fluorinated methanes, the boiling point reaches a maximum for CH2F2, which contains an equal... 

Trioxane and Tetraoxane. The cycHc symmetrical trimer of formaldehyde, trioxane [110-88-3] is prepared by acid-catalyzed Hquid- or vapor-phase processes (147—151). It is a colorless crystalline soHd that bods at 114.5°C and melts at 61—62°C (17,152). The heats of formation are — 176.9 kJ/mol (—42.28 kcal/mol) from monomeric formaldehyde and —88.7 kJ/mol (—21.19 kcal/mol) from 60% aqueous formaldehyde. It can be produced by continuous distillation of 60% aqueous formaldehyde containing 2—5% sulfuric acid. Trioxane is extracted from the distillate with benzene or methylene chloride and recovered by distillation (153) or crystallization (154). It is mainly used for the production of acetal resins (qv). 

Formic acid is readily biodegraded, and therefore does not bioaccumulate. The theoretical biological demand (BOD) is 350 mg/g (25). 

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