Freshwater ammonia

Hickey, C.L. and Martin, M.L. Chronic toxicity of ammonia to the freshwater bivalve Sphaerium novaezelandiae, Arch. Environ. Contain. Toxicol., 36(l) 38-46, 1999. 

The continuous wastewater stream from a desalter contains emulsified oil (occasionally free oil), ammonia, phenol, sulfides, and suspended sohds, all of which produce a relatively high BOD and COD concentration. It also contains enough chlorides and other dissolved materials to contribute to the dissolved solids problems in discharges to freshwater bodies. Finally, its temperature often exceeds 95°C (200°F), thus it is a potential thermal pollutant. 

Gases. Some gases that can harm aquatic freshwater life include chlorine, ammonia, and methane. 

Besser, J.M., Ingersoll, C.G., Leonard, E.N. and Mount, D.R. (1998) Effect of zeolite on toxicity of ammonia in freshwater sediments implications for toxicity identification evaluation procedures, Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 17 (11), 2310-2317. 

Mummert, A.K., Neves, R.J., Newcomb, T.J. and Cherry, D.S. (2003) Sensitivity of juvenile freshwater mussels (.Lampsilis fasciola, Villora iris) to total and un-ionized ammonia, Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 22 (11), 2545-2553. 

Toxicity data for saltwater organisms are often insufficient to assess risks. Freshwater toxicity data are usually more plentiful, and their use may provide a suitable surrogate for saltwater data. Wheeler et al. (2002b) used species sensitivity distributions to determine if freshwater data sets are adequately protective of saltwater species assemblages for 21 chemical substances. For ammonia and metal compounds, freshwater organisms tended to be more sensitive than saltwater species, whereas the opposite was true for pesticides and narcotic compounds (Wheeler et al. 2002b). De Zwart (2002), who compared 160 compounds, including 92 pesticides, concluded... 

Wheeler et al. (2002) established acute freshwater and saltwater SSDs for 21 substances, including ammonia, metals, several pesticides, and narcotic substances. Using HC5 calculations and curve slope, they found freshwater species were either more sensitive (ammonia, copper, nickel, or zinc) or less sensitive (chlordane, endosulfan, pentachlorophenol) than saltwater species. In some cases, the distributions were very similar however, the taxonomic compositions of the freshwater and saltwater data sets were not always comparable. Maltby et al. (2005) analyzed SSDs for 16 insecticides and inter alia compared SSDs based on saltwater and freshwater species. They concluded (page 379) that the taxonomic composition of the species assemblage used to construct the SSD does have a significant influence on the assessment of hazard, but the habitat and geographical distribution of the species do not. Differences in freshwater and saltwater SSDs were primarily driven by taxonomy (e.g., both crustaceans and insects are present in freshwater, but only crustaceans are found in seawater). Correcting for the disparity in taxonomy removed habitat differences. 

Appendix A contains a materials selection guide for aerated freshwater systems. As indicated in Note 27 of Appendix A, in freshwater systems, admiralty brass should be limited to a maximum pH value of 7.2 from ammonia and copper-nickel alloys and should not be used in waters containing more sulfides than 0.007 mg/L The materials selection guide is also satisfactory for seawater, although pump cases and impellers should be a suitable duplex stainless steel or nickel-aluminum-bronze (properly heat treated). Neoprene-lined water boxes should be considered. For piping, fiber-reinforced plastic (up to 150 psi [1,035 kPa] operating pressure) and neoprene-lined steel should also be considered. Titanium and high-molybdenum SS tubes should be considered where low maintenance is required or the cost can be justified by life expectancy. 

Gardner, W. S., Seitzinger, S. P., and Malczyk, J. M. (1991). The effects of sea salts on the forms of nitrogen released from estuarine and freshwater sediments Does ion pairing affect ammonia flux Estuaries 14, 157-166. 

Although Phase I of a TIE characterizes the types of toxicants suspected of being active in a sample, Phase II is designed to identify the specific toxicant(s) active. Methods for accomplishing this objective are described for freshwater samples in Durhan et al. (1993). Specific Phase II marine TIE methods are not available but Phase II of a marine TIE can be performed based on Durhan et al. (1993) methods. The procedures used to identify active toxicants characterized in Phase I are specifically designed to demonstrate the role of non-polar organic toxicants, ammonia, cationic metals, oxidants and filterable toxicants. 

Although there are many techniques used to clean such objects, commercial products are often simple solutions of ammonia within a hydrogen-based solvent, with the additional inclusion of a very fine and mild abrasive called diatomaceous earth (DE). DE is nearly pure silica, in the form of SiO2, with a very porous characteristic. DE consists of the skeletons of small aquatic unicellular algal organisms called diatoms, which have survived evolutionary processes for approximately 100 million years. Placed in the taxonomic family Bacillariophyceae, the cell walls of these creatures are made of silica. Because silica is more dense than seawater or freshwater, the presence of silica tends to cause diatoms to sink into the water depths. As such, DE is collected from the bottom of ancient lake beds and is currently mined and used for many commercial and industrial purposes. Thus, within metal cleaners, DE acts as an abrasive, and the alkaline ammonia dissolves any greasy residue on the metalware. In addition, the ammonia reacts with the CuO or CuS to form the soluble ammonia complex of copper, which is Cu(NH3)42+. The greasy tarnish residue can then be washed away with clean water and a damp cloth. 

Urea Freshwaters Microwave-assisted N-urea reduction to N-ammonia UV—Vis 2.40 pmol I, 1 Flow injection system ammonia permeation through a PTFE membrane towards bromothymol blue acceptor stream [250]... 

Jones JG, Simon BM, Horsley RW. 1982. Microbiological sources of ammonia in freshwater lake sediments. J Gen Microbiol 128 2823-2831. 

Francis, C. A., J. M. Beman, and M. M. M. Kuypers. 2007. New processes and players in the nitrogen cycle the microbial ecology of anaerobic and archaeal ammonia oxidation. Int. Soc. Microbial Ecol. J. 1 19-27. Gutknecht, J. L. M. and R. M. Goodman. 2006. Linking soil process and microbial ecology in freshwater wetland ecosystems. Plant Soil 289 17-34. 

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