Treatment of aqueous streams for removal of nitrogen and phosphorus compounds

Abstract

Abstract A PROCESS FOR THE TREATMENT OF AQUEOUS BIOLOGICAL WASTES AND/OR OTHER LIQUIDS CONTAINING POLLUTIONAL MATERIALS TO PRODUCE AN EFFLUENT HAVING A LOW COD (BOD) AND A SUBSTANTIALLY REDUCED CONCENTRATION OF SOLBULE NITROGEN AND PHOSPHORUS COMPOUNDS WHEREIN A WASTE WATER STREAM IS FED TO A COKING ZONE AND HEATED TO A TEMPERATURE IN THE RANGE OF 400 TO 700*F. UNDER SUFFICIENT PRESSURE TO PREVENT THE VAPORIZATION OF WATER TO FORM COKE, CARBON DIOXIDE, AND LOW MOLECULAR WEIGHT OXYGENATED, ORGANIC COMPOUNDS WHICH ARE SEPARATED FROM THE TREATED SEWAGE AQUEOUS EFFLUENT; THIS EFFLUENT IS OXIDIZED WITH AIR AT A TEMPERATURE ABOVE ABOUT 450*F. UNDER SUFFICIENT PRESCARBON DIOXIDE OR THE OXYGENATED ORGANIC COMPOUNDS OR BOTH ARE INTRODUCED AT SELECTED POINTS IN THE WASTE WATER STREAM TO STIMULATE THE GROWTH OF MICROORGANISMS WHICH CONSUME SOLUBLE NITROGEN AND PHOSPHORUS COMPOUNDS, WHICH MICOORGANISMS ARE THEN SENT ON TO THE COKING ZONE FOR COKING. BY THUS STIMULATING BIOLOGICAL PROCESSES WHICH CONSUME NITROGEN AND PHOSPHORUS COMPOUNDS THERE IS PRODUCED AN EFFLUENT WHICH CAN BE DISCHARGED INTO BODIES OF WATER WITHOUT CAUSING EUTROPHICATION OF THE WATERS.

Inventors

• 👤 Edward L Cole
• 👤 Raymond F Wilson
• 👤 Howard V Hess

Bibliographic Details