advantages and disadvantages of serial dilution method

In other words, a contaminant identified by one test in one category can also be identified in another test in a separate category.

Interaction of wastewater analytical categories and laboratory tests.Īlthough wastewater analytical tests are often separated into categories, it is important to understand that these tests are not independent of each other (Figure 1).

Physical Properties and Other Impact Parameters - Analytical tests designed to measure a varied group of constituents directly impact wastewater treatability (e.g., temperature, color, pH, turbidity, odor).įigure 1.

Nutrients - A measurement of the concentration of targeted nutrients (e.g., nitrogen and phosphorus) that can contribute to the acceleration of eutrophication (i.e., the natural aging of water bodies), and.

Solids - A measurement of the concentration of particulate solids that can dissolve or suspend in wastewater (e.g., Total Solids (TS), Total Suspended Solids (TSS), Total Dissolved Solids (TDS), Total Volatile Solids (TVS), and Total Fixed Solids (TFS)).

Organics - A determination of the concentration of carbon-based (i.e., organic) compounds aimed at establishing the relative “strength” of wastewater (e.g., Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD), Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD), Total Organic Carbon (TOC), and Oil and Grease (O&G)).

The determination of wastewater quality set forth in environmental permits has been established since the 1970s in a series of laboratory tests focused on four major categories:

This increased water use and process wastewater generation requires more efficient removal of by-products and pollutants that allows for effluent discharge within established environmental regulatory limits.

Since the implementation of the Clean Water Act and subsequent creation of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) in the early 1970s, industrial, institutional and commercial entities have been required to continually improve the quality of their process wastewater effluent discharges.Īt the same time, population and production increases have increased water use, creating a corresponding rise in wastewater quantity.

Biological & Agricultural Engineering and Poultry Science Departments

Advantages and disadvantages of serial dilution method