Ammonia NH3 Research Articles

Nitrogen‐Induced Microcrystalline‐to‐Nanocrystalline Structure Transition in Diamond Films Grown by Microwave Plasma Chemical Vapor Deposition: Comparison of N2 and NH3 Precursors

The structure and properties of polycrystalline chemical vapor deposition (CVD) diamond coatings grown by microwave plasma CVD in H2–CH4 mixtures can be effectively controlled by nitrogen admixture in the process gas. Here, a comparative study of adding nitrogen from different precursors, N2 and ammonia NH3, in concentrations up to 0.4%vol on grain size, texture, surface roughness, and sp2/sp3 ratio of the produced films on Si substrates is performed. A transition from microcrystalline to smooth nanocrystalline diamond structure is found to occur at a certain concentration of the precursor, for NH3 this threshold concentration being much lower, 0.02–0.1%, than for N2. The higher activity of ammonia is associated with easier formation of cyano radicals in the plasma as detected with optical emission spectroscopy, in accord with the lower bond‐dissociation energy for NH3 compared to N2. On the contrary, a smaller addition (0.004%) of either N2 or NH3 promotes almost doubling of the growth rate, while preserving the microcrystalline structure of the film. The results establish ammonia as a convenient alternative precursor to commonly used N2 added in the plasma for the diamond film structure modifications.

Correlation and regression analysis of unionised ammonia ions, NH3and pH in ornamental fish aquatic environment

Assessing ammonia in water is very important for fish farmers as it is one of the pollutants that may affect the water quality. In water, ammonia can be found either in the form of unionised ammonia NH3 or ionised ammonia NH+4, which contribute to a total ammonia nitrogen (TAN). In assessing the ammonia toxicity, NH3 provides a more accurate measure of toxicity and needs to be monitored consistently, rather than relying solely on TAN. However, the method of measuring NH3 in water can be complex and challenging. Therefore, the ability to determine the correlation between NH3 and other parameter which is easier to be measured (such as pH) is crucial to enable the estimation of NH3. This study was conducted to determine the correlation between NH3 and pH based on the data collected from Redgold Aquatics ornamental fishponds located in Sik, Kedah. The pH was assessed by a commercial measuring device, while the NH3 was calculated using an appropriate mathematical equation that requires the data of pH, TAN, and temperature. The correlation and regression analysis were conducted via the IBM SPSS tool and Microsoft Excel. The result shows that NH3 and pH are highly correlated with regression equation of NH3 = 0.01pH – 0.07. In addition, factors that may affect the total ammonia value have been discussed thoroughly in this work. The analysis of these water quality parameters may assist farmers in estimating the toxic ammonia, NH3 from the known water pH.

PHYSICOCHEMICAL CHANGES IN MUNICIPAL WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT

The physicochemical parameters comprise pH, temperature (T), chemical oxygen demand (COD), alkalinity, and ammonia NH3, . The results obtained in this study were as follows: temperature (21.6 -23.7ºC), pH (7.69 - 7.51), ammonia NH3 is in range 0 to 1.8 mg/L and Chemical oxygen demand (COD) is in range ( 13 – 620mg/L), and alkalinity (370-200 mg/L). . We conclude that these municipal sewage plants are important point sources of pollution in surface water with possible public health and ecological risks. The present paper comprises of the various Physico-Chemical parameters and technologies used in waste-water treatment, with emphasis on municipal waste-water.

Nitrogen fixation and H2O2 production by an atmospheric pressure plasma jet operated in He–H20–N2–O2 gas mixtures

AbstractAtmospheric pressure plasmas are widely used for nitrogen fixation processes to produce ammonia NH3 or nitrogen oxides NOx, including, for example, nitrite NO2− or nitrate NO3−. Small‐scale atmospheric pressure plasma jets (APPJs) can provide the production of these species on demand at the site of consumption. The species of interest are generated by the plasma and can be dissolved in liquids, for example, to use them. In this work, liquid treatments were performed by an APPJ operated in a He––– gas composition to investigate the influence of the gas composition on the production of hydrogen peroxide , and . A validation of two diagnostics showed that the spectrophotometric approach using ammonium metavanadate was interfered by other species when was added to the system. Thus, electrochemical sensing of was performed. The concentrations of and were measured by commercially available test kits based on the o‐phythalaldehyde method and the Griess reagent, respectively. At low admixtures, the dominant species was with a maximum concentration of 0.9 mM, while became dominant at admixtures of 0.5% and higher with concentrations of up to 1.5 mM. was also present in the system and could be measured at low concentrations of less than 0.2 mM in the liquid. By varying the treatment distance and the gas flow rate, insights into the transport phenomena of the species and their dissolution into the liquid could be gained. Low‐frequency pulsing of the radio frequency (RF) jet led to an accumulating effect on , a reduced production of and a switch from ‐dominated production to ‐dominated production.

A novel ammonium-free vanadium precipitation process for the integrated actions of ascorbic acid reduction and enhanced hydrolysis under hydrothermal influence

Vanadium-titanium magnetite is an important source of vanadium, and V2O5 is the main vanadium product. At present, the production of V2O5 is mainly obtained by sodium salt roasting and ammonium salt precipitation, while ammonia nitrogen wastewater and NH3 discharge will cause serious environmental pollution. Calcium and iron salts are mainly intermediate products, and vanadium oxides cannot be obtained directly. Therefore, a clean and sustainable method is proposed to produce V2O5 by ascorbic acid hydrothermal reduction in one step. When the vanadium concentration is 25.48 g/L, under the optimal vanadium precipitation conditions: the ascorbic acid addition ratio is n(ASA): n(V) = 0.1:1, the reaction temperature is 210 °C, the solution pH is 1.25, and the reaction time is 10 h, the precipitation efficiency and V2O5 purity can be 99.60% and 99.12%, respectively. The kinetics and apparent activation energy of the reaction were investigated, and the apparent activation energy was calculated to be 68.80 kJ/mol. The product obtained was characterized by XRD, SEM-EDS, XPS and FTIR, proving that the final product is V2O5. The reaction mechanism of ascorbic acid and vanadium in solution is single electron transfer and recombination, and the formation process of V2O5 is: VO3- → VO2+ → VO2 or V2O3 → V2O5, and ascorbic acid is oxidized to dehydroascorbic acid. In conclusion, the production of V2O5 by hydrothermal reduction of ascorbic acid is environmentally friendly, clean, simple, and efficient.

The role of sulfur cycle in new particle formation: Cycloaddition reaction of SO3 to H2S

The chemistry of sulfur cycle contributes significantly to the atmospheric nucleation process, which is the first step of new particle formation (NPF). In the present study, cycloaddition reaction mechanism of sulfur trioxide (SO3) to hydrogen sulfide (H2S) which is a typical air pollutant and toxic gas detrimental to the environment were comprehensively investigate through theoretical calculations and Atmospheric Cluster Dynamic Code simulations. Gas-phase stability and nucleation potential of the product thiosulfuric acid (H2S2O3, TSA) were further analyzed to evaluate its atmospheric impact. Without any catalysts, the H2S + SO3 reaction is infeasible with a barrier of 24.2 kcal/mol. Atmospheric nucleation precursors formic acid (FA), sulfuric acid (SA), and water (H2O) could effectively lower the reaction barriers as catalysts, even to a barrierless reaction with the efficiency of cis-SA > trans-FA > trans-SA > H2O. Subsequently, the gas-phase stability of TSA was investigated. A hydrolysis reaction barrier of up to 61.4 kcal/mol alone with an endothermic isomerization reaction barrier of 5.1 kcal/mol under the catalytic effect of SA demonstrates the sufficient stability of TSA. Furthermore, topological and kinetic analysis were conducted to determine the nucleation potential of TSA. Atmospheric clusters formed by TSA and atmospheric nucleation precursors (SA, ammonia NH3, and dimethylamine DMA) were thermodynamically stable. Moreover, the gradually decreasing evaporation coefficients for TSA-base clusters, particularly for TSA-DMA, suggests that TSA may participate in NPF where the concentration of base molecules are relatively higher. The present new reaction mechanism may contributes to a better understanding of atmospheric sulfur cycle and NPF.

Fertilization rate optimization model for potato crops to maximize yield while reducing polluting nitrogen emissions

Sustainable agriculture plays a crucial role in addressing climate change and pollution. Farmers must strive to strike a balance between increasing production and reducing environmental impacts. In Colombia, the limited use of technology in agriculture often results in a lack of timely and accurate information for decision making, including determining nitrogen fertilizer rates. To address this, we present a fertilization rate optimization model for potato crops aimed at maximizing yield and minimizing nitrogen emissions to the environment for Colombian potato farmers. In a central region of Colombia, four crop zones were identified and their responses to different fertilizers were studied. The optimization model was structured with two main constraints: limiting the total polluting nitrogen emissions (nitrous oxide N2O, ammonia NH3, Runoff, leaching) from applied nitrogenous fertilizer, and limiting the economic investment associated with the cost of the fertilizers. The model allows for analysis of different scenarios. The results indicate that emissions can be reduced by 7.5% through the use of 70.28 fewer kilograms of fertilizer, with only a 0.35% decrease in the final benefit.

The Type of Floor and its Impact on the Growth, Physiological and Performance of Broilers

This study was conducted to find out the effect of floor type on the growth, some physiological characteristics and welfare standards for broilers. 120 unsexed one-day-old ROSS 308 broiler chicks were used. The study included two groups with three replicates (20 birds for each replicate). The first treatment, the birds were raised on the Rice husks litter, and the second treatment the birds were raised on a wire floor, 15 cm high. Feed and water were provided freely throughout the study period. The results showed that raising broilers on different floor type did not show significant differences in body weight, weight gain rate and feed conversion factor between groups, and significant differences were found in feed consumption in favor of the second treatment at the age of 21 days, and no significant differences appeared in the standards of productive performance. for broilers at the age of 38 days, and there were no significant differences in the percentage of dressing, the relative weight of the internal organs and the concentration of ammonia NH3 gas, while rearing on the wire floor reduced the concentration of carbon dioxide Co2 and raised the body temperature of the birds raised on the wire floor, there was a significant improvement in measures of well-being, the incidence of inflammation of the hock burn and footpad dermatitis. The biochemical and hormonal characteristics were not significantly affected when raising birds on wire floor, and there was an improvement in the level of antioxidants in the bird’s body through an increase in GSH. We conclude from this study that raising broilers on the wire floor did not affect the productive performance, but it improved the status of antioxidants and welfare standards for broilers.

CLIMATE AND ENVIRONMENTAL BACKGROUNDS OF FUEL UTILIZATION, INFLUENCING UPON ALTERATION THE EUROPEAN AND UKRAINIAN TRENDS OF GAS SUPPLY P.1 PRESENT REQUIREMENTS TO SELECTION THE GAS FUELS. THERMODYNAMIC EVALUATION THE PRINCIPAL CHARACTERISTICS OF GAS FUEL

The work examines the starting points on the formation of fuel markets in Europe within the framework of the concept of sustainable development of the countries’ economics, taking into account the main limitations, primarily the climatic and environmental consequences of fuels combustion. This approach has led in the past years to simultaneous increase in absolute volumes’ consumption of mineral (organic, carbon-rich) fuel’s flow rate and to reduction of their shares in the overall fuel balance. The relevant changes had occurred because of simultaneous production and consumption the alternative fuels, including renewable gas and energy sources. New schemes, methods and ways of fuel supply have been analyzed, including maritime transportation of liquefied fuels (liquefied natural gas LNG, liquid hydrocarbons LPG, ammonia NH3) along with creation of a modern tanker fleet with floating and land-based regasification and gas storage (FSRU) systems; systems of interconnecting the pipelines for fuel supply, including hydrogen-enriched natural gas (HENG). According to the cultivated opinion, the global warming is considered as a consequence of the carbonization of environment due to emission of C-rich combustion products (CO2) into the atmosphere. The specified contribution of CO2 to atmospheric pollution is caused by the insufficient efficiency of fuel use, for example, in heating furnaces (up to 40 % of the total amount of fuel consumed in the industry is burned in furnaces). If the emissions value of a conventional natural gas combustion systems in furnaces meets the level of emissions up to 0.45 kg СО2/kW.h, then in the case of equipping the furnace with an efficient waste gas heat recovery system, the emissions are reducing to 0.2–0.25 kg СО2/kW.h, (Wunning J.). The determinant role of the efficiency of fuel use ηf has been correlated with the scale of atmospheric pollution with greenhouse gases (CO2) emission by means of thermodynamic analysis of energy efficiency. The efficiency of fuel utilization: by enthalpy ηH and by exergy ηeff — has been computed for the cases of burning the widespread fuels and the comparative analysis has been performed. The calculations of thermal energy characteristics of the fuels have been carried out by using the original author’s methodology based upon assumption of equilibrium thermodynamics for the cases of using the widespread gas fuels within the temperature range T from the standard T0 to the theoretical combustion temperature TT. In accordance with original author’s method the most important heat engineering characteristics of the fuels have been studied by means of approaches of equilibrium thermodynamics. Higher and lower combustion heat, higher and lower Wobbe numbers, theoretical (adiabatic) combustion temperature of the widespread fuels have been determined. An influence of hydrogen content in CH4/H2 gas fuel mixtures on the mentioned properties has been determined. From the list of firing engineering characteristics, the formation of the methane number MN for different organic and alternative fuels have been considered. The accumulated numerical values of MN for the widespread types of fuels have been stated and compared. Bibl. 38, Fig. 4, Tab. 1.

Synthesis of Na+-Gated Nanochannel Membranes for the Ammonia (Nh3) Separation

Synthesis of Na+-Gated Nanochannel Membranes for the Ammonia (Nh3) Separation

Effect of adding biochar to the diet and litter on the rate of diet consumption, relative humidity and gut health of broilers (Ross308)

This experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of adding biochar to the diet and litter on growth performance and broilers the hock burn and footpad dermatitis. In the experiment, 300 One day old chicks were randomly distributed to 5 treatments 3 replicates each treatment , with (20) birds per replicate and with an average weight (39.7) g. T1: Without adding biochar in the diet and litter. T2: (2) kg of biochar / 100 kg of diet). T3: (4 kg of biochar l / 100 kg of diet). T4: (2 kg of biochar / 100 kg of litter). T5: (4 kg of biochar / 100 kg of litter) . The results of the statistical analysis of the weekly diet consumption rate indicated a significant superiority of the treatments of adding biochar to the diet over the treatments of adding biochar to the litter and the control group . While the results of relative humidity, level ammonia NH3 level indicated that adding biochar to the litter treatments recorded the best results compared to the group adding biochar to the diet and the control group. As for the results of the microbial characteristics, it was shown that the treatments of adding biochar to the diet recorded the best results compared with the group adding biochar to the litter and the control group, which recorded a decrease in the number of colon bacteria and an increase in the number of lactic acid bacteria. While the relative humidity results indicated that adding biochar to the litter treatments recorded the best results compared to the group adding biochar to the diet and the control group.
 The aim of this study is to evaluate biochar as a food additive and a positive stimulant of the intestinal flora in maintaining the health of the broiler digestive system. Besides, due to its absorbent properties, it can reduce the moisture content of the litter and improve the overall environment of broiler breeding halls.

Organic Waste Gasification by Ultra-Superheated Steam

The perspective of the emerging environmentally friendly and economically efficient detonation gun technology for the high-temperature gasification of organic wastes with ultra-superheated mixture of steam and carbon dioxide is discussed. The technology is readily scalable and allows the establishment of a highly reactive atmospheric-pressure environment in a compact water-cooled gasifier due to very high local temperature (above 2000 °C), intense in situ shock-induced fragmentation of feedstock, and high-speed vortical convective flows enhancing interphase exchange processes. These unique and distinctive features of the technology can potentially provide the complete conversion of solid and liquid wastes into syngas, consisting exclusively of hydrogen and carbon monoxide; microparticles, consisting of environmentally safe simple oxides and salts of mineral residues, as well as aqueous solutions of oxygen-free acids such as HCl, HF, H2S, etc., and ammonia NH3. A small part of the syngas product (ideally approximately 10%) can be used for replacing a starting fuel (e.g., natural gas) for the production of a detonation-born gasifying agent, while the rest can be utilized for the production of electricity, heat, and/or chemicals.

Measurement and automatic monitoring insulation resistance of AC/DC mixed unearthed networks

Marine industry is one of the strong sectors bringing great economic benefits in the world and especially in Vietnam. However, the control of marine aquatic environment is always a complicated problem in both solutions and implementation. Currently, monitoring systems are capable of measuring most of the indicators but still face many difficulties with special indicators such as NH3, H2S, which need to integrate many specialized equipment applications, complex measurement procedures, or waiting for results from a laboratory. Therefore, the implementation is hindered and increases the investment cost. In this article, the authors apply an indirect measurement method to determine the rate of ammonia (NH3) for an automatic monitoring system of the aquatic environment. The monitoring system will monitor the basic water indicators in the National technical regulation on aquaculture water including temperature, salinity, pH, and based on that to calculate and determine the distribution rate of NH3 – factor major cause of losses in the marine products industry. The application of this indirect measurement method aims to directly assess the fluctuation of the Ammonia NH3 index and contribute to the reduction of aquatic environmental monitoring models.

Reuse of agricultural wastes, manure, and biochar as an organic amendment: A review on its implications for vermicomposting technology

This review mainly aims to present the current issue of eco-agricultural wastes tremendously increasing day by day, thereby causing threats to the environment and agricultural systems. Proper management can help reduce wastes by reusing and recycling organic wastes through scientific and eco-friendly techniques. This review evaluated the vermicompost's role in sustainable crop nutrient recycling, particularly nitrogen (N) recovery (76%), by assessing the possibility of using earthworm species in an agronomic ecosystem. A scientific knowledge of organic material management for sustainable, organic farming to learn N supply and retention under vermicompost application was provided. The reuse and nutrient recovery of vermicompost at appropriate carbon to nitrogen ratios (10–23), mitigation of reactive nitrogen gases emissions, ammonia NH 3 volatilization (3–15 kg N ha −1 ), soil fertility , and the use of renewable source application as fertilizers were emphasized. On the basis of literature reviews and several experiments, a recommendation was presented with novelties, innovations, sustainability , and future research directions for the importance of the sustainable use of vermicomposting technology in an agroecosystem. It may help solve a number of issues related to the reduction in environmental pollution , waste management , and human health risks. • Earthworms enhance the nutrients status, particularly N during vermicomposting. • Preparation of vermicompost using biochar and its application are discussed. • The C:N ratio regulates the NH 3 and greenhouse gas emission during vermicomposting. • Bioconversion of organic wastes to organic fertilizers is a sustainable approach.

Reduction of nitrate to ammonia using photocatalytically accumulated electrons on titanium(IV) oxide in a time-separated redox reaction

• Reduction of NO 3 − to ammonia NH 3 was performed by a time-separated redox reaction. • The reaction uses a two-step reaction under the control of photoexcitation an electron acceptor. • Eight-electron reduction of NO 3 − to NH 3 was performed by accumulated electrons in a TiO 2 suspension. • The use of a rutile sample with a large number of defective sites is a key factor for the reaction. Reduction of nitrate (NO 3 − ) to ammonia (NH 3 ) was performed by a time-separated redox reaction using photocatalytically accumulated electrons in a titanium(IV) oxide (TiO 2 ) suspension. The time-separated redox reaction uses a two-step reaction under the control of photoexcitation and an electron acceptor: (1) accumulation of electrons in TiO 2 powder under photoexcitation and (2) reduction of added NO 3 − by accumulated electrons in the dark. Color change of TiO 2 depending on the degree of electron accumulation was observed during the reaction, and 8-electron reduction of NO 3 − to NH 3 was performed by accumulated electrons. The results of the time-separated redox reaction using 10 kinds of commercial TiO 2 powder indicate that the use of a rutile sample with a large number of trivalent titanium species is a key factor for NH 3 production.

Clean preparation of V2O3 by one-step molten salt electrochemical reduction of soluble NaVO3

Vanadium oxides, such as V2O5 and V2O3, are important metallurgy products and mainly used to prepare V-based alloys for steelmaking. At present, vanadium oxides are mainly produced by complex sodium salt roasting process. Serious environmental pollution, such as emission of ammonia nitrogen wastewater and NH3, are restrictive problems. Here, a clean and sustainable method for V2O3 preparation is proposed by one-step molten salt electrochemical reduction of soluble NaVO3, i.e. an indispensable intermediate in traditional V metallurgy. The pollution issues are well solved. The theoretical decomposition voltages of different vanadate to various low-valence vanadium oxides were calculated. NaVO3 with a solubility of 14.7 wt% is the most suitable vanadate for the direct preparation of V2O3 by molten salt electrolysis. The effects of cathode structure, NaVO3 content, electrolysis temperature and voltage on current efficiency and electricity consumption were systematically studied. High-purity V2O3 with uniform particle distribution is obtained and the lowest electricity consumption is only 2.86 kWhkg−1. V2O3 is mainly produced by one-step electrochemical reduction of soluble NaVO3 through two-electron transfer process. The economic evaluation for ferrovanadium production is preliminarily carried out. Compared with the traditional process, the cost for ferrovanadium production is lower by the aluminothermic reduction of V2O3 which is prepared by clean one-step electrolysis of soluble NaVO3.

The Influence of the Type of Electrolyte in the Modifying Solution on the Protective Properties of Vinyltrimethoysilane/Ethanol-Based Coatings Formed on Stainless Steel X20Cr13.

The paper reports the results of the examination of the protective properties of silane coatings based on vinyltrimethoxysilane (VTMS) and ethanol (EtOH), doped with the following electrolytes: acetic acid (AcOH), lithium perchlorate LiClO4, sulphuric acid (VI) H2SO4 and ammonia NH3. The coatings were deposited on stainless steel X20Cr13 by the sol–gel dip-coating method. The obtained VTMS/EtOH/Electrolyte coatings were characterized in terms of corrosion resistance, surface morphology and adhesion to the steel substrate. Corrosion tests were conducted in sulphate media acidified up to pH = 2 with and without chloride ions Cl−, respectively. The effectiveness of corrosion protection was determined using potentiometric curves. It has been demonstrated that the coatings under study slow down the processes of corrosion of the steel substrate, thus effectively protecting it against corrosion.

Application of Zeolites in Agriculture and Other Potential Uses: A Review

Excessive use of nitrogen fertilizer and inappropriate fertilization designs have negative results in agricultural ecosystems, such as considerable nitrogen losses through nitrogen dioxide (NO2) soil leaching and ammonia NH3 volatilization. In addition, climate change, with rising summer temperatures and reduced precipitation, leads to production declines and water shortages in the soil. This review aims to highlight the characteristics of natural zeolite and focus on their multiple uses in agriculture. These minerals are tectosilicates showing an open three-dimensional structure involving the cations required to balance the framework electrostatic charge of aluminum and silicon tetrahedral units. Different research groups reported more than fifty natural zeolites; chabazite, clinoptilolite, phillipsite, erionite, stilbite, heulandite, and mordenite are the most well-known. Zeolites are great tools to help the farmer and agronomist cope with several issues, such as soil or water pollution, contamination by heavy metals, loss of nutrients, and loss of water-use efficiency (WUE) of drylands. These natural crystalline aluminosilicates are considered soil conditioners to improve soil chemical and physical properties, such as saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ks), infiltration rate, cation exchange capacity (CEC), and water-holding capacity (WHC). Owing to their properties, these materials are able to reduce nitrate leaching and ammonia volatilization. Zeolites are also known for their carrying capacity of slow-release macronutrients, micronutrients, and fertilizers. However, the potential of these materials in agricultural areas is apparent, and zeolites show the promise of contributing directly to improve agricultural ecosystems as a sustainable product.

Electrochemically Selective Ammonia Extraction from Nitrate by Coupling Electron- and Phase-Transfer Reactions at a Three-Phase Interface.

As an attractive alternative to the Haber-Bosch process, an electrochemical process for nitrate (NO3-) reduction to ammonia (NH3) has made great strides in the development of advanced electrocatalysts to suppress the unavoidable H2 evolution reaction (HER) and side production of N2. However, isochronous NH3 separation and recovery from the mother liquor, especially wastewaters, are awfully neglected in state-of-the-art electrochemical systems. Here, we designed electrochemical three-phase interfaces constructed by a CoP cathode and a flat-sheet gas membrane to achieve NO3- reduction to ammonia and simultaneous NH3 recovery in the form of (NH4)2SO4 from wastewaters. The partial current density for ammonia yield and its recovery rate were 37.3 mA cm-2 and 306 g NH3-N m-2 day-1, respectively, accompanying 100% NO3- removal and 99.7% NH3 extraction. By favoring the originally unfavored side reaction HER, it served as the driving force for NH3 separation from the wastewater through gas stripping and membrane separation at the three-phase interfaces. Unexpectedly, the timely NH3 separation could also promote the reduction of NO3- to ammonia due to the release of much more active sites. From these, we envision that the present electrochemical process can be routinely employed as an effective strategy to address energy and environmental issues with NH3 recovery from NO3- wastewater.

Study of Biofilter Planted with Basil for Removal of Ammonia in Aquaponic Water

Abstract This experimental investigation of a laboratory scale aquaponic system included testing of a biofilter with basil plant as the biofilter part on aquaculture water quality. Irridescent shark was selected as aquaculture species. The biofilter consist of natural biomaterials such as coconut husk, coco peat, and coarse aggregates. The experiment was carried out for three short water recirculation durations of 2, 3, and 4 h/day. The influent and effluent ammonia NH3, total ammonia nitrogen (TAN), nitrites NO2 and nitrates NO3 levels were measured and analysed. The results showed that the biofilter effectively removed NH3 (65 - 71 %), TAN (34 - 58 %), and NO2 (60 - 67 %) from the aquaculture water. The dissolved oxygen (DO) levels were maintained between 3 - 7.0 mg/l during all the recirculation durations. The significance of water recirculation period was assessed by calculating the differences between the means of water quality parameters with a statistical test named one-way analysis of variance (ANNOVA) with significant level P taken as 5 %, i.e., P ≤ 0.5. The effluent mean NH3 levels 0.030 mg/l, 0.033 mg/l, and 0.022 mg/l exhibited significant difference at 4 h/d periods while effluent TAN levels 0.81, 0.77, and 0.77 showed no difference with varying periods.