A submersible UV/VIS spectrometer was used to monitor a paper mill wastewater treatment plant. It utilises the UV/VIS range (200-750 nm) for simultaneous measurement of COD, filtered COD, TSS and nitrate with just a single instrument. The instrument measures in-situ, directly in the process. Paper mill wastewater shows typical and reproducible spectra at various process measuring points. There is a relative maximum at 280 mm due to the absorbance by dissolved organic substances, mainly ligninic acids. Comparison of absorbance spectra distinctly shows the decrease of this peak, indicating biological degradation throughout the treatment process. Summarising, one can say that paper mill wastewater cannot be monitored by a simple UV probe measuring only the absorbance at a single wavelength. The required information can only be gained from the whole spectra. Regarding plant control it is suggested that only the overall spectral information is used. Calibrations to conventional parameters are now merely carried out for purposes of reference-checking.
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Research Article|
January 01 2004
Monitoring of a paper mill wastewater treatment plant using UV/VIS spectroscopy
G. Langergraber;
1Department for Sanitary Engineering and Water Pollution Control (IWGA-SIG), BOKU - University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences, Vienna, Muthgasse 18, A-1190 Vienna, Austria
E-mail: langergraber@iwga-sig.boku.ac.at
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N. Fleischmann;
N. Fleischmann
2Department for Sanitary Engineering and Water Pollution Control (IWGA-SIG), BOKU - University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences, Vienna, Muthgasse 18, A-1190 Vienna, Austria
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F. Hofstaedter;
F. Hofstaedter
3s::can Messtechnik GmbH, Herminengasse 10, A-1020 Vienna, Austria
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A. Weingartner
A. Weingartner
3s::can Messtechnik GmbH, Herminengasse 10, A-1020 Vienna, Austria
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Water Sci Technol (2004) 49 (1): 9–14.
Citation
G. Langergraber, N. Fleischmann, F. Hofstaedter, A. Weingartner; Monitoring of a paper mill wastewater treatment plant using UV/VIS spectroscopy. Water Sci Technol 1 January 2004; 49 (1): 9–14. doi: https://doi.org/10.2166/wst.2004.0004
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