A Nitrogen Model for Onsite Wastewater Systems
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Author(s)
Radcliffe, David E.
Bradshaw, J. Kenneth
Advisor(s)
Editor(s)
Carroll, G. Denise
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Abstract
A constructed wetland two-dimensional model developed by Langergraber and Simunek (2005) was adapted to onsite wastewater systems (OWS). The model is an optional module in the HYDRUS (2D3D) variably saturated flow model. It predicts the fate and transport of nitrogen (N) species in the drainage trench and surrounding soil of an OWS. It is a multi-component reactive transport model that simulates 12 components and 9 processes. Concentrations of ammonium, nitrite, nitrate (NO3), nitrogen gas (N2), dissolved oxygen (DO), and three forms of organic matter are predicted. The mod-el simulations showed that conditions are dynamic in an OWS as water levels in the trench respond to daily dosing, precipitation, and evapotranspiration. The simulations indicated that NO3 losses occurred during dryer periods when DO concentrations were high enough in the trench for ammonium conversion to NO3, and outside the trench the high DO concentrations slowed denitrification, especially in the dryer area to the side of the trench. Predictions of NO3 losses compared well with an experimental OWS at Griffin, GA.
Sponsor
Sponsored by:
Georgia Environmental Protection Division
U.S. Geological Survey, Georgia Water Science Center
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service
Georgia Institute of Technology, Georgia Water Resources Institute
The University of Georgia, Water Resources Faculty
Date
2011-04
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Resource Type
Text
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Proceedings