ASSESSMENT OF ORGANIC

CONTENT IN WASTEWATER

WASTE WATER ENGINEERING

 BIOCHEMICAL OXYGEN DEMAND (BOD)

IS THE QUANTITY OF OXYGEN USED IN THE AEROBIC STABILISATION

OF WASTEWATER AND POLLUTED WATERS. IT IS THE AMOUNT OF
OXYGEN NEEDED BY MICRO-ORGANISMS IN THE BIOCHEMICAL
OXIDATION OF ORGANIC MATTER IN WASTEWATER
 THEORETICAL OXYGEN DEMAND (THOD)

THIS IS A THEORETICAL METHOD USED TO APPROXIMATE THE

AMOUNT OF OXYGEN REQUIRED BY MICRO-ORGANISMS TO
STABILISE ORGANIC MATTER IN WASTEWATER. THE AMOUNT OF
OXYGEN REQUIRED TO COMPLETELY OXIDISE A PARTICULAR
ORGANIC SUBSTANCE AS CALCULATED FROM STOICHIOMETRIC
CONSIDERATIONS.
 IMPORTANCE OF THOD

IT IS USED AS A ROUGH INDICATOR OF THE OXYGEN DEMAND OF

WASTES.
 ADVANTAGES OF THOD

CAN BE USED FOR MEASURING GROSS AMOUNTS OF BIODEGRADABLE

MATTER FOR CONCENTRATIONS WHICH ARE GREATER THAN 1 MG/L IN WW.
IT IS SIMPLE TO INTERPRET AND INTERRELATE PROVIDED THE THOD
CALCULATION METHOD IS KNOWN.
IT IS CHEAP AS THERE ARE NO APPARATUS AND INSTRUMENTATION INVOLVED
IT IS FASTER THAN THE DETERMINATION OF BOD.
 DISADVANTAGES OF THOD

IT IS INACCURATE BECAUSE SOME ORGANIC MATERIALS LIKE CELLULOSE,

PHENOLS AND BENZENE RESIST BIODEGRADATION.
ASSUMPTIONS ARE ALWAYS BIASED AS IN THE ACTUAL
BIODEGRADATION SOME CARBON IS USED TO FORM NEW BACTERIAL
CELLS.
PRE-SUPPOSES A PARTICULAR SINGLE POLLUTANT WITH A KNOWN
CHEMICAL FORMULA.
 CHEMICAL OXYGEN DEMAND (COD)

IT IS THE AMOUNT OF OXYGEN NEEDED FOR OXIDISING ORGANIC

MATTER USING STRONG CHEMICAL OXIDISING AGENTS IN THE
PRESENCE OF AN ACID MEDIUM.
 IMPORTANCE OF COD

THE COD IS IMPORTANT IN DETERMINING THE OXYGEN DEMAND OF

ESPECIALLY INDUSTRIAL WW, WHICH MAY BE TOO TOXIC TO
MICRO-ORGANISMS AND THUS HINDERING THE BOD TEST
PROCEDURE. IT IS THUS IMPORTANT IN INDUSTRIAL WW STUDIES
AND WW TREATMENT AND CONTROL. ITS MAJOR USE IN INDUSTRY
IS THE ROUTINE MONITORING OF EFFLUENT BEFORE DISCHARGE.
 ADVANTAGES OF COD

IT IS QUICKER, ANALYSES IN A LAB TAKE A FEW HOURS 2 3 HOURS,

WHEREAS BOD TAKES A FEW DAYS (ABOUT 5 DAYS).
USED FOR ROUTINE MONITORING OF EFFLUENT ESPECIALLY TOXIC
INDUSTRIAL WW WHERE BOD CANNOT BE APPLIED
USED TO DETERMINE IF WW IS AMENABLE FRO BIOLOGICAL TREATMENT,
IF BOD/COD RATIO IS LESS THAN 0.6 IT MAY NOT BE AMENABLE.
 DISADVANTAGES OF COD

COD DOES NOT DIFFERENTIATE BETWEEN STABLE AND UNSTABLE ORGANIC

MATTER
SOME ORGANIC COMPOUNDS SUCH AS BENZENE, TOLUENE AND PYRIDINE
ARE NOT OXIDISED BY THIS METHOD.
COD OXIDISES EVEN SOME INORGANIC COMPOUNDS THUS GIVING BIASED
RESULTS, WHERE BOD IS GENERALLY 50 70% OF COD, DEPENDING ON TYPE
OF ORGANIC MATTER PRESENT AND AMOUNT OF OXIDISABLE INORGANIC
COMPOUNDS
 TOTAL ORGANIC CARBON

TOC IS THE MEASUREMENT OF ORGANICALLY BOUND CARBON IN

WATER AND WASTEWATER SAMPLES. IT MEASURES THE ORGANIC
MATTER CONTENT OF WW ESPECIALLY WHERE SMALL
CONCENTRATIONS ARE INVOLVED.
 ADVANTAGES OF TOC

TOC TAKES A RELATIVELY SHORT TIME (< 0.5 HR) COMPARED TO THE
OTHER METHODS LIKE BOD, WHICH REQUIRES 5 DAYS.
IT IS USEFUL FOR TESTING INDUSTRIAL WW CONTAINING TOXINS.
CAN BE USED FOR MEASURING ORGANIC POLLUTION IN HIGHLY SALINE
WATER, WHERE THE SALINITY MAKES OTHER METHODS UNRELIABLE.
IT IS A USEFUL TOOL OF DETERMINING SMALL, ADVERSE CHANGES ON
DRINKING WATER QUALITY, I.E. SMALL CONCENTRATIONS OF OM,
WHICH ARE NOT EASILY DETECTED BY BOD MEASUREMENT.
 DISADVANTAGES OF TOC

THE TOC VALUE OF SAMPLE MAY BE BIASED, E.G. A PIECE OF

PLASTIC WOULD REGISTER A VALUE UNDER TOC BUT NOT UNDER
BOD.
TOC DOES NOT RELATE TO THE BIODEGRADABILITY OF THE SAMPLE.