Laboratory and Instream Nitrification Rates for Selected Streams

摘要

Nitrification rate coefficients are predicted from biochemical oxygen demand tests for two rivers that are moderately deep but have some shoals and riffles. The two streams studied are notable for the lack of a thick benthic community and for the low flow velocities. Measured nitrification coefficients are compared to independently derived coefficients from calibrated first-order nitrification models of the Chattahoochee River in Georgia and the West Fork Trinity River in Texas. For both river studies, sufficient evidence is available to indicate that the nitrification models adequately separate nitrification from other processes that transform nitrogen.