ZONES OF NITRIFICATION<sup>1</sup>

Tuffey, T.J.; Hunter, Joseph V.; Matulewich, V A

doi:10.1111/j.1752-1688.1974.tb00596.x

Cited by 31 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 4 publications

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“…Oxygen concentrations typically decline in rivers downstream of sewage inputs, and great interest attaches to the relative contribution of nitrification to the observed depletion. Reports by Tuffey et al (1974), Cirello et al (1979) , and Matulewich and ken Phila Wilm I I I I I I I I I '0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 DISTANCE FROM TRENTON (km) Fig. 11.…”

Section: Trenmentioning

confidence: 93%

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Nitrogen metabolism of the eutrophic Delaware River ecosystem1

Lipschultz

Wofsy

Fox

1986

Limnology & Oceanography

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A comprehensive investigation of the nitrogen cycle in the Delaware River was carried out using 15N tracers to measure rates for important transformations of nitrogen. Daily, depth-averaged 15N rates for the principal inorganic nitrogen species were consistent with rates derived from longitudinal profiles of concentration in the river.The data indicated that nitrification was a rapid, irreversible sink for NH4+, with export of the product N03-from the study area. Utilization of NO,-by primary producers was negligible, owing to low irradiance levels and to high NH,+ concentrations.The oxygen sag near Philadelphia was found to result from oxygen demand in the water column, with only minor benthic influence. Reaeration provided the major oxygen input. Nitrification accounted for about 1% of the net oxygen demand near Philadelphia but as much as 25% farther downstream.Many rivers and coastal waters act as treatment facilities for large inputs of primary-treated sewage. Microbial processes convert the organic material and inorganic nitrogen to more oxidized forms. Water quality declines owing to low oxygen concentrations, phytoplankton blooms, and high turbidity due to sewage-derived suspended particulate material. Investigation of the nitrogen cycle in such systems must account for the complexity and dynamic nature of the various nitrogen transformations and for the influence of light (Lipschultz et al. 198 5; Stanley and Hobbie 198 1;Dugdale and Goering 1967; Garside 198 l), dissolved oxygen content (Goreau et al. 1980; Lipschultz et al. 198 1;Lipschultz 1984), and flushing rates (Wofsy et al. 198 1).Most investigations of nitrogen cycling have been focused on a restricted subset of metabolic processes, principally phytoplankton uptake of NH,+ and N03-. Recent studies, however, have emphasized the need to expand the number of processes under investigation in order to understand the nitrogen cycle in a system (e.g. see Glibert et al. 1982;Lipschultz et al. 1985; Olson 198 1;McCarthy et al. 1984).We describe here 15N tracer experiments on the Delaware River intended to permit ' This work was funded by NSF grant BSR 83-16359 and by EPA grant R8 10219-01-O to Harvard University. identification of the important processes from an expanded set of nitrogen transformations and to relate the measured rates to observed changes in inorganic nitrogen concentration. Rates were integrated over depth and time to account for their sensitivity to light (Lipschultz et al. 198 5). This permitted quantitative comparisons and identification of the principal processes in the ecosystem. Net production (or loss) rates were then calculated for each inorganic nitrogen species at seven stations along the river near Philadelphia, and net production rates derived from 15N incubations were compared to net rates derived from river concentration data using a mass conservation model. We thank L. Kerkhof for assistance in the laboratory and fieldwork and M. Zahniser for help in design and use of the emission spectrometer.

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Section: Trenmentioning

confidence: 93%

“…Reports by Tuffey et al (1974), Cirello et al (1979), and Matulewich and Finstein (1978) suggest that the site of active nitrification in rivers may be at the bottom, rather than in the water column. In the Delaware, however, water-column processes account for most of the oxidation of NH,+ to NOz-and N03- (Fig.…”

Section: = -And(qc) + -And Ak~ ( ) (3)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Nitrogen metabolism of the eutrophic Delaware River ecosystem1

Lipschultz

Wofsy

Fox

1986

Limnology & Oceanography

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“…Most of the nitrifying activity is also associated with the sediments in fresh waters and estuaries, where the numbers of Nitrosomonas and Nitrobacter are about a thousand times higher in the benthos (10 6 -10 7 ) than the water (10 3 -10 4 ) (Tuffey and Matulewich, 1974;Curtis et ai., 1975). Tuffey and Matulewich (1974) showed that nitrification does not occur along the entire length of a polluted river but occurs in identifiable zones because of oxygen content and residence time.…”

Section: Surfacesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Tuffey and Matulewich (1974) showed that nitrification does not occur along the entire length of a polluted river but occurs in identifiable zones because of oxygen content and residence time. One zone where nitrification occurs is in the shallow headwater streams and tributaries.…”

Section: Surfacesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Biochemical Ecology of Nitrification and Denitrification

Verstraete

Focht

1977

Advances in Microbial Ecology

628

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“…A major fraction of the nitrifying activity in estuaries, streams, and lakes occurs in sediments and in biological films attached to detrital material (13,28,32). In these environments nitrification typically occurs at low concentrations of 02 and high concentrations of NH4'.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Production of NO ₂ ^- and N ₂ O by Nitrifying Bacteria at Reduced Concentrations of Oxygen

Goreau

Kaplan

Wofsy

et al. 1980

Appl Environ Microbiol

757

274

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Pure cultures of the marine ammonium-oxidizing bacterium Nitrosomonas sp. were grown in the laboratory at oxygen partial pressures between 0.005 and 0.2 atm (0.18 to 7 mg/liter). Low oxygen conditions induced a marked decrease in the rate for production of N02 , from 3.6 x 1010 to 0.5 x 10`0 mmol of N02 per cell per day. In contrast, evolution of N20 increased from 1 x 10-12 to 4.3 x 10-12 mmol of N per cell per day. The yield of N20 relative to N02increased from 0.3% to nearly 10% (moles of N in N20 per mole of N02-) as the oxygen level was reduced, although bacterial growth rates changed by less than 30%. Nitrifying bacteria from the genera Nitrosomonas, Nitrosolobus, Nitrosospira, and Nitrosococcus exhibited similar yields of N20 at atmospheric oxygen levels. Nitriteoxidizing bacteria (Nitrobacter sp.) and the dinoflagellate Exuviaella sp. did not produce detectable quantities of N20 during growth. The results support the view that nitrification is an important source of N20 in the environment.

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ZONES OF NITRIFICATION¹

Cited by 31 publications

References 4 publications

Nitrogen metabolism of the eutrophic Delaware River ecosystem1

Nitrogen metabolism of the eutrophic Delaware River ecosystem1

Biochemical Ecology of Nitrification and Denitrification

Production of NO ₂ ^- and N ₂ O by Nitrifying Bacteria at Reduced Concentrations of Oxygen

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ZONES OF NITRIFICATION1

Cited by 31 publications

References 4 publications

Nitrogen metabolism of the eutrophic Delaware River ecosystem1

Nitrogen metabolism of the eutrophic Delaware River ecosystem1

Biochemical Ecology of Nitrification and Denitrification

Production of NO 2 - and N 2 O by Nitrifying Bacteria at Reduced Concentrations of Oxygen

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ZONES OF NITRIFICATION¹

Production of NO ₂ ^- and N ₂ O by Nitrifying Bacteria at Reduced Concentrations of Oxygen