INTRODUCTION

It is truisms nowadays to recognize that pollution associated problems are a major concern
of society. Environmental laws are given general applicability and their enforcement has been
increasingly stricter. So, in terms of health, environment and economy, the fight against pollution
has become a major issue.Today, although the strategic importance of fresh water is universally
recognized more than ever before, and although issues concerning sustainable water management
can be found almost in every scientific, social, or political agenda all over the world, water
resources seem to face severe quantitative and qualitative threats. The pollution increase,
industrialization and rapid economic development, impose severe risks to availability and quality
of water resources, in many areas worldwide. In order to recognize the pollution in wastewater,
we use the BOD test.

The BOD test issued to measure waste loads to treatment plants, determine plant
efficiency (in terms of BOD removal), and control plant processes. It is also used to determine
the effects of discharges on receiving waters. A major disadvantage of the BOD test is the
amount of time (5 days) required to obtain the results.When a measurement is made of all
oxygen consuming materials in a sample, the result is termed Total Biochemical Oxygen
Demand (TBOD), or often just simply Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD). Because the
test is performed over a five day period, it is often referred to as a Five Day BOD, or a BOD5.

In many biological treatment plants, the facility effluent contains large numbers of nitrifying
organisms which are developed during the treatment process. These organisms can exert an
oxygen demand as they convert nitrogenous compounds (ammonia and organic nitrogen) to more
stable forms (nitrites and nitrates). At least part of this oxygen demand is normally measured in
a five day BOD.Sometimes it is advantageous to measure just the oxygen demand exerted by
organic (carbonaceous) compounds, excluding the oxygen demand exerted by the nitrogenous
compounds. To accomplish this, the nitrifying organisms can be inhibited from using oxygen by
the addition of a nitrification inhibitor to the samples. The result is termed Carbonaceous
Biochemical Oxygen Demand, or BOD.
REFERENCES

1) Introduction to Environment Engineering, Third Edition / Davis Cornwell / McGraw Hill

2) Lab Manual Chapter 7 Biochemical Oxygen Demand, 2015

3) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dissolved_oxygen

4) What is Biological Oxygen Demand and how does it Affect Water Quality? | APEC Wate,
2015. [ONLINE]
Available at: http://www.freedrinkingwater.com/water_quality/quality1/1-bod-effects-on-
water-quality.htm [Accessed 24 October 2015].

5) Sawyer, C. N., McCarty, P. L., and Parkin, G. F. (2003) Chemistry for Environmental
Engineering, 5th ed., McGraw Hill,

References
1) A.Y Ahmad Naim and R. Nadia , Lab manual Chapter 10: Determination of Ammonia
Handbook Laboratory Manual For Environmental Science. 1st edition, pp 59-62.

2) Ellenberg H,1987. Guidelines for drinking-water quality, 2nd edition, Vol 2, Health criteria
and other supporting information, World Health Organization,Geneva, 1996.

3) Sawyer, C. N., McCarty, P. L., and Parkin, G. F. (2003) Chemistry for Environmental
Engineering, 5th ed., McGraw Hill.