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Estimation of Water Pollution by a Biological Reaction

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 May 2009

Ll. Lloyd
Ll. Lloyd
Affiliation:
Reader in Entomology and Protozoology in the University of Leeds.
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A small quantity of a culture of aerotactic organisms, especially Polytomauvella, is placed in a narrow tube and a column of water superimposed. The organisms aggregate and rise in blanket-like formation at a speed which is inversely proportional to the amount of oxygen in solution. If nitrates or nitrites are present they slow down the rate of climb. The climb must be accelerated by the presence of substances and organisms with a pronounced affinity for oxygen and slowed down by the presence of photosynthetic organisms. The reaction may therefore be of use in estimating the quality of sewage effluents or pollution in rivers, having possibly some advantages over the present routine methods of chemical estimation. A tentative grading scheme for the quality of such waters is proposed.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Hygiene , Volume 33 , Issue 2 , April 1933 , pp. 183 - 195
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1933

References

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