Phenolic acids constitute a major group of pollutants which are recalcitrant to common biological treatment. In this study synthetic wastewater containing a mixture of p-coumaric and p-hydroxybenzoic acids was evaluated for photo-Fenton pretreatment. The changes in biodegradability (ratio of biochemical oxygen demand to total organic carbon (TOC)) and mineralization (TOC removal) were monitored...

The assimilation (uptake or immobilization) of inorganic nitrogen (N) and the production of ammonium (NH(4)(+)) from organic N compounds are universal functions of microorganisms, and the balance between these two processes is tightly regulated by the relative demands of microbes for N and carbon (C). In a heterogeneous environment, such as soils, bulk measurements of N mineralization or immobi...