CMT 565

WATER AND WASTEWATER TECHNOLOGY

EXPERIMENT 5(A)
CHEMICAL OXYGEN DEMAND (COD):
REACTOR DIGESTION METHOD

Name: Nabilah Binti Abd Rahman

Student Id: 2015484718
Partners name: Nurul Shazreena binti Zulkafly
(2015258246)
Salma Izati binti Sinar Mahsuri
(2015839778)
Sharifah Fathin Aishah bt Syed Ahmad Kamal
(2015269836)
Group: AS2454D1
Instructors name:
Date Performed: 4th October 2016
TITLE
Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) : Reactor Digestion Method

OBJECTIVE
To determine chemical oxygen demand (COD) in waste water
sample.

INTRODUCTION

The COD (Chemical Oxygen Demand) test represents the

amount of chemically digestible organics (food). COD measures all
organics that were biochemically digestible as well as all the
organics that can be digested by heat and sulfuric acid. It is used in
the same applications as BOD. COD has the advantage over BOD in
that the analysis can be completed within a few hours whereas BOD
requires 5 days. The major drawback of the COD test is the presence
of hazardous chemicals and toxic waste disposal.

Like the BOD test, oxygen is used to oxidize the organics to

carbon dioxide and water. However, instead of free dissolved
oxygen, chemically bound oxygen in potassium dichromate K 2Cr2O7
is used to oxidize the organics. As the potassium dichromate is used
up the Cr+3 ion is produced. The amount of dichromate used is
proportional to the amount of organics present. Likewise, the
amount of Cr+3 ion present is proportional to the amount of organics
digested.

Organics + K2Cr2O7 D Cr+3 (Orange) (Green)

 This method uses test tubes with pre- measured amounts of
potassium dichromate, sulfuric acid, and catalyst. For the digestion
to occur, the reaction needs acid, heat, and a catalyst. The acid is
sulfuric acid and is already in the tube. The sample will get very hot
when the sample is added to the acid and mixed. Be sure the cap is
on tight before mixing and mix just prior to placing in the digestion
reactor.

RESULTS

Sample COD range (mg/L)

Blank 0
Standard 1083
5 ppm (A) 558
5 ppm (B) 552
10 ppm (A) 269
10 ppm (B) 247

DISCUSSION

The Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) test is used widely to

estimate the amount of organic matter in wastewater. It is a
measurement of the oxygen equivalent of the materials present in
the wastewater that are subject to oxidation by a strong chemical
oxidant, in this case, dichromate. When wastewater contains only
readily available organic bacterial food and no toxic matter, the COD
test results provide a good estimate of BOD (Biochemical Oxygen
Demand) values. In the reactor digestion method test, the COD
procedure is greatly simplified over the Dichromate Reflux Method.
Small volume of the water sample is pipette into vials containing the
pre-measured reagents, including catalysts and chloride
compensator. The vials are incubated until digestion is complete and
then cooled. The test measures the amount of oxygen required for
chemical oxidation of organic matter in the sample to carbon dioxide
and water. The test procedure is to add a known quantity of
standard potassium dichromate solution, sulfuric acid reagent
containing silver sulfate. The mixture is refluxed for 2 hours by COD
reactor. Most types of organic matter are destroyed in this boiling
mixture of chromic and sulfuric acid,

Organics + Cr2O72- + H+ CO2 + H2O + 2Cr3+

After the mixture has been cooled, the chromium (III) ion in
the specimen is measured by spectrophotometer. The excess
chromium (III) ion show how much chromic was use by organics
matter. The purpose of running a blank is to compensate for any
error that may result because of the presence of extraneous organic
matter in the reagents.