Can any bacteria product reduce ammonia in a lagoon?

Only a liquid one that actually contains viable nitrifying bacteria. Nitrosomonas and Nitrobacter do not survive drying, so a dry tablet, pouch or powder cannot contain them alive, and a dry product cannot lower ammonia whatever its label says. Products that address ammonia are liquids kept in opaque packaging, and even those depend on adequate oxygen and warm water to work.

Does SediLogic have a product for ammonia or nitrogen permits?

No. Our sludge-treatment range is not specified for ammonia or nitrogen permit compliance. Discuss nitrification and the lagoon's operating conditions with your process engineer before selecting a product for that purpose.

Why a dry product cannot fix ammonia

Ammonia removal requires nitrification. Dry sludge treatments are not a substitute for a nitrification assessment or a product specified for that purpose.

The short answer

Ammonia removal relies on nitrifying organisms and suitable operating conditions. SediLogic's sludge treatments target organic material, not ammonia or total-nitrogen permit limits. If ammonia is the problem, assess the lagoon's nitrification process before choosing an additive.

How nitrification removes ammonia

Ammonia is not an organic solid, so the enzymes that reduce sludge have nothing to act on it with. It is lowered by nitrification: nitrifying bacteria oxidise ammonia to nitrite and then to nitrate, a distinct group of organisms doing distinct chemistry. Those organisms are slow-growing, oxygen-hungry and, for the purposes of a product line, fragile in one specific way.

Why drying is the dividing line

Bacillus forms drying-resistant spores, which makes it useful in shelf-stable sludge treatments. Nitrification involves different organisms. A dry sludge product's viable count does not establish that it can perform nitrification.

Check what the product is specified to do. A bacterial count on a sludge-treatment label does not establish ammonia-removal capability.

What this means for a nitrogen permit

If ammonia or total nitrogen is the permit concern, discuss nitrification with your process engineer. Options may include a product containing viable nitrifiers, changes to aeration or retention time, or a dedicated treatment stage. SediLogic does not offer its sludge products for nitrogen compliance.

Sources

Aquatic Solutions. Nitrifying bacteria do not survive drying. Aquatic Solutions (trade).Vendor-publishedTrade account of why nitrifiers are sold only as liquids.
US EPA. Lagoon Wastewater Treatment Systems. US Environmental Protection Agency.RegulatorAgency overview, including the role of nitrification in permit compliance.

Common questions

Can any bacteria product reduce ammonia in a lagoon?: Only a liquid one that actually contains viable nitrifying bacteria. Nitrosomonas and Nitrobacter do not survive drying, so a dry tablet, pouch or powder cannot contain them alive, and a dry product cannot lower ammonia whatever its label says. Products that address ammonia are liquids kept in opaque packaging, and even those depend on adequate oxygen and warm water to work.
Does SediLogic have a product for ammonia or nitrogen permits?: No. Our sludge-treatment range is not specified for ammonia or nitrogen permit compliance. Discuss nitrification and the lagoon's operating conditions with your process engineer before selecting a product for that purpose.

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