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Rapid field estimation of biochemical oxygen demand in a subtropical eutrophic urban lake with chlorophyll a fluorescence

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Abstract

Development of a technique for rapid field estimation of biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) is necessary for cost-effective monitoring and management of urban lakes. While several studies reported the usefulness of laboratory tryptophan-like fluorescence technique in predicting 5-day BOD (BOD5) of wastewater and leachates, little is known about the predictability of field chlorophyll fluorescence measurements for BOD of urban lake waters that are constantly exposed to the mixture of chemical compounds. This study was conducted to develop a numeric relationship between chlorophyll a fluorescence and BOD for a eutrophic urban lake that is widely representative of lake water conditions in the subtropical southern USA. From October 2012 to September 2013, in situ measurements at the studied lake were made every 2 weeks on chlorophyll a fluorescence and other water quality parameters including water temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen, and specific conductivity. Water samples were taken for 5-day BOD and 10-day BOD (BOD10) analysis with and without incubation. The results showed a clear seasonal trend of both BOD measurements being high during the summer and low during the winter. There was a linear, positive relationship between chlorophyll a fluorescence and BOD, and the relationship appeared to be stronger with the 10-day BOD (r 2 = 0.83) than with the 5-day BOD (r 2 = 0.76). BOD dropped each day with declining chlorophyll a fluorescence, suggesting that die-off of phytoplankton has been the main consumption of oxygen in the studied lake. Ambient conditions such as rainfall and water temperature may have partially affected BOD variation.

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Acknowledgments

This study partially benefited from USDA McIntire–Stennis funds. The authors acknowledge Christopher Mariani’s assistance with field water sampling and Abram DaSilva’s assistance with the laboratory analysis of chlorophyll a. Thanks also go to the Louisiana Agriclimatic Information System for making the long-term weather data available for this study.

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  1. School of Renewable Natural Resources, Louisiana State University Agricultural Center, Baton Rouge, LA, 70803, USA

    Zhen Xu & Y. Jun Xu

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  1. Zhen Xu
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  2. Y. Jun Xu
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Correspondence to Y. Jun Xu.

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Xu, Z., Xu, Y.J. Rapid field estimation of biochemical oxygen demand in a subtropical eutrophic urban lake with chlorophyll a fluorescence. Environ Monit Assess 187, 4171 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-014-4171-1

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