Dissolved organic matter in leachate from different treatment processes

The main objectives of this study were to investigate the characteristics of dissolved organic matter (DOM) extracted from the leachate of different treatment process using the chemical and spectroscopic analysing methods. The humic acid (HA), fulvic acid (FA) and hydrophilic (HyI) were isolated and purified by the XAD-8 resin combined with the cation exchange resin method. The analytical results of fluorescence excitation-emission matrix spectroscopy (EEMs) revealed that the fluorescence peaks were protein-like fluorescence for equalization basin and discharge of reverse osmosis (RO), while the fluorescence peaks for second sedimentation tank were humic-like and fulvic-like fluorescence. Moreover, the results also showed that protein-like organic matter are readily removed by biological process and HA and FA can be removed by RO process. Elemental analysis indicated that the nitrogen content in these isolated fractions followed: HA > HyI > FA. The information on the characteristics of DOM indicated important role in optimization of leachate treatment processes.