ABSTRACT
This chapter aims to provide a review of low-cost adsorbents for removing ammonia nitrogen from wastewater. It describes several types of adsorbent, including zeolite, activated carbon and hydrogel. Numerous approaches have been employed to remove ammonia nitrogen contaminants from waterways and this is generally accomplished by biological, physical or chemical processes, or by a combination of these methods. Various treatment methods of ammonia nitrogen and its efficiency have been reviewed, including biological, chemical precipitation, air stripping, and a combination of biological and physicochemical methods. Several studies on ammonia nitrogen adsorption were conducted using different commercial adsorbents such as zeolites, hydrogel and activated carbon. Adsorbent performance in real wastewater might deviate from its performance in synthetic aqueous solution due to the presence of co-contaminant. The performance of the zeolite-struvite mix fertilizer was then compared with two conventional, commercially available fertilizers. Ammonium loaded adsorbents should be handled properly and the use of non-toxic spent adsorbent is recommended as a soil conditioner.
