Review Questions

  1. List five things that can cause an activated sludge process to violate its permit.
  2. A pH of ______ is considered neutral.
    1. 4.0
    2. 7.0
    3. 9.0
    4. 0.0
  3. What color is a pH 10.0 buffer?
    1. Red
    2. Yellow
    3. Blue
    4. Green
  4. ____________ is the process of microorganisms metabolizing their own cellular mass.
    1. Artificial respiration
    2. Endogenous consumption
    3. Metabolic consumption
    4. Endogenous respiration
  5. ___________ bacteria can use free or combined oxygen.
    1. Aerobic
    2. Anaerobic
    3. Facultative
    4. Autotrophic
  6. The nitrification process converts ammonia to
    1. Nitrite then nitrate
    2. Nitrate then nitrite
    3. Ammonia then nitrogen
    4. Ammonia then ammonium
  7. The bacteria that complete the nitrification process are
    1. Nitrosomonas and Nitrobacter
    2. Aerobic and anaerobic
    3. Nitrosomonas and anaerobic
    4. Nitrobacter and anaerobic
  8. A total of ______ pounds of alkalinity is required to remove one pound of ammonia.
    1. 4.2
    2. 7.14
    3. 3.5
    4. None of the above
  9. Denitrification takes place in an _________ zone.
    1. Aerobic
    2. Anaerobic
    3. Oxic
    4. Anoxic
  10. Total nitrogen is
    1. Ammonia + ammonium + nitrogen
    2. Organic nitrogen + ammonia
    3. TKN + ammonia + ammonium
    4. TKN + nitrite + nitrate
  11. A dark brown color, pin floc, and a 30=minute SSV of 180 are characteristics of
    1. Old sludge
    2. Young sludge
    3. Septic sludge
    4. Bulking sludge
  12. Nocardia and Microthrix are two types of filaments that commonly cause foaming.
    1. True
    2. False
  13. _________ ciliates are an indicator of a stable activated sludge process.
    1. Free swimming
    2. Rotifered
    3. Hairy
    4. Stalked
  14. The MLSS sample should be collected from the _________ end of the aeration basin.
    1. Influent
    2. Effluent
    3. Either A or C
    4. None of the above
  15. The ability to buffer a pH change is called
    1. Alkalinity
    2. Acidity
    3. Basic
    4. Neutrality