Denitrification of the underground waters by specific resin exchange of ion Original Research Article

The underground waters that we use for drinking are exposed to different types of pollution especially that of nitrates. The pollution by nitrates comes essentially from the excessive use of chemical and organic fertilizers used in agriculture. This pollution phenomenon particularly affects underground waters that are found in areas where there is intensive agriculture. The nitrate contents of these waters generally exceed the international norms (OMS) admitted for drinking water (50 mg/l). Nitrates present in great quantities in drinking water can cause serious illnesses for the consumer, particularly methemoglobinemy in children, nursing infants and nitrosamine in adults. The object of this work is to present a study about the denitrification of underground water which is charged with nitrates and sulphates, by a specific resins ionic exchange named the Purolite A 520 E. This study on the use of these resins has proved our objective, which is that this treated water has a nitrate content which is very inferior to the maximum admissible concentration for drinking water. The contents of nitrate in the treated water were very weak and were also heavily charged with sulphates. It has been noted that the presence of great contents of sulphate and/or nitrate reduced systematically the time of production of resin and resulted more and more to important contents of nitrate in the treated water.