Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) is the amount of oxygen microorganisms require to break down
organic materials. In contrast, Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) is the amount of oxygen required to break
down the organic material via oxidation
Differences between BOD and COD
Biological Oxygen Demand Chemical Oxygen Demand
De nition
It is the amount of oxygen the microbes It is the total amount of oxygen required to break
require to decompose the organic matter down the organic matter by chemical oxidation.
under aerobic conditions.
Test
It can be determined by putting a sealed It can be determined by placing a water sample
water sample under speci c temperature with a strong oxidising agent under speci c
conditions for ve days. temperature conditions for a short period.
Value
Lower than COD. Higher than BOD.
Use
• It is used to waste loadings in treatment • To quantify the amount of oxidisable pollutants
plants found in water bodies
• Evaluation of BOD removal ef ciency • It provides a measurement on how an ef uent will
of the waste plants. affect the water body.
What is the reason for increasing both BOD and COD with time?
The biomass growth is the rst reason. Second thing is the characteristics of the compounds in
the water. Some of them, at their primary form, can be non-degradable at BOD and COD
measurement condtions. The the activated sludge converts them to other compounds, which can
be oxidized during BOD or COD measurement.
Don’t you often think, how do shes and other aquatic animals breathe underwater?
Yes, water bodies do contain a small amount of dissolved oxygen, which is essential for both
shes and other aquatic organisms to undergo aerobic respiration.
That dissolved oxygen is used by the aquatic organisms for respiration. The heterotrophic
microorganisms present in the water also uses the dissolved oxygen. These microorganisms uses
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the organic matter as their food source. The number of microorganisms becomes high when there
is high concentration of organic matter which in turn requires more oxygen for respiration.
Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) generally describes how much oxygen is required to break
down organic matter in water.
What is BOD?
BOD – Biochemical Oxygen Demand is applied to determine the aerobic destructibility of organic
substances.
BOD is the biological method used for the measurement of the total amount of dissolved oxygen
(DO) used by microbes in the biological process of metabolizing organic molecules present in
water.
The total amount of oxygen gas present in the water is called dissolved oxygen (DO). The non-
compound oxygen present in water may either be a by-product of the photosynthesis of the
aquatic plants or the dissolved atmospheric oxygen gas.
In some water bodies, organic matter is a great source of BOD. These organic matters include
sewage and other pollutants present in the water bodies. The greater the BOD, the lower is the
dissolved oxygen available for aerobic animals such as shes and other aquatic organisms.
The BOD is accordingly a reliable measure of the organic pollution of water bodies. The main
reason for treating wastewater prior to its discharge into a water resource is to reduce its BOD
level (the demand for oxygen).
Importance of BOD
1. BOD measures the amount of oxygen consumed by microorganisms for the process of
decomposition of the organic matters in the water bodies.
2. It indicates the amount of organic pollution present in an aquatic ecosystem.
3. BOD is calculated in sewage treatment or wastewater treatment to nd the destruction of
organic wastes by aerobic microbes
4. It determines the amount of organic matter present in soils, sewages, sediment, garbage,
sludge, etc.
5. The biochemical oxygen demand also determines the rate of respiration in living beings.
6. BOD is also used in the medicinal & pharmaceutical industries to test the oxygen
consumption of cell cultures.
This article concludes the introduction to biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) and its importance.
Frequently Asked Questions on Biochemical Oxygen Demand
Q1. What is biochemical oxygen demand in simple words?
In simple words, biochemical oxygen demand is the amount of oxygen required by
microorganisms to break down the organic matter present in the waterbody.
Q2. What is the role of biochemical oxygen demand?
Biochemical oxygen demand indicates the amount of organic pollution present in an aquatic
ecosystem.
Q3. What happens when BOD is low?
When BOD is low, the dissolved oxygen present in the water body is high. This indicates that the
water is less polluted by organic matter.
Q4. What causes high BOD levels?
High BOD levels are caused by high consumption of dissolved oxygen by microorganisms. It
indicates that the water is highly polluted with organic matter.
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