Origins， application scenarios， and synergistic interpretation of BOD and COD

WANG Hongchen; YE Naiyu; XIA Zhiheng; LI Ruobing; ZHANG Qinsheng; YU Yongtao; SHI Xinyu

doi:10.13205/j.hjgc.202610005

Volume 44 Issue 10

Oct. 2026

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WANG Hongchen, YE Naiyu, XIA Zhiheng, LI Ruobing, ZHANG Qinsheng, YU Yongtao, SHI Xinyu. Origins， application scenarios， and synergistic interpretation of BOD and COD[J]. ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING , 2026, 44(10): 43-56. doi: 10.13205/j.hjgc.202610005

Citation:

WANG Hongchen, YE Naiyu, XIA Zhiheng, LI Ruobing, ZHANG Qinsheng, YU Yongtao, SHI Xinyu. Origins， application scenarios， and synergistic interpretation of BOD and COD[J]. ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING , 2026, 44(10): 43-56. doi: 10.13205/j.hjgc.202610005

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Origins， application scenarios， and synergistic interpretation of BOD and COD

doi: 10.13205/j.hjgc.202610005

Research Center for Low Carbon Technology of Water Environment, School of Chemistry and Life Resources, Renmin University of China, Beijing 100872, China

Received Date: 2026-09-04
Available Online: 2026-11-10

Abstract

Abstract

Biochemical oxygen demand （BOD） and chemical oxygen demand （COD） are two fundamental comprehensive indicators widely used in water pollution control. However， their origins and intrinsic meanings， particularly the synergistic potential of their combined use to further reveal water quality， remain insufficiently explored. This review systematically traces the origins of BOD and COD and the evolution of their analytical methods， compares their applications in receiving-water protection and ecological assessment， effluent compliance assessment， engineering design， and process operation， and examines the water-quality information conveyed by combined metrics such as BOD₅/COD_Cr and COD_Cr/BOD₅， together with the limits of their interpretation. For the first time， this review elucidates the intrinsic meaning of COD_Cr-BOD₅ and proposes methods for using paired COD_Cr and BOD₅ measurements to estimate the amount of non-biodegradable organic matter in a water sample and waste activated sludge production in a biological treatment system.
- biochemical oxygen demand,
- chemical oxygen demand,
- application scenarios,
- oxygen equivalent,
- synergistic effect

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References

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