Grantee Research Project Results
Final Report: Right Sizing Tomorrow's Water Systems for Efficiency, Sustainability,and Public Health
EPA Grant Number: R836890Title: Right Sizing Tomorrow's Water Systems for Efficiency, Sustainability,and Public Health
Investigators: Whelton, Andrew J , Rose, Joan B. , Mitchell, Jade , Beecher, Janice , Nejadhashemi, Amirpouyan , Lee, Juneseok
Institution: Purdue University , Michigan State University , San Jose State University
EPA Project Officer: Packard, Benjamin H
Project Period: October 1, 2016 through September 30, 2019 (Extended to March 29, 2022)
Project Amount: $1,989,000
RFA: National Priorities: Impacts of Water Conservation on Water Quality in Premise Plumbing and Water Distribution Systems (2016) RFA Text | Recipients Lists
Research Category: Water
Objective:
The project goal was to better understand and predict water quality and health risks posed by declining water usage and low flows. Our hypotheses focused on (i) testing the predictability of integrated water distribution system-plumbing models the project team developed and calibrated for residential and commercial buildings; (ii) identifying the most significant determinant(s) of water quality in these systems; and (iii) identifying water system design and operational conditions that pose increased human health risks. Project objectives were to: (1) Improve the public’s understanding of decreased flow and establish a range of theoretical plumbing flow demands from the scientific literature and expert elicitation with our strategic partners; (2) Elucidate the factors and their interactions that affect water quality through fate and transport simulation models for residential and commercial buildings; and (3) Create a risk-based decision support tool to help guide decision makers through the identification of plumbing characteristics, operations and maintenance practices that minimize health risks to
building inhabitants.
Conclusions:
With strategic partnerships, collaborations, workshops, field and bench-scale testing efforts, the team developed new knowledge that provides a better understanding of building water quality and health risks posed by low flows. Through full-scale testing of a state-of-the-art, continuously monitored, residential home, eight predictive water quality plumbing models were developed and calibrated. Developed models can be scaled for other plumbing designs, operational conditions, and water distribution inputs. Simulations and scenario testing were used to predict microbial concentrations for human health risk assessment. A multi-tiered, web-based decision support system that integrated the literature review, testing, and modeling was created and made publicly available online. Chemical and microbiological behavior of commercial and institutional building water systems were examined through full- and pilot-scale testing. Some outcomes of each research objective are described below.
Objective 1: Substantial public engagement and outreach was accomplished during this study with a focus on public understanding of plumbing, water quality, and its role in protecting public health. Tens of thousands of page views were cataloged for the www.PlumbingSafety.org website setup in response to this study. Educational videos as well as lists of resources, frequently asked questions, guidance documents, and OpEds were made publicly available. Team members responded to questions from the general public that were received in person, by email and telephone. These individual questions ranged from water testing practices, plumbing material selection considerations, and troubleshooting. Notably, a public education and support effort was conducted in response to several wildfires, where homeowner plumbing received or were suspected to have received chemically contaminated drinking water. In all, more than 100 presentations were delivered by project team members across the public health, water utility, product manufacturer, and building design sectors. Results were formally shared through events held in the U.S., Canada, the United Kingdom, and also through an international water association webinar and webinars with key stakeholders in the USEPA Office of Water. Support was also provided to the American Water Works Association (AWWA) in developing a building water system guidance document in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Objective 2: Content within the 25 peer-reviewed scientific journal publications developed forms the foundation of this study’s discoveries and products developed in Objective 3. Knowledge-gaps and resources to predict and reduce cold and hot water building plumbing health risks were identified. New health risk models and assessments were developed for Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Acanthamoeba, and Naegleria fowleri. Microbiological testing of cooling towers revealed new water quality-plumbing interaction discoveries. Commercial and institutional building testing revealed novel discoveries important to plumbing design, operation, in-building sampling, and exposure. Water quality in many of the buildings tested had never been previously examined. Weekend stagnation (Friday to Monday) in an office building revealed water quality building issues and minor to serious widespread microbiological and chemical contamination was found in other buildings, including at a school. Schools and childcare centers were identified as specifically needing attention in future building water quality efforts.
The overwhelming majority of the study effort was dedicated to water quality, pressure, flow, and temperature testing of a single family home located next to Purdue University’s campus in West Lafayette, Indiana. Data from this home was used to develop integrative hydraulic-water quality models for residential buildings (Objective 3). Intensive water testing was conducted in the ‘Most Monitored Home in America’ for one year. Approximately 2.64 billion online monitoring data points were collected. More than 222,200 labor hours were conducted. Testing revealed that water quality delivered to homes is not consistent in chemical quality, and water without disinfectant residual was sometimes delivered to the home. Several bench-scale experiments were conducted to help describe water quality observations in commercial, institutional, and residential buildings. Because plastic materials are increasingly replacing metal counterparts, the interaction of water with plastic materials was investigated. Some key discoveries included: (1) Plastic plumbing pipes accumulate heavy metal and sediment scales during their service-life; (2) polyethylene pipes are chemically attacked by copper species leached from brass valves and pipes; (3) significant variability in organic carbon leaching at different temperatures, water pH, and brands was observed for plastic pipes certified for drinking water use; and (4) a variety of plastic pipes generated volatile organic compounds when exposed to high heat, and these chemicals were leached into water when they came into contact. Discovery about materials underscored an important need for future efforts to focus on understanding how plastics are influencing water quality at fixtures (i.e., organic carbon, chemical levels, disinfectant residual, microbial growth/biofilms, disinfectant byproducts).
Objective 3: A series of calibrated plumbing hydraulic-water quality models were developed for the extensively monitored single-family residential home. Results can be used to support better planning, design, analysis, and operational decision-making for building water systems design, operation, and investigations. The integrative hydraulic water quality models were developed using EPANET and EPANET-MSX. The eight models predict the level of free chlorine, total trihalomethanes (TTHM), Cu, Fe, Pb, NO3-, heterotrophic plate count (HPC), and Legionella spp. concentration at each fixture for plumbing use, operational characteristics, and design layouts. Reducing building water use in the model by 25% prompted increased concentrations of HPC and Legionella, each increasing by a factor of about 105. When the service line length was increased, Legionella spp. concentrations increased by up to 106 gene copies /L in the Summer season. Two decision support tools (The Plumbing Water Quality Tool and QMRA Decision Support Tool) can now be used by building designers, owners, public health officials, regulators, policymakers, utility staff, and other professionals for predicting chemical and microbiological water quality and health risks at building fixtures. These tools are publicly available online. These are the only two tools currently available and study results provide insights into future development challenges.
Journal Articles on this Report : 10 Displayed | Download in RIS Format
Other project views: | All 36 publications | 14 publications in selected types | All 14 journal articles |
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Julien R, Saravi B, Nejadhashemi A, Whelton AJ, Aw TG, Mitchell J. Identifying water quality variables most strongly influencing Legionella concentrations in building plumbing. AWWA Water Science. 2022;4(1):e1267. |
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Palmegiani MA, Whelton AJ, Mitchell J, Nejadhashemi P, Lee J. New developments in premise plumbing:Integrative hydraulic and water quality modeling. AWWA Water Science2022;4(2):e1280. |
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Salehi M, Odimayomi T, Ra K, Ley C, Julien R, Nejadhashemi AP, Hernandez-Suarez JS, Mitchell J, Shah AD, Whelton A. An investigation of spatial and temporal drinking water quality variation in green residential plumbing.Building and Environment2020;169:106566 |
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Ra K, Odimayomi T, Ley C, Aw TG, Rose J, Whelton AJ. Finding building water quality challenges in a 7 year old green school:implications for building design, sampling, and remediation. Environmental Science:Water Research and Techology 2020;6:2691-2703. |
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Proctor CR, Lee J, Yu D, Shah AD, Whelton AJ. Wildfire caused widespread drinking water distribution network contamination.AWWA Water Science2020;2(4):e1183.DOI:https://doi.org/10.1002/AWS2.1183. |
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Logan-Jackson AR, Rose JB. Water Age Effects on the Occurrence and Concentration of Legionella Species in the Distribution System, Premise Plumbing, and the Cooling Towers.Microorganisms2021;10(1):81. DOI:https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms10010081. |
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Odimayomi TO, Proctor CR, Wang QE, Sabbaghi A, Peterson KS, Yu DJ, Lee J, Shah AD, Ley CJ, Noh Y, Smith CD. Water safety attitudes, risk perception, experiences, and education for households impacted by the 2018 Camp Fire, California.Natural Hazards2021;108(1):947-75. |
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Aw TG, Scott L, Jordan K, Ra K, Ley C, Whelton AJ. Prevalence of opportunistic pathogens in a school building plumbing during periods of low water use and a transition to normal use. International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health. 2022;241:113945. |
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Montagnino E, Proctor CR, Ra K, Ley C, Noh Y, Vigil K, Aw TG, Dasika S, Whelton AJ. Over the weekend:Water stagnation and contaminant exceedances in a green office building.PLOS Water.. 2022;1(3):e0000006 |
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Montagnino E, Lytle DA, Rose J, Cwiertny D, Whelton AJ. School and childcare center drinking water:Copper chemistry, health effects, occurrence, and remediation.AWWA Water Science2022;4(2):e1270. |
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Supplemental Keywords:
Residual, Hydraulic residence times, EPANET, Water demand, Plastic Pipes, Pathogens, QMRARelevant Websites:
Plumbing Water Quality Tool Exit
QMRA Decision Support Tool Exit
Progress and Final Reports:
Original AbstractThe perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.
Project Research Results
- 2020 Progress Report
- 2019 Progress Report
- 2018 Progress Report
- 2017 Progress Report
- Original Abstract
14 journal articles for this project