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A novel model to characterize source contributions of chemical contamination of surface water sources used as drinking water: a case study with 1,4-dioxane
Citation:
Dawson, D. AND R. Tornero-Velez. A novel model to characterize source contributions of chemical contamination of surface water sources used as drinking water: a case study with 1,4-dioxane. ISES, Lisbon, N/A, PORTUGAL, September 25 - 29, 2022. https://doi.org/10.23645/epacomptox.21090988
Impact/Purpose:
N/A
Description:
1,4-Dioxane is a persistent and mobile organic chemical considered to be a likely human carcinogen by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. It is currently used in several industrial applications and occurs as an unintended byproduct of ethoxylated surfactants in some personal-care products such as detergents and soaps. Both sources may contribute to the contamination of surface water, and subsequently drinking water, by either direct release (in the case of industrial sources) or following down the drain (DTD) disposal and release of wastewater treatment effluent. However, 1,4-dioxane concentrations in the source water of different water treatment plants may vary significantly. To help understand and predict 1,4-dioxane water concentrations and proportional sources of contamination at water systems, we present EWISRD-XL(Estimating Water Industrial Surface Release and Down the Drain in Excel, pronounced “E-WIZARD-XL”), a simple, static, mass-balance model coded in MS Excel. This model is parameterized using measured or predicted values of 1,4-dioxane released from DTD or industrial sources, surface water flow information, and information about the flows and populations served by wastewater treatment plants. In two case studies in the US State of North Carolina, model predicted concentrations were within a factor of 10 of values measured at water treatment plants. EWISRD-XL is currently under development for use by the USEPA Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics for a supplemental risk evaluation of 1,4-dioxane. The views expressed in this presentation are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the U.S. EPA.
URLs/Downloads:
DOI: A novel model to characterize source contributions of chemical contamination of surface water sources used as drinking water: a case study with 1,4-dioxane
LISBON_ISES_RTV_091322.PDF (PDF, NA pp, 1626.329 KB, about PDF)