Citation:

Haupert, L. AND M. Magnuson. Numerical Model for Decontamination of Organic Contaminants in Polyethylene Drinking Water Pipes in Premise Plumbing by Flushing. JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING. American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), Reston, VA, 145(7):1-22, (2019). https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)EE.1943-7870.0001542

Impact/Purpose:

Polymeric materials such as polyethylene and polypropylene are used extensively for drinking water applications. These materials are subject to permeation by organic compounds, such as those found in petroleum products and industrial chemicals, which can result in water quality issues with potential health effects. Although flushing is a common decontamination technique, disagreements and knowledge gaps in the scientific literature complicate prediction of how much flushing may be required to address organic contamination incidents. This paper utilizes a numerical solution to the diffusion equation to predict flushing decontamination times for toluene in cross-linked polyethylene tubing. A flow-through fluorometer and a single compartment diffusion cell were used to calibrate and validate the diffusion model. Results suggest that, for the pipe wall thicknesses typically used for drinking water, heavily contaminated polymer tubing can be resistant to decontamination by flushing, possibly requiring days or weeks of continuous flushing to achieve desired contaminant removal.

Description:

Polymeric materials such as polyethylene and polypropylene are used extensively for drinking water applications. These materials are subject to permeation by organic compounds, such as those found in petroleum products and industrial chemicals, which can result in water quality issues with potential health effects. Although flushing is a common decontamination technique, disagreements and knowledge gaps in the scientific literature complicate prediction of how much flushing may be required to address organic contamination incidents. This paper utilizes a numerical solution to the diffusion equation to predict flushing decontamination times for toluene in cross-linked polyethylene tubing. A flow-through fluorometer and a single compartment diffusion cell were used to calibrate and validate the diffusion model. Results suggest that, for the pipe wall thicknesses typically used for drinking water, heavily contaminated polymer tubing can be resistant to decontamination by flushing, possibly requiring days or weeks of continuous flushing to achieve desired contaminant removal.

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