Citation:

Li, L., Y. Jeon, H. Ryu, J. Santo Domingo, AND Y. Seo. Assessing the chemical compositions and disinfection byproduct formation of biofilms: Application of fluorescence excitation-emission spectroscopy coupled with parallel factor analysis. CHEMOSPHERE. Elsevier Science Ltd, New York, NY, 246:125745, (2019). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2019.125745

Impact/Purpose:

Biofilms are the result of an aggregation of microbial cells embedded in extracellular polymeric substances (EPS), typically comprising of greater than 90% of their total biomass. Biofilms are widely present in engineered water systems (EWS) (e.g., filtration and drinking water distribution systems or drinking water distribution systems (DWDS)), causing critical problems such as filter fouling, opportunistic pathogens’ growth, biocorrosion, nitrification, and many other issues. In order to control biofilm formation in EWS, water utilities apply disinfectants such as chlorine or monochloramines. However, these applied disinfectants can lead to the formation of toxic disinfection by-products (DBPs) due to the presence of organic-rich susbtances within biofilms. In this study, we attempted to assess the applicability of EEM-PARAFAC analysis for monitoring biomolecular characteristics of biofilm components and their impacts on DBP formation. The chemical composition changes of multi-species biofilms grown on complex organic matter (HS and AOM) were investigated. The correlation between derived EEM-PARAFAC components and DBP formation of biofilms was examined to provide insights into real-time monitoring of DBP formation of biofilms and disinfection optimization for biofilm control in EWS.

Description:

There are increased concerns over biofilms’ contribution to disinfection by-product (DBP) formation in engineered water systems (EWS). However, monitoring the biomolecular characteristics of biofilms to understand their impacts on DBP formation has been a great challenge as it requires complex analytical techniques. This study aims to examine the feasibility of fluorescence excitation-emission matrices (EEMs) coupled with parallel factor analysis (PARAFAC) to assess the chemical composition and DBP formation of biofilms. Biofilms were collected from reactors grown on R2A media, as well as two drinking water-related organic substrates such as humic substances (HS) and algal organic matter (AOM), respectively. The chemical composition and formation of carbonaceous and nitrogenous DBPs of biofilms were continuously monitored every 21 days for 168 days and correlated with the derived EEM-PARAFAC components. Overall, this work highlighted that EEM-PARAFAC analysis is a promising tool to monitor the biomolecular characteristics of biofilm components and to predict the subsequent DBP formation while optimizing disinfection protocols for EWS.

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