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Investigation of Chloramines, Disinfection Byproducts, and Nitrification in Chloraminated Drinking Water Distribution Systems
Citation:
Abulikemu, G., J. Mistry, D. Wahman, M. Alexander, A. Kennicutt, J. Bollman, AND J. Pressman. Investigation of Chloramines, Disinfection Byproducts, and Nitrification in Chloraminated Drinking Water Distribution Systems. JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING. American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), Reston, VA, 149(1):04022081, (2023). https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)EE.1943-7870.0002062
Impact/Purpose:
This study evaluated the residual disinfectant and resulting water quality in four drinking water distribution systems over the course of one year. Sampling events were conducting in four representative locations in each system and important pathogens, regulated DBPs, and significance of nitrification and organic chloramines were assessed. The results demonstrated that Legionella and Mycobacterium can exist in water distribution systems even when disinfectant is present. The results also showed organic chloramines are more persistent than monochloramine. This has important implications on the management of chloramines and the operation of water distribution systems. This research will be of high interest to water utilities and practitioners in the field of drinking water.
Description:
The lack of widely available methods for distinguishing and quantifying organic chloramines has raised concerns for maintaining effective disinfectant residuals in chloraminated drinking water distribution systems (CDWDSs). This study provided quantitative estimation of dichloramine and organic chloramines at various residence-time (RT) locations in CDWDSs using a simple technique based on known chloramine chemistry. The organic chloramine fraction of total chlorine reached up to 100% as total chlorine decreased to 0.05 mg-Cl2/L, where a lack of effective disinfectant residuals can lead to water quality deterioration, such as nitrification. Maximum RT samples exhibited faster monochloramine concentration decline compared to entry point samples and model simulations, indicating an increase in water reactivity with RT in distribution systems. Spatially in the distribution system, monochloramine concentrations decreased from the entry point to the maximum RT while trihalomethanes and haloacetic acids initially increased and then stabilized or slightly decreased.
URLs/Downloads:
DOI: Investigation of Chloramines, Disinfection Byproducts, and Nitrification in Chloraminated Drinking Water Distribution Systems
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