The impact of UV treatment on microbial control and DBPs formation in full-scale drinking water systems in northern China

To manage potential microbial risks and meet increasingly strict drinking water health standards, UV treatment has attracted increasing attention for use in drinking water systems in China. However, the effects of UV treatment on microbial control and disinfection by-products (DBPs) formation in real municipal drinking water systems are poorly understood. Here, we collected water samples from three real drinking water systems in Beijing and Tianjin to investigate the impacts of UV treatment on microbial control and DBP formation. We employed heterotrophic plate count (HPC), flow cytometry (FCM), quantitative PCR analysis, and high-throughput sequencing to measure microorganisms in the samples. Different trends were observed between HPC and total cell count (measured by FCM), indicating that a single indicator could not reflect the real degree of biological re-growth in drinking water distribution systems (DWDSs). A significant increase in the 16S rRNA gene concentration was observed when the UV system was stopped. Besides, the bacterial community composition was similar at the phylum level but differed markedly at the genera level among the three DWDSs. Some chlorine-resistant bacteria, including potential pathogens (e.g., Acinetobacter) showed a high relative abundance when the UV system was turned off. It can be concluded that UV treatment can mitigate microbial re-growth to some extent. Finally, UV treatment had a limited influence on the formation of DBPs, including trihalomethanes, haloacetic acids, and nitrogenated DBPs. The findings of this study may help to understand the performance of UV treatment in real drinking water systems.     

Volatile organic chloramines formation during ClO2 treatment

Volatile organic chloramines are reported as the disinfection byproducts during chlorination or chloramination.However,ClO_2,as an important alternative disinfectant for chlorine,was not considered to produce halogenated amines.In the present work,volatile organic chloramines including(CH_3)_2 NCl and CH_3 NCl_2 were found to be generated during the reaction of ClO_2 and the dye pollutants.(CH_3)_2 NCl was the dominant volatile DBP to result from ClO_2 treated all four dye pollutants including Methyl Orange,Methyl Red,Methylene Blue and Malachite Green,with molar yields ranging from 2.6% to 38.5% at a ClO_2 to precursor(ClO_2/P) molar ratio of 10.HOCl was identified and proved to be the reactive species for the formation of (CH_3)_2 NCl,which implied(CH_3)_2 NCl was transformed by a combined oxidation of ClO_2 and hypochlorous acid.(CH_3)_2 NCl concentrations in the ppb range were observed when real water samples were treated by ClO_2 in the presence of the dye pollutants.The results suggest that these azo dyes are one of the significant precursors for the formation of HOCl during ClO_2 treatment and that organic chloramines should be considered in ClO_2 disinfection chemistry and water treatment.     

氯、氯胺消毒下钱江源水源水消毒副产物形成特征研究

以钱江源水源水为研究对象,以氯、氯胺为消毒方式,研究了不同消毒条件下,三卤甲烷(THMs)、卤乙腈(HANs)、氯代酮(CKs)、二卤乙酸(DHAAs)、三卤乙酸(THAAs)等消毒副产物(DBPs)的形成情况,以便为水务工作者监测钱江源建库前后水质、DBPs形成的变化提供基础数据.结果显示,氯消毒下DBPs的产量比氯胺消毒高出3~7倍甚至1个数量级,但不管是氯消毒还是氯胺消毒,THMs、HAAs形成量均在我国饮用水标准范围内.氯消毒下,大部分DBPs产量为中、碱性条件酸性条件(除了CKs),氯胺消毒则呈现不同的情况(所有DBPs的产量均为p H=6、p H=7p H=8).消毒剂量对所有DBPs形成具有明显的促进作用;溴离子对THMs、DHANs、DHAAs的形成有明显的促进作用.进一步研究表明,钱江源水源水的水质比钱塘江下游九溪水源水好,DBPs形成也较低,某些指标(如有机碳、有机氮、HANs形成量等)甚至比同省水质较好的金兰水库还要好;而且由于其较高的比紫外吸收值(SUVA),DBPs的溴嵌入能力均比九溪水源水、金兰水库低.此外,就目前的钱江源水源水来说,控制消毒剂量(氯、或氯胺)是控制DBPs形成的有效策略.     

不同预氧化剂对长江原水氯(胺)化DBPs生成潜能的影响

以取自上海市杨树浦水厂的长江原水为研究对象,对比分析了3种常见预氧化剂二氧化氯(ClO2)、高锰酸钾(KMnO4)及氯(Cl2)预氧化对削减氯化和氯胺化消毒副产物(DBPs)生成潜能的效果情况.氯化培养实验结果表明,3种预氧化剂的处理对DBPs总量的去除效果均不显著,经ClO2、Cl2及KMnO4作用后可分别削减8.4%、5.7%及3.9%,效果为ClO2>Cl2>KMnO4.对于长江原水使用氯化消毒时,采用ClO2作为预氧化剂可取得对消毒副产物较好的去除效果.氯胺化培养实验结果表明,3种预氧化剂处理对长江原水氯胺化DBPs的生成潜能影响有较大差异,经ClO2和KMnO4作用后可分别削减18.1%及4.1%,而预氯化后则增高12.3%,对于长江原水使用氯胺化消毒时,采用ClO2作为预氧化剂可取得对消毒副产物较为明显的去除效果.同时,应尽量避免使用预氯化后加氯胺化的组合,以防止在水处理过程中生成更多的DBPs而影响出水水质.     

3种典型消毒副产物对细菌抗生素抗性的影响

本文研究了消毒副产物对细菌抗生素抗性的作用.分别选取三卤甲烷类(THMs)、卤乙酸类(HAAs)以及醛类消毒副产物中典型物质一氯二溴甲烷(CDBM)、碘乙酸(IAA)和水合三氯乙醛(CH),研究了细菌经消毒副产物染毒之后,对多种抗生素的抗性变化情况.结果发现,3种消毒副产物均可以诱导野生型铜绿假单胞菌提高对5种受试抗生素的抗性,提高作用IAACHCDBM.IAA对多重抗性也具有一定的提高作用.野生型大肠杆菌的抗生素抗性同样能够被DBPs诱导提高,说明DBPs对抗性的影响具有普遍性.其作用机制可能是DBPs通过氧化胁迫机制诱导细菌发生突变,进而提高细菌抗生素抗性.本研究表明饮用水系统中部分细菌抗生素抗性的获得可能与消毒副产物有关;除毒理学风险外,消毒副产物的流行病学风险同样不容忽视.     

Effects of copper(II) and copper oxides on THMs formation in copper pipe

Little is known about how the growth of trihalomethanes (THMs) in drinking water is affected in copper pipe. The formation of THMs and chlorine consumption in copper pipe under stagnant flow conditions were investigated. Experiments for the same water held in glass bottles were performed for comparison. Results showed that although THMs levels firstly increased in the presence of chlorine in copper pipe, faster decay of chlorine as compared to the glass bottle affected the rate of THMs formation. The analysis of water phase was supplemented by surface analysis of corrosion scales using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDX). The results showed the scales on the pipe surface mainly consisted of Cu₂O, CuO and Cu(OH)₂ or CuCO₃. Designed experiments confirmed that the fast depletion of chlorine in copper pipe was mainly due to effect of Cu₂O, CuO in corrosion scales on copper pipe. Although copper(II) and copper oxides showed effect on THMs formation, the rapid consumption of chlorine due to copper oxide made THM levels lower than that in glass bottles after 4 h. The transformations of CF, DCBM and CDBM to BF were accelerated in the presence of copper(II), cupric oxide and cuprous oxide. The effect of pH on THMs formation was influenced by effect of pH on corrosion of copper pipe. When pH was below 7, THMs levels in copper pipe was higher as compared to glass bottle, but lower when pH was above 7.     

New methods for identification of disinfection byproducts of toxicological relevance: Progress and future directions

Disinfection byproducts (DBPs) represent a ubiquitous source of chemical exposure in disinfected water. While over 700 DBPs have been identified, the drivers of toxicity remain poorly understood. Additionally, ever evolving water treatment practices have led to a continually growing list of DBPs. Advancement of analytical technologies have enabled the identification of new classes of DBPs and the quantification of these chemically diverse sets of DBPs. Here we summarize advances in new workflows for DBP analysis, including sample preparation, chromatographic separation with mass spectrometry (MS) detection, and data processing. To aid in the selection of techniques for future studies, we discuss necessary considerations for each step in the strategy. This review focuses on how each step of a workflow can be optimized to capture diverse classes of DBPs within a single method. Additionally, we highlight new MS-based approaches that can be powerful for identifying novel DBPs of toxicological relevance. We discuss current challenges and provide perspectives on future research directions with respect to studying new DBPs of toxicological relevance. As analytical technologies continue to advance, new strategies will be increasingly used to analyze complex DBPs produced in different treatment processes with the aim to identify potential drivers of toxicity.     

Micropollutant removal and disinfection byproduct control by sequential peroxymonosulfate-UV treatment in water: A case study with sulfamethoxazole

UV/peroxymonosulfate (UV/PMS) advanced oxidation process has attracted significant attention for removal of micropollutants in water. However, during practical water treatment applications, the PMS treatment must be performed before the UV treatment to achieve full contact. In this study, sulfamethoxazole (SMX) was selected as the target micropollutant. Four different operational approaches, including UV alone, PMS alone, simultaneous UV/PMS and sequential PMS-UV, were compared for their differences in SMX removal and disinfection by-product (DBP) formation potentials during chlorine-driven disinfection. Among the four approaches, UV/PMS and PMS-UV achieved over 90% removal efficiencies for SMX without substantial differences. For raw water, the trichloronitromethane (TCNM) formation potential after treatment with PMS-UV was lower than that after UV/PMS treatment. The time interval over which the PMS-UV process was conducted had little effect on the final removal efficiency for SMX. However, a brief (5 min) pre-PMS treatment significantly reduced the TCNM formation potential and the genotoxicity from DBPs. The formation risk for TCNM during chlorination increased markedly with increasing PMS dosages, and the appropriate dosage under these experimental conditions was suggested to be 0.5–1.0 mmol/L. Under alkaline conditions, PMS-UV treatment can enhance SMX degradation as well as dramatically reduced the formation potentials for haloketones, haloacetonitriles and halonitromethanes. This study suggests that proper optimization of UV/PMS processes can remove SMX and reduce its DBP formation.     

Showering in Flint, MI: Is there a DBP problem?

Lead contamination in the City of Flint, MI has been well documented over the past two years, with lead levels above the EPA Action Level until summer 2016. This resulted from an ill-fated decision to switch from Detroit water (Lake Huron) with corrosion control, to Flint River water without corrosion control. Although lead levels are now closer to normal, reports of skin rashes have sparked questions surrounding tap water in some Flint homes. This study investigated the presence of contaminants, including disinfection by-products (DBPs), in the hot tap water used for showering in the homes of residents in Flint. Extensive quantitative analysis of 61 regulated and priority unregulated DBPs was conducted in Flint hot and cold tap water, along with the analysis of 50 volatile organic compounds and a nontarget comprehensive, broadscreen analysis, to identify a possible source for the reported skin rashes. For comparison, chlorinated hot and cold waters from three other cities were also sampled, including Detroit, which also uses Lake Huron as its source water. Results showed that hot water samples generally contained elevated levels of regulated and priority unregulated DBPs compared to cold water samples, but trihalomethanes were still within regulatory limits. Overall, hot shower water from Flint was similar to waters sampled from the three other cities and did not have unusually high levels of DBPs or other organic chemicals that could be responsible for the skin rashes observed by residents. It is possible that an inorganic chemical or microbial contaminant may be responsible.     

化学预氧化对苏氨酸生成三氯乙醛的影响

以具有最大比三氯乙醛生成潜能(SCHFP)的苏氨酸为研究对象,分析了次氯酸钠(NaClO)、二氧化氯(ClO_2)、高锰酸钾(KMnO_4)、过氧化氢(H_2O_2)、臭氧(O_3)和臭氧过氧化氢(O_3/H_2O_2)等预氧化剂对三氯乙醛(CH)生成的影响,以确定合适的预氧化剂及其适宜投加量,为CH的控制提供指导.结果表明,能够有效去除一天CH生成量(CH1d)的预氧化方式依次为H_2O_2、ClO_2、KMnO_4和NaClO,适宜投加量分别为3、0.5、0.6和0.5mg·L-1,对CH1d相应的去除率分别为61.54%、47.63%、29.77%和10.94%;能够有效去除CH生成潜能(CHFP)的预氧化方式依次为KMnO_4、NaClO、H_2O_2和ClO_2,适宜投加量分别为0.6、0.5、3和0.5mg·L~(-1),对CHFP相应的去除率分别为41.01%、33.38%、8.36%和2.40%;O_3和O_3/H_2O_2预氧化能够使CH1d和CHFP增加,不适用于对CH的控制.