Effects of humic acid and surfactants on the aggregation kinetics of manganese dioxide colloids

The aggregation of common manganese dioxide (MnO₂) colloids has great impact on their surface reactivity and therefore on their fates as well as associated natural and synthetic contaminants in engineered (e.g. water treatment) and natural aquatic environments. Nevertheless, little is known about the aggregation kinetics of MnO₂ colloids and the effect of humic acid (HA) and surfactants on these. In this study, the early stage aggregation kinetics of MnO₂ nanoparticles in NaNO₃ and Ca(NO₃)₂ solutions in the presence of HA and surfactants (i.e., sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP)) were modeled through time-resolved dynamic light scattering. In the presence of HA, MnO₂ colloids were significantly stabilized with a critical coagulation concentration (CCC) of ~300 mmol·L^-1 NaNO₃ and 4 mmol·L^-1 Ca(NO₃)₂. Electrophoretic mobility (EPM) measurements confirmed that steric hindrance may be primarily responsible for increasing colloidal stability in the presence of HA. Moreover, the molecular and/or chemical properties of HA might impact its stabilizing efficiency. In the case of PVP, only a slight increase of aggregation kinetics was observed, due to steric reactions originating from adsorbed layers of PVP on the MnO₂ surface. Consequently, higher CCC values were obtained in the presence of PVP. However, there was a negligible reduction in MnO₂ colloidal stability in the presence of 20 mg·L^-1SDS.     

Adsorption property of direct fast black onto acid-thermal modified sepiolite and optimization of adsorption conditions using Box-Behnken response surface methodology

The adsorption of direct fast black onto acid-thermal modified sepiolite was investigated. Batch adsorption experiments were performed to evaluate the influences of experimental parameters such as initial dye concentration, initial solution pH and adsorbent dosage on the adsorption process. The three-factor and three-level Box-Behnken response surface methodology (RSM) was utilized for modeling and optimization of the adsorption conditions for direct fast black onto the acid-thermal modified sepiolite. The raw sepiolite was converted to acid-thermal modified sepiolite, and changes in the fourier transform infrared spectrum (FTIR) adsorption bands of the sample were noted at 3435 cm^-1 and 1427 cm^-1. The zeolitic water disappeared and the purity of sepiolite was improved by acid-thermal modification. The decolorization rate of direct fast black adsorbed increased from 68.2% to 98.9% on acid-thermal modified sepiolite as the initial solution pH decreased from 10 to 2. When the adsorbent dosage reached to 2.5 g·L^-1, 2.0 g·L^-1, 1.5 g·L^-1 and 1.0 g·L^-1, the decolorization rate was 90.3%, 86.7%, 61.0% and 29.8%, respectively. When initial dye concentration increased from 25 to 200 mg·L^-1, the decolorization rate decreased from 91.9% to 60.0%. The RSM results showed that the interaction between adsorbent dosage and pH to be a significant factor. The optimum conditions were as follows: the adsorbent dosage 1.99 g·L^-1, pH 4.22, and reaction time 5.2 h. Under these conditions, the decolorization rate was 95.1%. The three dimensional fluorescence spectra of direct fast black before and after treatment showed that the direct fast black was almost all adsorbed by the acid-thermal modified sepiolite.     

Degradation of bisphenol A by microorganisms immobilized on polyvinyl alcohol microspheres

In this study, microorganisms （named B111） were immobilized on polyvinyl alcohol microspheres prepared by the inverse suspension crosslinked method. The biodegradation of bisphenol A （BPA） and 4-hydro- xybenzaldehyde, a degradation product of BPA, by free and immobilized B lll was investigated. The BPA degradation studies were carried out at initial BPA concentrations ranging from 25 to 150 mg·L^-1. The affinity constant Ks and maximum degradation rate Rmax were 98.3 mg·L^-1 and 19.7mg·mg^-1VSS·d^-1 for free B111, as well as 87.2mg·L^-1 and 21.1mg·mg^-1VSS·d^-1 for immobilized B 111, respectively. 16S rDNA gene sequence analyses confirmed that the dominant genera were Pseudomonas and Brevundimonas for BPA biodegradation in microorganisms B 111.     

Gold modified microelectrode for direct tetracycline detection

The residues of tetracycline antibiotics in water have attracted many concerns due to their harmful impact to human health. This paper reports an electrochemical sensor for the determination of tetracycline (TC) by the microelectrode, which was fabricated by electrodeposited gold colloids on tungsten tip. Cyclic voltammerty was used to study the electrochemical behavior of TC on the microelectrode. Well anodic wave was obtained at about 1.5 V in acidic solutions. Electrochemical determination of tetracycline was investigated using microelectrode by cyclic voltammetry. Under optimized conditions, the calibration curves for TC were obtained. The oxidation peak currents were linearly related to TC concentrations in the range of 1–10 mg·L^-1 and 10–100 mg·L^-1, respectively. The detection limit was 0.09 mg·L^-1 (S/N = 3).     

Selective recovery of Cu2+ and Ni2+ from wastewater using bioelectrochemical system

As the bioelectrochemical system, the microbial fuel cell (MFC) and the microbial electrolysis cell (MEC) were developed to selectively recover Cu²⁺ and Ni²⁺ ions from wastewater. The wastewater was treated in the cathode chambers of the system, in which Cu²⁺ and Ni²⁺ ions were removed by using the MFC and the MEC, respectively. At an initial Cu²⁺ concentration of 500 mg·L^-1, removal efficiencies of Cu²⁺ increased from 97.0%±1.8% to 99.0%±0.3% with the initial Ni²⁺ concentrations from 250 to 1000 mg·L^-1, and maximum power densities increased from 3.1±0.5 to 5.4±0.6 W·m^-3. The Ni²⁺ removal mass in the MEC increased from 6.8±0.2 to 20.5±1.5 mg with the increase of Ni²⁺ concentrations. At an initial Ni²⁺ concentration of 500 mg·L^-1, Cu²⁺ removal efficiencies decreased from 99.1%±0.3% to 74.2%±3.8% with the initial Cu²⁺ concentrations from 250 to 1000 mg·L^-1, and maximum power densities increased from 3.0±0.1 to 6.3±1.2 W·m^-3. Subsequently, the Ni²⁺ removal efficiencies decreased from 96.9%±3.1% to 73.3%±5.4%. The results clearly demonstrated the feasibility of selective recovery of Cu²⁺ and Ni²⁺ from the wastewater using the bioelectrochemical system.     

硝酸钙投加频次对污泥生物调理效果的影响

在接种了反硝化菌的剩余污泥中投加硝酸钙药剂,利用反硝化菌消耗NO3-进行反硝化作用去除污泥中易生物降解的有机物,利用Ca2＋的中和、架桥作用,改善污泥的脱水性能.固定NO;总投加浓度为100 mg?g-1 TS,在6d的时间内,按1次、2次、3次、6次的投加频次向污泥中投加硝酸钙.结果表明,1次投加对污泥脱水性能的提升...     

阴阳极成对耦合紫外光辅助电催化降解毒死蜱

以空气扩散阴极、纯铂阳极和紫外灯构建了阴阳极成对耦合紫外光辅助电催化的体系,并系统地研究了电流密度、阳极SO42-浓度以及毒死蜱初始浓度对毒死蜱降解效果的影响.结果表明,当阴极/阳极的电流密度为45/450 mA·cm^-2,阳极SO42-浓度为1.0 mol·L^-1,毒死蜱初始浓度为25 mg·L^-1时,反应60 min后毒死蜱降解率可达99%.对阴极产物的红外分析结果表明,毒死蜱降解后结构中的吡啶环和PS被破坏,产生亚硝氮和正磷酸盐,毒性得到减弱.通过对比阴阳极成对耦合紫外光复合体系与阴极耦合紫外光复合体系、阳极耦合紫外光复合体系的电流效率,发现阴阳极成对耦合紫外光复合体系的电流效率是阴极耦合紫外光复合体系的2倍,是阳极耦合紫外光复合体系的4倍.     

In vitro agonistic and antagonistic endocrine disrupting effects of organic extracts from waste water of different treatment processes

Effluents from wastewater treatment plant （WWTP） have been reported to have a broad spectrum of endocrine disrupting compounds （EDCs）. The majority of studies have focused on the occurrence of estrogenic activity, while ignoring nuclear hormone receptors （NRs） pathways. In the present study, a battery of in vitro yeast bioassays and a cell bioassay, including antagonistic and agonistic effects on estrogen receptor （ER）, androgen receptor （AR）, progesterone receptor （PR）, estrogen- related receptor （ERR） and aryl hydrocarbon receptor （AHR）, were conducted to evaluate the removal efficien- cies of EDCs by different treatment processes of a WWTP located in Beijing. Estrogenic, anti-estrogenic, anti- androgenic, anti-progesteronic, anti-ERR and the activa- tion of AHR activities were detected in samples from all treatment processes and the receiving water. The concen- tration of estrogenic contaminants with estradiol （E2） equivalent concentrations ranged from 0.82 x 10-9 to 3.54 x 10 9g Ee_EQ.L-1. The concentration of anti-estrogenic contaminants with 4-hydroxytamoxifen （4-OHT） equiva- lent concentrations ranged from 1.24 × 10-6 to 2.36 x 10-6 g 4-OHT-EQ.L-1. The concentration of anti-androgenic contaminants ranged from 2.21 x 10-s to 3.52 × 10-6g flutamide-EQ. L-1. The concentration of anti-progesteronic contaminants ranged from 3.15 x 10^-5 to 2.71 x 10^-4g RU486-EQ. L-1. The concentration of anti-ERR contami- nants ranged from 7.09 x 10-5 to 6.50 x 104 g 4-OHT-EQ × L^-10. The concentration of AHR activators ranged from 1.7 × 10-10 to 3.4 × 10^-10g TCDD-EQ-L-1. These processes including secondary clarifier, coagulation, as well as coal and sand filtration could eliminated 67.2% of estrogenic contaminants, 47.0% of anti-estrogenic contaminants, 98.3% of anti-androgenic contaminants, 88.4% of anti- progesteronic contaminants, 65.4% of anti-ERR contami- nants and 46.9% of AHR activators. WWTP effluents contain multiple receptor disruptors may have very complex adverse effects on exposed organisms.     

Reduction of hexavalent chromium with scrap iron in a fixed bed reactor

The reduction of hexavalent chromium by scrap iron was investigated in continuous long-term fixed bed system. The effects of pH, empty bed contact time (EBCT), and initial Cr(VI) concentration on Cr(VI) reduction were studied. The results showed that the pH, EBCT, and initial Cr(VI) concentration significantly affected the reduction capacity of scrap iron. The reduction capacity of scrap iron were 4.56, 1.51, and 0.57 mg Cr(VI)·g^-1 Fe⁰ at pH 3, 5, and 7 (initial Cr(VI) concentration 4 mg·L^-1, EBCT 2 min, and temperature 25°C), 0.51, 1.51, and 2.85 mg Cr(VI)·g^-1 Fe⁰ at EBCTs of 0.5, 2.0, and 6.0 min (initial Cr(VI) concentration 4 mg·L^-1, pH 5, and temperature 25°C), and 2.99, 1.51, and 1.01 mg Cr(VI)·g^-1 Fe⁰ at influent concentrations of 1, 4, and 8 mg·L^-1 (EBCT 2 min, pH 5, and temperature 25°C), respectively. Fe(total) concentration in the column effluent continuously decreased in time, due to a decrease in time of the iron corrosion rate. The fixed bed reactor can be readily used for the treatment of drinking water containing low amounts of Cr(VI) ions, although the hardness and humic acid in water may shorten the lifetime of the reactor, the reduction capacity of scrap iron still achieved 1.98 mg Cr⁶⁺·g^-1 Fe. Scanning electron microscope equipped with energy dispersion spectrometer and X-ray diffraction were conducted to examine the surface species of the scrap iron before and after its use. In addition to iron oxides and hydroxide species, iron-chromium complex was also observed on the reacted scrap iron.     

Upgrade of three municipal wastewater treatment lagoons using a high surface area media

Lagoon-based municipal wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are facing difficulties meeting the needs of rapid population growth as well as the more stringent requirements of discharge permits. Three municipal WWTPs were modified using a high surface area media with upgraded fine-bubble aeration systems. Performance data collected showed very promising results in terms of five-day biochemical oxygen demand (BOD₅), ammonia (NH₃) and total suspended solids (TSS) removal. Two-year average ammonia effluents were 4.1 mg·L^-1 for Columbia WWTP, 4 mg·L^-1 for Larchmont WWTP and 2.1 mg·L^-1 for Laurelville WWTP, respectively. Two- year average BOD₅ effluents were 6.8, 4.9 and 2.7 mg·L^-1, and TSS effluents were 15.0, 9.6 and 7.5 mg·L^-1. The systems also showed low fecal coliform (FC) levels in their effluents.     

碳基纳米铜复合材料对普通小球藻胁迫作用的研究

随着科技的飞速发展,纳米类材料在电化学、药物运输、生物传感器等领域中得到了广泛的应用,这导致了其通过各种途径进入水、土壤、大气等环境介质中,对生态环境安全造成潜在威胁。以水体中环境浓度的碳基纳米铜复合材料为受试浓度范围,以环境适应性和污染物耐受性均较强的普通小球藻(Chlorella vulgaris)为对象,研究了水体中不同浓度碳基纳米铜复合材料对普通小球藻的细胞胁迫作用,使用分光光度法检测了0,0.05,0.5,5,50 mg·L^-1碳基纳米铜暴露条件下普通小球藻叶绿素a含量的变化。运用非靶向代谢组学(气相-质谱联用)检测法探究了不同浓度碳基纳米铜胁迫条件下第8天普通小球藻细胞内代谢物相对丰度变化、代谢通路及相关代谢组学特性的变化。结果表明,在培养周期的第8天,藻细胞叶绿素a含量随碳基纳米铜浓度的升高而降低,当碳基纳米铜达到50 mg·L^-1时,将严重抑制藻细胞叶绿素a的产生。代谢组学检测结果表明,当碳基纳米铜复合材料的浓度达到50 mg·L^-1时,藻细胞中与叶绿素合成密切相关的碳固定过程、氨基酸代谢过程均受到了严重抑制。这表明,高浓度碳基纳米铜会扰乱普通小球藻的细胞代谢并产生明显胁迫作用。文章旨在评估水体中碳基纳米铜复合材料对水体初级生产者普通小球藻的胁迫作用,以期为水体污染修复与藻细胞生态毒理学的研究提供一定的数据支持与参考。     

Occurance and control of manganese in a large scale water treatment plant

The continuous variations of dissolved oxygen (DO), manganese (Mn), pH, and their effect on manganese removal by different water treatment processes are investigated. The results show that the declined DO concentration and pH value in the bottom of reservoir results in the increasing release of Mn from sediment to source water. Manganese concentration increased from 0.1 to 0.4 mg·L^-1 under the condition that DO concentration decreased from 12.0 to 2.0 mg·L^-1 in raw water. The different water treatment processes exhibited different efficiency on manganese removal. The processes with recycling of the suspended sludge, low elevation velocity in settling tank and slow filter rate, will benefit the manganese removal. During a high release of manganese in raw water, traditional coagulation-sedimentation and filtration could not completely remove Mn, although granular activated carbon filtration (GAC) had been applied. At that case, preoxidation with chlorine or potassium permanganate (KMnO₄) was necessary to address the high manganese concentration.     

Optimization of thermophilic anaerobic-aerobic treatment system for Palm Oil Mill Effluent (POME)

Optimization of an integrated anaerobic-aerobic bioreactor (IAAB) treatment system for the reduction of organic matter (Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD), Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) and Total Suspended Solids (TSS) concentrations) in Palm Oil Mill Effluent (POME) to legal standards with high methane yield was performed for the first time under thermophilic condition (50°C–55°C) by using response surface methodology (RSM). The experiments were conducted based on a central composite rotatable design (CCRD) with three independent operating variables, organic loading rates in anaerobic compartment (OLR_an) and mixed liquor volatile suspended solids (MLVSS) concentration in anaerobic (MLVSS_an) and aerobic compartments (MLVSS_a). The optimum conditions for the POME treatment were determined as OLR_an of 15.6 g COD·L^-1·d^-1, MLVSS_an of 43100 mg·L^-1, and MLVSS_a of 18600 mg·L^-1, where high aerobic COD, BOD and TSS removal efficiencies of 96.3%, 97.9%, and 98.5% were achieved with treated BOD of 56 mg·L^-1 and TSS of 28 mg·L^-1 meeting the discharge standard. This optimization study successfully achieved a reduction of 42% in the BOD concentrations of the final treated effluent at a 48% higher OLR_an as compared to the previous works. Besides, thermophilic IAAB system scores better feasibility and higher effectiveness as compared to the optimized mesophilic system. This is due to its higher ability to handle high OLR with higher overall treatment efficiencies (more than 99.6%), methane yield (0.31 L CH₄·g^-1 COD_removed) and purity of methane (67.5%). Hence, these advantages ascertain the applicability of thermophilic IAAB in the POME treatment or even in other high-strength wastewaters treatment.     

Validation of polymer-based nano-iron oxide in further phosphorus removal from bioeffluent: laboratory and scaledup study

The efficient removal of phosphorous from water is an important but challenging task. In this study, we validated the applicability of a new commercially available nanocomposite adsorbent, i.e., a polymer-based hydrated ferric oxide nanocomposite (HFO-201), for the further removal of phosphorous from the bioeffluent discharged from a municipal wastewater treatment plant, and the operating parameters such as the flow rate, temperature and composition of the regenerants were optimized. Laboratory-scale results indicate that phosphorous in real bioeffluent can be effectively removed from 0.92 mg·L^-1 to<0.5 mg·L^-1 (or even<0.1 mg·L^-1 as desired) by the new adsorbent at a flow rate of 50 bed volume (BV) per hour and treatable volume of 3500–4000 BV per run. Phosphorous removal is independent of the ambient temperature in the range of 15°C–40°C. Moreover, the exhausted HFO-201 can be regenerated by a 2% NaOH+ 5% NaCl binary solution for repeated use without significant capacity loss. A scaled-up study further indicated that even though the initial total phosphorus (TP) was as high as 2 mg·L^-1, it could be reduced to<0.5 mg·L^-1, with a working capacity of 4.4–4.8 g·L^-1 HFO-201. In general, HFO-201 adsorption is a choice method for the efficient removal of phosphate from biotreated waste effluent.     

高效液相色谱-串联质谱法同时检测水体中26种药物及个人护理品

通过优化固相萃取条件和高效液相色谱-串联质谱参数,建立了可以同时检测地表水和地下水中26种典型药物及个人护理品(pharmaceuticals and personal care products,PPCPs),包括磺胺类、大环内酯类、喹诺酮类、酰胺醇类、精神类、消炎止痛类以及个人护理品的检测方法.通过将水样pH值调节至7,利用HLB固相萃取柱对水样中PPCPs进行富集,以甲醇和含0.005%甲酸的水溶液作为正离子模式流动相,甲醇和含0.5 mmol·L^-1乙酸铵的水溶液作为负离子模式流动相进行梯度洗脱,采用多反应监测的质谱扫描模式(MRM)分析测定.26种PPCPs的检出限为0.007—1.78 ng·L^-1,定量限为0.02—5.68 ng·L^-1,回收率为52.28%—115.24%.利用该方法检测北京潮白河地表水和地下水中PPCPs的浓度,结果表明,地表水中PPCPs的含量普遍高于地下水,磺胺甲恶唑、舒必利、咖啡因、卡马西平和布洛芬在地表水和地下水中的含量相对较高,检测浓度分别高达147.83、52.48、78.35、166.58、30.63 ng·L^-1.     

低碳氮比废水好氧颗粒污泥系统稳定性及微生物种群多样性研究

低碳氮比(C/N)废水处理是含氮废水处理中的难题之一.本实验在C/N为4:1和2:1(COD和NH₄⁺-N浓度分别为400 mg·L^-1和100 mg·L^-1,400 mg·L^-1和200 mg·L^-1)条件下,考察好氧颗粒污泥系统对低碳氮比废水的处理效果、长期运行稳定性,研究C/N对好氧颗粒微生物结构变化的影响.研究结果表明,在C/N为4:1的废水中接种活性污泥培养好氧颗粒污泥,形成的颗粒沉降性能良好,MLSS为4.94 g·L^-1,SVI30为40 mL·g^-1,COD去除率90%以上,氨氮去除率接近100%.降低碳氮比,即C/N为2:1后,好氧颗粒的物理及硝化性能无明显变化,MLSS为11.38 g·L^-1,SVI₃₀/SVI₅维持在1左右,COD去除率大于85%,氨氮去除率98%.碳氮比降低使颗粒微生物多样性减少,其中陶厄氏菌受影响较小,而硝化功能菌出现更替:噬氢菌、食酸菌、里德拜特氏菌消失,鞘氨醇单胞菌、束缚杆菌等成为优势菌种.实验表明,该低碳氮比条件下好氧颗粒污泥系统能够稳定运行,且具有优良的处理性能.     

Biodegradation of 2-methylisoborneol by bacteria enriched from biological activated carbon

One of the most common taste and odour compounds (TOCs) in drinking water is 2-methylisoborneol (2-MIB) which cannot be readily removed by conventional water treatments. Four bacterial strains for degrading 2-MIB were isolated from the surface of a biological activated carbon filter, and were characterized as Micrococcus spp., Flavobacterium spp., Brevibacterium spp. and Pseudomonas spp. based on 16S rRNA analysis. The removal efficiencies of 2-MIB with initial concentrations of 515 ng·L^-1 were 98.4%, 96.3%, 95.0%, and 92.8% for Micrococcus spp., Flavobacterium spp., Brevibacterium spp. and Pseudomonas spp., respectively. These removal efficiencies were slightly higher than those with initial concentration at 4.2 mg·L^-1 (86.1%, 84.4%, 86.7% and 86.0%, respectively). The kinetic model showed that biodegradation of 2-MIB at an initial dose of 4.2 mg·L^-1 was a pseudo-first-order reaction, with rate constants of 0.287, 0.277, 0.281, and 0.294 d^-1, respectively. These degraders decomposed 2-MIB to form 2-methylenebornane and 2-methyl-2-bornane as the products.     

Performance of an ANAMMOX reactor treating wastewater generated by antibiotic and starch production processes

A pilot-scale anaerobic ammonia oxidation (ANAMMOX) reactor was used to treat mixed wastewater resulting from a chlortetracycline and starch production process. The results, collected over the course of 272 days, show that the ratio of influent ammonium to nitrite, pH, and temperature can all affect the efficiency of nitrogen removal. The ratio of influent ammonium to nitrite was maintained at about 1:1 at a concentration below 200 mg·L^-1 for both influent ammonium and nitrite. The total nitrogen (TN) loading rate was 0.15–0.30 kgN·m^-3·d^-1, pH remained at 7.8–8.5, and temperature was recorded at 33±1°C. The rate of removal of ammonia, nitrite, and TN were over 90%, 90%, and 80%, and the effluent ammonium, nitrite and TN concentrations were below 50, 30, and 100 mg·L^-1.     

Occurrence of estrogenic endocrine disrupting chemicals concern in sewage plant effluent

The purpose of this study was to give a worldwide overview of the concentrations of typical estrogenic endocrine disrupting chemicals （EDCs） in the effluent of sewage plants and then compare the concentra- tion distribution of the estrogenic EDCs in ten countries based on the survey data of the estrogenic EDCs research. The concentrations of three main categories （totally eight kinds） of estrogenic EDCs including steroidal estrogens （estrone （El）, estradiol （E2）, estriol （E3） and 17a- ethynylestradiol （EE2））, phenolic compounds （nonylphe- nol （NP） and bisphenol A （BPA）） and phthalate esters （dibutyl phthalate （DBP） and dibutyl phthalate （2- ethylhexyl） phthalate （DEHP）） in the effluents of sewage plants reported in major international journals over the past decade were collected. The statistics showed that the concentration distributions of eight kinds of EDCs were in the range of ng·L^-1 to μg·L^-1. The concentrations of steroidal estrogens mainly ranged within 50.00 ng. L-1, and the median concentrations of El, E2, E3 and EE2 were 11.00, 3.68, 4.90 and 1.00 ng·L^-1, respectively. Phenolic compounds and phthalate esters were found at pg. L-1 level （some individual values were at the high level of 40.00 μg·L^-1）. The median concentrations of BPA, NP, DBP and DEHP were 0.06, 0.55, 0.07 and 0.88 μg·L^-1, respectively. The concentrations of phenolic compounds and phthalate esters in the effluents were higher than that of steroids estrogens. The analysis of the concentration in various ten countries showed that steroids estrogens, phenolic compounds and phthalate esters in sewage plant effluents were detected with high concentration in Canada, Spain and China, respectively.     

Haloacetic acids in swimming pool and spa water in the United States and China

The objective of this study is to investigate the occurrence of haloacetic acids （HAAs）, a group of disinfection byproducts, in swimming pool and spa water. The samples were collected from six indoor pools, six outdoor pools and three spas in Pennsylvania, the United States, and from five outdoor pools and nine indoor pools in Beijing, China. Five HAAs （HAA5）, including monochloroacetic acid, dichloroacetic acid, trichloroacetic acid, monobromoacetic acid, and dibromoacetic acid were analyzed. Total chlorine, pH and total organic carbon concentration were analyzed as well. Results indicated that the levels of HAA5 in swimming pools and spas in the United States ranged from 70 to 3980μg·L^-1, with an arithmetic average at 1440μg·L^-1 and a median level at 1150μg·L^-1. These levels are much higher than the levels reported in chlorinated drinking water and are likely due to organic matters released from swimmers＇ bodies. The levels of HAA5 in swimming pools in China ranged from 13 to 332μg·L^-1, with an arithmetic average at 117μg·L^-1 and a median level at 114μg·L^-1. The lower HAA levels in swimming pools in China were due to the lower chlorine residuals. Results from this study can help water professionals to better understand the formation and stability of HAAs in chlorinated water and assess risks associated with exposures to HAAs in swimming pools and spas.