Effect of Ammonia on the Formation of THMS in Drinking Water Chlorination - A Case Study
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17015630Keywords:
ammonia, chlorination, drinking water, natural organic matter (nom), thms formationAbstract
In a water supply system total Trihalomethanes (THMs) content in drinking water may vary considerably depending on water quality and treatment conditions. Most urban water treatment plants generally use chlorine as disinfectant. The effect of various parameters on the formation of THMs has been widely studied around the world over the past few decades. Almost universally, it has been found that increasing any of these parameters tends to promote the formation of THMs—except for ammonia, which has a negative effect on the process. Surprisingly, this exception has not received the attention it deserves in THM research globally. Given the high concentration of ammonia in Dhaka's drinking water sources—particularly during the dry months—this study aimed to evaluate how ammonia affects the formation of THMs in water samples from the largest water treatment plant in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The water samples were tested for a wide range of parameters including pH, ammonia, UV254, TOC, DOC and bromide following the standard methods of testing. THMs was measured by THM plus Method (Method:10132) using UV-VIS Spectrophotometer DR 6000(HACH, USA). A detailed quantitative study was conducted to examine how ammonia affects the formation of trihalomethanes (THMs) when water is chlorinated under varying conditions. Experiments were carried out using treated water from the supply system, which had a dissolved organic carbon (DOC) content of 6.0 mg/L. Chlorination was performed with a free chlorine residual of 0.89 mg/L and a total chlorine residual of 1.29 mg/L. Different doses of ammonia—0.0, 0.5, 1.0, 5.0, and 10.0 mg/L—were applied. The results showed that the presence of ammonia at various concentrations significantly reduced THM formation at the given chlorine levels, however it did not completely eliminate it. THMs formation decreased continuously with increasing ammonia concentration, and the decline is sharp during relatively low concentration of ammonia up to 3 mg N/L then remained near to flat slope after ammonia exceeded 3 mg N/ L. It is noticed that the formation of THMs significantly reduced with increasing ammonia concentration from 0 to 10 mg N/L in chlorinated drinking water. The suppression of THMs was prominent with increasing ammonia concentration from almost zero to 5 mg N/L. However, the formation of THMs remain low and constant after ammonia addition over 5 mg N /L. A general correlation for predicting THM formation based on ammonia concentration is presented, and its predictions align well with the observed results, although it is specific to this study. Further research using a more diverse dataset is recommended. In water supply systems like Dhaka, where significant amounts of ammonia and other organic pollutants are present in river water—along with the perceived risk of THM formation—comprehensive studies should be undertaken to determine how to manage or utilize ammonia effectively during water treatment. One potential approach could be the controlled use of ammonia to form chloramine, which can act as a disinfectant in the treatment process.
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