The objective of the research is to expand the treatment options available to water utilities, which are facing new regulations that limit the concentration of specific organic chemicals, including disinfection by-products, while at the same time imposing stricter disinfection requirements.
Chlorine reacts with naturally occurring organic matter and forms chlorinated and brominated DBPs.
The EPA has already set maximum concentration levels for trihalomethanes and is expected to do so for other DBPs in the near future. There are problems with using ozone, however, Speitel points out. The rapid decay of ozone prevents its usefulness as a disinfectant once it leaves the treatment plant and enters the water distribution system. Ozone is also a strong oxidant and reacts vigorously with organics in water, breaking them down into more biodegradable forms. This biodegradable organic matter may serve as a substrate for the regrowth of microorganisms in the distribution system.