Chloramination Monitoring And Control

By Randy Turner, Technical Director, Chemist, Swan Analytical USA

Since the EPA has established that, together with free chlorine, monochloramine is a primary disinfectant, it has been possible to implement the process more intensively. Water that is treated with monochloramine has, depending on the source of the water, fewer problems concerning taste and odor than water treated with free chlorine. In addition, the chemically more stable monochloramine remains longer in the water, thus allowing a long-term disinfecting effect.

However, the monitoring of the process and the measuring techniques are much more complex. The reason is that the additional dosage of ammonia can produce more by-products, or there is a possibility of over-ammoniating.