DRINKING WATER
Using Biological Competition To Suppress Algae Growth
Effective algae control shifts the focus from removal to nutrient management. By leveraging bioaugmentation to outcompete algae for nitrogen and phosphorus, facilities can stabilize pH levels and dissolved oxygen, ensuring long-term pond clarity and consistent wastewater treatment performance.
DRINKING WATER CASE STUDIES AND WHITE PAPERS
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![GettyImages-1457068756_450_300]( "How To Prevent Reintroduction Of PFAS Into The Environment")
How To Prevent Reintroduction Of PFAS Into The EnvironmentCartridge-based PFAS removal systems mitigate the risk of operator exposure, cross contamination, as well as the re-introduction of PFAS into the environment during or after disposal.
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Encore® 700 Chemical Metering Pumps Provide SNWA With A Decade Of Flawless Service At River Mountains
Built in 2002, Southern Nevada Water Authority’s (SNWA) River Mountains Water Treatment Facility is a state-of-the art water treatment facility that delivers 300 million gallons per day and was designed to be expanded to deliver up to 600 million gallons per day of treated water in the future.
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![adedge-arsenic]( "The Effects Of Water Quality On Arsenic Removal")
The Effects Of Water Quality On Arsenic RemovalWhen considering an arsenic treatment option for a water system application, it’s important to obtain and review the proposed design criteria carefully. A good system design will have evaluated critical water quality parameters.
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![lornepark_casestudy_final-1]( "Taste and Odor Treatment with UV-Oxidation - Mississauga, Ontario")
Taste and Odor Treatment with UV-Oxidation - Mississauga, OntarioTo meet the projected population increase from 1,160,000 people currently to an estimated 1,571,000 people in 2031, the Region of Peel decided to upgrade and expand its water treatment plant.
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![GettyImages-177718816_450_300]( "How Not To Get Oversold On Your PFAS Solution")
How Not To Get Oversold On Your PFAS SolutionAsking the right questions and properly vetting vendors are key to avoiding an over-engineered PFAS treatment package.
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![IMG_0841]( "American SpiralWeld Supports The Road To Local And Regional Progress In South Carolina")
American SpiralWeld Supports The Road To Local And Regional Progress In South CarolinaWhen the Hugh K. Leatherman Sr. Terminal opens in North Charleston in 2021, container traffic traveling to and from it will use the new Port Access Road, a direct route from I-26 that will reduce the need for commercial trucks to use local roads. Supporting the mainline road’s foundation piers will be South Carolina made spiral-welded structural steel pipe installed as vertical piles driven 60 to 90 feet into the ground. Spiral-welded steel will also be used in the subfoundations of associated new bridges and roads.
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![iStock-1255150736.jpg]( "Proposed Defense Bill Includes Improved Focus On PFAS Control")
Proposed Defense Bill Includes Improved Focus On PFAS ControlThe U.S. House of Representatives’ version of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2021 (H.R. 6395) includes some positive developments for communities and community water systems impacted by contamination from per- and polyfluorinated substances (PFAS) used at nearby Department of Defense (DoD) installations. Here are some insights on potential benefits for water consumers in those areas.
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![charlotte]( "Insta-Valve 250 Helps Charlotte Gain Control For Unidirectional Flushing Program")
Insta-Valve 250 Helps Charlotte Gain Control For Unidirectional Flushing ProgramHydra-Stop’s insertion valve provides targeted control to allow the city to bring down the levels of iron and other particulates in their water distribution system.
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Drought Solutions Around The World
Extremely vulnerable to climate change and water insecurity, Singapore innovating its way to being a leader in sustainable water solutions.
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Water Quality Is Key To The Success Of Cardiff Bay Restoration Water quality has been a central theme in a redevelopment project that began with the creation of the Cardiff Bay Development Corporation in 1987.
DRINKING WATER APPLICATION NOTES
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Innovative Solutions To Drinking Water Decontamination In Small And Medium Treatment Plants9/21/2017
Air stripping technology effectively removes VOCs, THMs, and CO2 for improved adherence to water quality regulations.
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Application Bulletin: Reverse Osmosis3/19/2008
Osmosis is the phenomenon of lower dissolved solids in water passing through a semi-permeable membrane into higher dissolved solids water until a near equilibrium is reached
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Bardac® LF 18 — A Novel Cooling Water Algaecide10/23/2020
The active ingredient in Bardac® LF 18 is dioctyl dimethyl ammonium chloride. This product comes in two concentrations: -10WT (10% w/w) and -50WT (50% w/w). Several chemical properties of this product yield key benefits that set it apart from other industrial cooling water products. It is a quaternary ammonium compound (quat). Quats are typically low cost and highly effective biocides for a broad spectrum of organisms.
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LC-MS Analysis Of 33 PFAS Compounds In 5 Minutes11/4/2021
In response to environmental testing demands for faster LC-MS analyses, the new Ascentis® Express PFAS HPLC and delay columns allow the highly efficient separation of 33 PFAS compounds in 5 minutes with reduced background contamination.
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A New Way Of Designing With Reverse Osmosis Membranes7/23/2015
Process design in water treatment is historically confined to proprietary or user-defined spreadsheets on a unit operation basis, with users manually adding results from each unit process upstream into the next operation.
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The Process Of Deionizing Water10/29/2021
Years ago, high purity water was used only in limited applications. Today, deionized (Dl) water has become an essential ingredient in hundreds of applications including: medical, laboratory, pharmaceutical, cosmetics, electronics manufacturing, food processing, plating, countless industrial processes, and even the final rinse at the local car wash.
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Dosing Of Sodium Hypochlorite Solution For Drinking Water Disinfection9/22/2022
A water purveyor was in urgent need of a chemically resistant flow instrumentation with a long life of service that allowed reliable and long-term stable dosing of the sodium hypochlorite solution.
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Application Note: Troubleshooting A pH Electrode1/26/2011
Many factors affect performance of a pH electrode. When performance degrades, it is always a challenge for the analyst to identify the cause. Common troubleshooting procedures, which include evaluation of slope, electrode drift, time response, and accuracy, take considerable time. By Thermo Fisher Scientific
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Determination Of EN15662:2008 - Determination Of Pesticide Residue In Food Of Plant Origin, By An Automated QuEChERS Solution9/24/2014
Pesticide residue laboratories are required to undertake analyses of an ever increasing number of samples. The analyses typically involve use of multi-residue methods (both GC-MS and LC-MS) to test for over 500 pesticide residues.
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Determination Of Pesticide Residue In Vegetables9/10/2014
QuEChERS is a Quick-Easy-Cheap-Effective-Rugged-Safe extraction method that has been developed for the determination of pesticide residues in agricultural commodities.
DRINKING WATER PRODUCTS
Loprest has been providing ion exchange treatment systems for the removal of arsenic, nitrate, perchlorate, hardness, fluoride and other contaminants for many decades.
CHEM-FEED® Engineered Skid Systems were designed and engineered using solid modeling tools for superior piping installation and easy component maintenance. Custom-engineered universal mounting blocks provide for easy component servicing and replacement.
The new UNIK 5000 is a high-performance configurable solution to pressure measurement. The use of micromachined silicon technology and analogue circuitry enables best-in-class performance for stability, low power, and frequency response. The new platform enables you to easily build up your own sensor to match your precise needs. This high-performance, configurable solution to pressure measurement employs modular design and lean manufacturing techniques.
The Navigator 500 Hydrazine analyzer provides a continuous measurement of the level of hydrazine in boiler feedwater, enabling the chemical dose to be controlled automatically.
The unique compact design incorporates the best existing Capital Controls® technology with exciting new features. With just three models ranging from 10-10,000 lbs/day capacity, each chlorinator is available with automatic or manual feed and a 10” flowmeter for an easier read. Sonic operation on the 4100 model eliminates the need for a differential pressure regulator. On all automatic models, an additional controller isn’t needed, reducing components – and costs.
LATEST INSIGHTS ON DRINKING WATER
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![tractor_sludge_Getty-2155530305]( "Why Too Much Phosphorus In America's Farmland Is Polluting The Country's Water")
When people think about agricultural pollution, they often picture what is easy to see: fertilizer spreaders crossing fields or muddy runoff after a heavy storm. However, a much more significant threat is quietly and invisibly building in the ground. -
![EnvironmentPeople_004]( "Water In 2026: The Nexus Of Policy, Technology, And Resilience")
As water systems become more circular and complex, understanding and managing the subsurface — the hidden half of the water cycle — is becoming a critical enabler of resilience. This article explores the key trends shaping this new reality, from tackling “forever chemicals” to the water strategies redefining heavy industry. -
![Cutting Red Tape-GettyImages-502421630]( "How The NEPA Rollback Will Impact Water And Wastewater Industries")
The White House has finalized plans to roll back rules under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), narrowing its focus and limiting what the current administration claims are needless delays for federal approval of water, energy, and other infrastructure plans. For water and wastewater utilities, the changes could speed up permitting for critical projects, although experts warn the tradeoffs could do more harm than good. -
![Ultraviolet lamps for water disinfection-GettyImages-1271779123]( "Setting Global Standards: Inside North America's Only Full-Scale UV Disinfection Validation Facility")
Setting Global Standards: Inside North America's Only Full-Scale UV Disinfection Validation FacilityPortland's industry-leading facility reaches 100 reactor validations in 23 years. -
![Water analysis, purification, filtration, treatment, quality monitoring, contamination detection-GettyImages-2234293664]( "Why Haven't Field Tests For Lead In Water Gone Mainstream?")
Given the maturation of sensor technology, the scientific and operational hurdles to portable lead analysis are somewhat surprising — but surmountable. -
![peace-athabasca-delta-flood-mapping-265153]( "What Is Bathymetric Modeling? And How Can It Protect Ecosystems While Saving Resources?")
Bathymetric modeling maps underwater terrain. It also helps guide planning, prevent hazards, and build climate-resilient infrastructure.
DRINKING WATER VIDEOS
The recoating of a potable water tank in Lancaster, PA, included an already tight timeframe and several challenges that cause delays.
How researchers at UC Merced are developing a better understanding of the three sources of water upon which California depends in order to adapt to the effects of environmental changes and make better use of this most precious of our natural resources.
Stanford Earth’s Rosemary Knight recently spearheaded a project to map underground freshwater resources and forecast the intrusion of saltwater into aquifers beneath the California coastal town of Marina.
The Western Governors' Drought Forum webinar “Once Marginal, Now Crucial: The Growing Demand for Re-used, Produced, and Brackish Water” explores the technological and regulatory obstacles to utilizing re-used, produced, and brackish water.
ABOUT DRINKING WATER
In most developed countries, drinking water is regulated to ensure that it meets drinking water quality standards. In the U.S., the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administers these standards under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA).
Drinking water considerations can be divided into three core areas of concern:
- Source water for a community’s drinking water supply
- Drinking water treatment of source water
- Distribution of treated drinking water to consumers
Drinking Water Sources
Source water access is imperative to human survival. Sources may include groundwater from aquifers, surface water from rivers and streams and seawater through a desalination process. Direct or indirect water reuse is also growing in popularity in communities with limited access to sources of traditional surface or groundwater.
Source water scarcity is a growing concern as populations grow and move to warmer, less aqueous climates; climatic changes take place and industrial and agricultural processes compete with the public’s need for water. The scarcity of water supply and water conservation are major focuses of the American Water Works Association.
Drinking Water Treatment
Drinking Water Treatment involves the removal of pathogens and other contaminants from source water in order to make it safe for humans to consume. Treatment of public drinking water is mandated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the U.S. Common examples of contaminants that need to be treated and removed from water before it is considered potable are microorganisms, disinfectants, disinfection byproducts, inorganic chemicals, organic chemicals and radionuclides.
There are a variety of technologies and processes that can be used for contaminant removal and the removal of pathogens to decontaminate or treat water in a drinking water treatment plant before the clean water is pumped into the water distribution system for consumption.
The first stage in treating drinking water is often called pretreatment and involves screens to remove large debris and objects from the water supply. Aeration can also be used in the pretreatment phase. By mixing air and water, unwanted gases and minerals are removed and the water improves in color, taste and odor.
The second stage in the drinking water treatment process involves coagulation and flocculation. A coagulating agent is added to the water which causes suspended particles to stick together into clumps of material called floc. In sedimentation basins, the heavier floc separates from the water supply and sinks to form sludge, allowing the less turbid water to continue through the process.
During the filtration stage, smaller particles not removed by flocculation are removed from the treated water by running the water through a series of filters. Filter media can include sand, granulated carbon or manufactured membranes. Filtration using reverse osmosis membranes is a critical component of removing salt particles where desalination is being used to treat brackish water or seawater into drinking water.
Following filtration, the water is disinfected to kill or disable any microbes or viruses that could make the consumer sick. The most traditional disinfection method for treating drinking water uses chlorine or chloramines. However, new drinking water disinfection methods are constantly coming to market. Two disinfection methods that have been gaining traction use ozone and ultra-violet (UV) light to disinfect the water supply.
Drinking Water Distribution
Drinking water distribution involves the management of flow of the treated water to the consumer. By some estimates, up to 30% of treated water fails to reach the consumer. This water, often called non-revenue water, escapes from the distribution system through leaks in pipelines and joints, and in extreme cases through water main breaks.
A public water authority manages drinking water distribution through a network of pipes, pumps and valves and monitors that flow using flow, level and pressure measurement sensors and equipment.
Water meters and metering systems such as automatic meter reading (AMR) and advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) allows a water utility to assess a consumer’s water use and charge them for the correct amount of water they have consumed.