Leakage of soluble microbial products from biological activated carbon filtration in drinking water treatment plants and its influence on health risks

Abstract

The application of ozone-biological activated carbon (O₃-BAC) as an advanced treatment method in drinking water treatment plants (DWTPs) can help to remove organic micropollutants and further decrease the dissolved organic carbon (DOC) level in finished water. With the increase attention to microbial safety of drinking water, a pre-positioned O₃-BAC followed by a sand filter has been implanted into DWTP located in Shanghai, China to increase the biostability of effluents. The results showed that BAC had high removal efficiencies of UV₂₅₄, DOC and disinfection by-product formation potential (DBPFP). The removal efficiencies between pre- and post-positioned BAC filtrations were similar. Based on the analyses of fluorescence excitation-emission matrix spectrophotometry (FEEM), the generation and leakage of soluble microbial products (SMPs) were found in both two BAC filtrations on account of the increased fluorescence intensities and fluorescence regional integration (FRI) distribution of protein-like organics, as well as the enhanced biological index (BIX). The leakage of SMPs produced by metabolism of microbes during BAC process resulted in increased DBPFP yield and carcinogenic factor per unit of DOC (CF/DOC). Although BAC filtration reduced the DBPFP and CF, there still was high health risk of effluents for the production of SMPs. Therefore, the health risks for SMPs generated by BAC filtration in drinking water advanced treatment process should be addressed, especially with that at high temperature.

Keywords: Disinfection by-product formation potential (DBPFP) yield; Drinking water; Fluorescence excitation–emission matrix spectrophotometry (FEEM); Operation sequence of ozone-biological activated carbon (O(3)-BAC); Soluble microbial products (SMPs).