Activated carbon and organic matter characteristics impact the adsorption of DBP precursors when chlorine is added prior to GAC contactors

Cagri Utku Erdem; Mohamed Ateia; Chao Liu; Tanju Karanfil

doi:10.1016/j.watres.2020.116146

Activated carbon and organic matter characteristics impact the adsorption of DBP precursors when chlorine is added prior to GAC contactors

Water Res. 2020 Oct 1:184:116146. doi: 10.1016/j.watres.2020.116146. Epub 2020 Jul 5.

Authors

Cagri Utku Erdem¹, Mohamed Ateia², Chao Liu³, Tanju Karanfil⁴

Affiliations

¹ Department of Environmental Engineering and Earth Science, Clemson University, SC, 29634, United States.
² Department of Environmental Engineering and Earth Science, Clemson University, SC, 29634, United States; Department of Chemistry, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, 60208, United States.
³ Department of Environmental Engineering and Earth Science, Clemson University, SC, 29634, United States; Key Laboratory of Drinking Water Science and Technology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100085, China.
⁴ Department of Environmental Engineering and Earth Science, Clemson University, SC, 29634, United States. Electronic address: tkaranf@clemson.edu.

PMID: 32726742
DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2020.116146

Abstract

Pre-chlorination (i.e. dosing chlorine prior to granular activated carbon (GAC) contactors) was recently introduced as a promising method to reduce the formation of disinfection byproducts (DBPs). However, our understanding on the effect of natural organic matter (NOM) and GAC characteristics on pre-chlorination efficiency is still elusive. Thus, we have designed this systematic study to investigate the effects of GAC characteristics (i.e. surface area, pore size, and surface charge) on the subsequent reduction of DBP formation using five well-characterized adsorbents with three different NOM under three initial Br^- concentrations. The results revealed that the adsorption of halogenated DBPs precursors mostly occurs in the mesoporous region (i.e. 2 nm < pore size <50 nm) of the adsorbents. Subsequently, pre-chlorination before treatment with HD3000 (i.e. GAC with the highest mesoporous surface area) decreased the formation of DBPs by 58%. Furthermore, oxidation of GAC increased the surface acidity and negatively impacted the adsorption of halogenated DBP precursors, which suggests basic GACs as promising adsorbents when applying pre-chlorination. In addition, experiments with different NOM showed that pre-chlorination was effective with higher aromatic NOM (i.e. high specific ultraviolet absorbance (SUVA₂₅₄)). However, pre-chlorination of NOM with low SUVA₂₅₄ has decreased the adsorption of some DBP precursors which resulted in increased formations of haloacetic acid (HAA) and total organic halogen (TOX). Also, experiments with effluent organic matter (EfOM) showed that pre-chlorination did not increase the adsorption of DBP precursors in low SUVA₂₅₄ wastewater effluents. Besides, increasing initial Br^- concentration increased the formation of brominated DBPs (Br-DBPs) and the adsorbed Br-DBP precursors. This study gives in-depth understanding of the mechanisms, advantages, and limitations of pre-chlorination as a potential method to control DBPs formation.

Keywords: Activated carbon; Br-DBPs; Disinfection byproducts; Effluent organic matter; Natural organic matter; Porosity; Pre-chlorination.

MeSH terms

Adsorption
Charcoal
Chlorine
Disinfectants*
Disinfection
Halogenation
Water Pollutants, Chemical* / analysis
Water Purification*

Substances

Disinfectants
Water Pollutants, Chemical
Charcoal
Chlorine