Release of Bisphenol A and Other Volatile Chemicals from New Epoxy Drinking Water Pipe Liners: The Role of Manufacturing Conditions.

Cured-in-place-pipe (CIPP) technology has begun to be adopted for drinking water pipe repairs, and limited information exists about its drinking water quality impacts. CIPP involves the manufacture of a new plastic pipe inside a buried damaged pipe. In this study, the chemical composition of the raw materials and CIPP water quality impacts were examined.

Residential Water Softeners Release Carbon, Consume Chlorine, and Require Remediation after Hydrocarbon Contamination.

Water quality impacts of new ion exchange point-of-entry residential softeners and their ability to be decontaminated following hydrocarbon exposure were investigated. During startup, significant amounts of total sulfur (445 ± 815 mg/L) and total organic carbon (937 ± 119 mg/L) were released into the drinking water that flowed through the softeners. Particulate organic carbon was released until the third regeneration cycle, and resin may also have been released.

Chlorine Disinfection of spp., , and under Warm Water Premise Plumbing Conditions.

Premise plumbing conditions can contribute to low chlorine or chloramine disinfectant residuals and reactions that encourage opportunistic pathogen growth and create risk of Legionnaires' Disease outbreaks. This bench-scale study investigated the growth of spp. and in direct contact with premise plumbing materials-glass-only control, cross-linked polyethylene (PEX) pipe, magnesium anode rods, iron pipe, iron oxide, pH 10, or a combination of factors.

Considerations for large building water quality after extended stagnation.

The unprecedented number of building closures related to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic is concerning because water stagnation will occur in many buildings that do not have water management plans in place. Stagnant water can have chemical and microbiological contaminants that pose potential health risks to occupants. Health officials, building owners, utilities, and other entities are rapidly developing guidance to address this issue, but the scope, applicability, and details included in the guidance vary widely.

Impacts of Municipal Water-Rainwater Source Transitions on Microbial and Chemical Water Quality Dynamics at the Tap.

When rainwater harvesting is utilized as an alternative water resource in buildings, a combination of municipal water and rainwater is typically required to meet water demands. Altering source water chemistry can disrupt pipe scale and biofilm and negatively impact water quality at the distribution level. Still, it is unknown if similar reactions occur within building plumbing following a transition in source water quality.

Small-Scale Heterogeneity in Drinking Water Biofilms.

Biofilm heterogeneity has been characterized on various scales for both natural and engineered ecosystems. This heterogeneity has been attributed to spatial differences in environmental factors. Understanding their impact on localized biofilm heterogeneity in building plumbing systems is important for both management and representative sampling strategies.

Ugly ducklings-the dark side of plastic materials in contact with potable water.

Bath toys pose an interesting link between flexible plastic materials, potable water, external microbial and nutrient contamination, and potentially vulnerable end-users. Here, we characterized biofilm communities inside 19 bath toys used under real conditions. In addition, some determinants for biofilm formation were assessed, using six identical bath toys under controlled conditions with either clean water prior to bathing or dirty water after bathing.

Phylogenetic clustering of small low nucleic acid-content bacteria across diverse freshwater ecosystems.

Here we used flow cytometry (FCM) and filtration paired with amplicon sequencing to determine the abundance and composition of small low nucleic acid (LNA)-content bacteria in a variety of freshwater ecosystems. We found that FCM clusters associated with LNA-content bacteria were ubiquitous across several ecosystems, varying from 50 to 90% of aquatic bacteria. Using filter-size separation, we separated small LNA-content bacteria (passing 0.

Biofilms in shower hoses.

Shower hoses offer an excellent bacterial growth environment in close proximity to a critical end-user exposure route within building drinking water plumbing. However, the health risks associated with and processes underlying the development of biofilms in shower hoses are poorly studied. In a global survey, biofilms from 78 shower hoses from 11 countries were characterized in terms of cell concentration (4.

Interactive effects of temperature, organic carbon, and pipe material on microbiota composition and Legionella pneumophila in hot water plumbing systems.

Background: Several biotic and abiotic factors have been reported to influence the proliferation of microbes, including Legionella pneumophila, in hot water premise plumbing systems, but their combined effects have not been systematically evaluated. Here, we utilize simulated household water heaters to examine the effects of stepwise increases in temperature (32-53 °C), pipe material (copper vs. cross-linked polyethylene (PEX)), and influent assimilable organic carbon (0-700 μg/L) on opportunistic pathogen gene copy numbers and the microbiota composition, as determined by quantitative polymerase chain reaction and 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing.

Drinking water microbiology--from measurement to management.

New microbial tools enable detailed quantification and characterization of complex drinking water (DW) microbiomes. Many opportunities exist from source to tap to apply this knowledge toward management of the microbiology. This requires consideration of the microbiome continuum across all phases harboring microbes (planktonic cells, biofilms, and cells attached to loose deposits) and across all stages (source, treatment, distribution, and premise).

Microbial community response to chlorine conversion in a chloraminated drinking water distribution system.

Temporary conversion to chlorine (i.e., "chlorine burn") is a common approach to controlling nitrification in chloraminated drinking water distribution systems, yet its effectiveness and mode(s) of action are not fully understood.