Methane removal is an essential step in drinking water production from methane-rich groundwaters. Conventional aeration-based stripping results in significant direct methane emissions, contributing up to one-third of a treatment plant's total carbon footprint. To address this, a full-scale trickling filter was operated for biological methane oxidation upstream of a submerged sand filter, and its performance was compared to a conventional aeration-submerged sand filtration set-up.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSlow sand filters (SSFs) are commonly used for treating drinking water, effectively removing contaminants such as particles, organic matter, and microorganisms. However, the ecological dynamics of prokaryotic communities within SSFs remain poorly understood. This study investigated the top sand layer, the Schmutzdecke (SCM), along with the influent and effluent water of full-scale SSFs at four drinking water treatment plants (DWTPs) in the Netherlands.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe presence of aquatic biopolymeric organic carbon of high (> 10 - 20 kDa) molecular weight (high-MW OC) in drinking water produced from surface water affects its biological stability which may cause regrowth in disinfectant-free distribution. This study compares two analytical methods for determining the concentration of aquatic high-MW OC, namely LC-OCD (liquid chromatography - organic carbon detection) and PHMOC (particulate and colloidal high-molecular weight OC). LC-OCD entails prefiltration of the water sample, chromatographical separation of the relevant biopolymer (BP) OC-fraction, and in-line OC detection.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThere is a risk of contamination by (pathogenic) microorganisms from the outside environment into the drinking water during maintenance or pipe breaches in the drinking water distribution system (DWDS) and, consequently, the drinking water distributed to consumers may result in possible detrimental effects on public health. Traditional time-consuming microbiological testing is, therefore, performed to confirm drinking water is not microbially contaminated. This is done by culturing methods of the faecal indicators Escherichia coli, intestinal enterococci and the technical parameters coliform bacteria and heterotrophic plate counts at 22 °C (HPC22).
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