Comparison of Size Exclusion Chromatography Results and Disinfection By-Product Formation Potentials of Natural Organic Matter of Different Origin

摘要

The structural composition of Natural Organic Matter (NOM) of different origin is extremely variable (1). It has been reported that aromatic compounds in particular are responsible for the formation of disinfection by-products (DBPs) such as trihalomethanes (THMs) and adsorbable organically bound halogens (AOX) during chlorination (2). Hence, NOM with a high content of aromatic components is expected to have high DBP formation potentials. The specific UV ab-sorbance at 254 nm (SUVA-(254)) is commonly used to estimate the content of aromatic components in NOM samples. By combining size exclusion chromatography (SEC) and ~(13)C MAS NMR analysis it could be shown that the content of aromatic carbon in different size fractions of an aquatic NOM sample varied greatly (3). The aim of the present work was to investigate whether samples which were collected from three surface waters differed in their DBP formation potentials (FPs) and whether treatment operations such as flocculation had an effect on THM and AOX FPs. It was to be investigated if SUVA-(254) measurements and SEC analysis can be used to estimate the DBP FP of NOM samples.