An Investigation into Bromate Formation in Ozone Disinfection Systems
Abstract
Ozonation is used as an alternative disinfection process to chlorination but unfortunately has a potential of oxidizing bromide, a natural component of water sources, to bromate. Bromate is a possible carcinogen with a maximum contaminant level of 10 ppb. To understand bromate formation in full-scale systems, a comprehensive study was conducted at the Moorhead Water Treatment Plant (WTP). Bromide concentrations in source waters were monitored. Water samples from locations in the ozonation chambers were collected and analyzed for bromate and other parameters. Results showed that bromate formation was increased through increases in pH, bromide, and ozone dose during high temperatures and was decreased by increases in organics. The impact of the bromate influential parameters was minimized at low temperatures. To assist Moorhead WTP on developing bromate control strategies, a modeling approach was adopted to predict bromate formation at various operational conditions using temperature, pH, ozone dose, bromide, and TOC.