Examining the Relationship Between Iron Corrosion and the Disinfection of Biofilm Bacteria

LeChevallier, Mark W.; Lowry, Cheryl D.; Lee, Ramon G.; Gibbon, Donald L.

doi:10.1002/j.1551-8833.1993.tb06031.x

Cited by 152 publications

(107 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…4 also illustrate that biofilms can rapidly form even in the presence of a 1-to 2-mg/liter free chlorine residual. Corrosion products have been previously shown to provide increased protection from free chlorine disinfection (19). cPVC pipe surfaces were incorporated into the pilot system, in part, to study disinfection efficiencies in the absence of corrosion.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Pilot Study of Bacteriological Population Changes through Potable Water Treatment and Distribution

Norton

LeChevallier

2000

Appl Environ Microbiol

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201

118

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This pilot study compares the compositions of bacterial biofilms in pipe networks supplied with water containing either high levels of biodegradable organic matter (BOM) or low levels of BOM (conventionally or biologically treated, respectively). The Microbial Identification System for fatty acid analysis was utilized in this study to identify a large number of organisms (>1,400) to determine population changes in both conventionally and biologically treated water and biofilms. Data generated during this study indicated that suspended bacteria have little impact on biofilms, and despite treatment (conventional or biological), suspended microbial populations were similar following disinfection. Prechlorination with free chlorine resulted not only in reduced plate count values but also in a dramatic shift in the composition of the bacterial population to predominately gram-positive bacteria. Chlorination of biologically treated water produced the same shifts toward gram-positive bacteria. Removal of assimilable organic carbon by the biologically active filters slowed the rate of biofilm accumulation, but biofilm levels were similar to those found in conventionally treated water within several weeks. Iron pipes stimulated the rate of biofilm development, and bacterial levels on disinfected iron pipes exceeded those for chlorinated polyvinyl chloride pipes. The study showed that the iron pipe surface dramatically influenced the composition, activity, and disinfection resistance of biofilm bacteria.Biological treatment provides numerous benefits for drinking water utilities, including removal of micropollutants, improved treatment processes (i.e., coagulation, color removal, and oxidation of iron and manganese), taste and odor control, and reduced chlorine demand of treated water (16,32). One of the primary reasons that utilities implement biological treatment is to reduce nutrient levels in the treated water, which in turn can limit the potential for bacterial regrowth in the distribution system. Although concerns regarding the higher levels of heterotrophic plate count (HPC) bacteria in the effluents of biological filters have been raised, the changes in the composition of distribution system microbial populations resulting from a shift in the nutrient levels following biological treatment may have a much more dramatic impact on water quality. While the numbers of organisms in conventionally and biologically treated systems may not differ significantly, the population composition may reveal the largest impact of biologically activated filtration.The goals of our work were to use pilot-scale conventional and biological treatment to study (i) microbial population changes throughout the distribution system, including biofilm samples and water column samples; (ii) the impact of postdisinfection with free chlorine on microbial populations; and (iii) the impact of corrosion control and pipe materials on microbial populations. Identification and characterization of these populations were made possible through the use of f...

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Pilot Study of Bacteriological Population Changes through Potable Water Treatment and Distribution

Norton

LeChevallier

2000

Appl Environ Microbiol

Self Cite

201

118

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“…The occurrence of biofilm may cause many public health issues, such as protecting and supporting pathogenic microorganisms (Buswell et al, 1998), bacterial regrowth (LeChevallier et al, 1991), depletion of disinfection agents (Regan et al, 2002) and microbial corrosion (Holden et al, 1995;LeChevallier et al, 1993). Thus, the DS biofilm has received more concerns.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Molecular analysis of long-term biofilm formation on PVC and cast iron surfaces in drinking water distribution system

Liu

Zhu

et al. 2014

Journal of Environmental Sciences

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a b s t r a c tTo understand the impacts of different plumbing materials on long-term biofilm formation in water supply system, we analyzed microbial community compositions in the bulk water and biofilms on faucets with two different materials-polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and cast iron, which have been frequently used for more than10 years. Pyrosequencing was employed to describe both bacterial and eukaryotic microbial compositions. Bacterial communities in the bulk water and biofilm samples were significantly different from each other. Specific bacterial populations colonized on the surface of different materials. Hyphomicrobia and corrosion associated bacteria, such as Acidithiobacillus spp., Aquabacterium spp., Limnobacter thiooxidans, and Thiocapsa spp., were the most dominant bacteria identified in the PVC and cast iron biofilms, respectively, suggesting that bacterial colonization on the material surfaces was selective. Mycobacteria and Legionella spp. were common potential pathogenic bacteria occurred in the biofilm samples, but their abundance was different in the two biofilm bacterial communities. In contrast, the biofilm samples showed more similar eukaryotic communities than the bulk water. Notably, potential pathogenic fungi, i.e., Aspergillus spp. and Candida parapsilosis, occurred in similar abundance in both biofilms. These results indicated that microbial community, especially bacterial composition was remarkably affected by the different pipe materials (PVC and cast iron).

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“…In water distribution systems, the free chlorine residual level in excess of 0.2 mg/L should be maintained to reduce further microbial contamination (Al-Jasser, 2007). Several studies indicated possible negative effects of disinfections particularly on biofilm bacteria due to corrosion of metal pipe lines (LeChevallier et al, 1993). Since most of the old water distribution systems in cities particularly in developing countries are made up of iron pipelines, this has to be considered very seriously.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The effect of iron corrosion in cast iron pipes on the microbiological quality of drinking water: a laboratory and field investigation

Munasinghe

Abayasekara

Jayawardana³

et al. 2017

Ceylon J. Sci.

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Iron pipelines are commonly used in old drinking water distribution systems, adding rust to pipe-borne water. Chlorine added to water for disinfection could react with iron that leaches from these iron pipelines, thereby reducing available free chlorine for disinfection. The consumption of dissolved chlorine by iron and consequent effects on the microbiological quality of drinking water were investigated, by spiking Serratia marcescens and Escherichia coli into different known mixtures of Fe 2+ and chlorine. Twenty seven water samples were collected from three water supply systems at the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka and investigated for its iron content, residual chlorine and microbial quality. The selected water distribution system is 60 years old and is corroded to a large extent, adding rust to the pipe-bone water. The results indicated that the rate of chlorine consumption in water was directly proportional to the content of Fe 2+ ion in water. The Fe 2+ concentration in drinking water in iron pipelines ranged from <0.01 to 0.64 mg/L, while the desired residual chlorine levels were not obtained. Both total and fecal coliforms were detected in some samples indicating that the disinfection was not effective due to chlorine consumption in the distribution system. It was also observed that a high level of ferrous ions in water was inhibitory to microorganisms by forming iron-bacteria clumps in water.

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Examining the Relationship Between Iron Corrosion and the Disinfection of Biofilm Bacteria

Cited by 152 publications

References 18 publications

A Pilot Study of Bacteriological Population Changes through Potable Water Treatment and Distribution

A Pilot Study of Bacteriological Population Changes through Potable Water Treatment and Distribution

Molecular analysis of long-term biofilm formation on PVC and cast iron surfaces in drinking water distribution system

The effect of iron corrosion in cast iron pipes on the microbiological quality of drinking water: a laboratory and field investigation

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