Dramatically increased disinfection byproducts in swimming pool water caused by commonly used urea degradants. 2022

Di Zhang, and Li Chen, and Shengkun Dong, and Jiayi Luo, and Zuxin Xu, and Wenhai Chu
State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resources Reuse, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, 1239 Siping Road, Yangpu District, Shanghai 200092, China; Shanghai Institute of Pollution Control and Ecological Security, Shanghai 200092, China.

In China, urea degradants are often used in combination with chlorine in swimming pool water to remove urea. Here we report the first study about the impacts of urea degradants on urea degradation, disinfection byproduct (DBP) formation and estimated DBP-associated cytotoxicity and genotoxicity. Firstly, four groups of typical DBPs from six real indoor swimming pools were analyzed. The concentration of DBPs in swimming pool waters was about 1-2 orders of magnitude higher than that source tap water. Notably, a rapid increase in DBPs was observed after urea degradant treatment. Simulated processes of urea removal using three commonly used urea degradants were therefore conducted in laboratory. Neither urea degradant nor chlorine alone removed urea effectively within 48 h. When applied in combination, urea degradant with sufficient chlorine rapidly removed urea by 100% within 3 h, and anti-chlorourea oligomer in urea degradants was the main contributor. Meanwhile, a remarkable increase in DBPs, especially brominated DBPs, was observed due to bromide introduction by urea degradants. For this reason, bromine incorporation factor (BIF) of DBPs dramatically increased. For instance, the BIF of dihaloacetic acids increased by 2665%-4025% after applying three urea degradants. As the highly toxic brominated DBPs were generated, attention should be paid into the potential DBP-related health risks from the use of urea degradants together with chlorine.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D001965 Bromides Salts of hydrobromic acid, HBr, with the bromine atom in the 1- oxidation state. (From McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms, 4th ed) Bromide
D001966 Bromine A halogen with the atomic symbol Br, atomic number 35, and atomic weight 79.904. It is a volatile reddish-brown liquid that gives off suffocating vapors, is corrosive to the skin, and may cause severe gastroenteritis if ingested. Bromine-79,Bromine 79
D002713 Chlorine An element with atomic symbol Cl, atomic number 17, and atomic weight 35, and member of the halogen family. Chlorine Gas,Chlorine-35,Cl2 Gas,Chlorine 35,Gas, Chlorine,Gas, Cl2
D004202 Disinfectants Substances used on inanimate objects that destroy harmful microorganisms or inhibit their activity. Disinfectants are classed as complete, destroying SPORES as well as vegetative forms of microorganisms, or incomplete, destroying only vegetative forms of the organisms. They are distinguished from ANTISEPTICS, which are local anti-infective agents used on humans and other animals. (From Hawley's Condensed Chemical Dictionary, 11th ed) Biocide,Disinfectant,Biocides
D004203 Disinfection Rendering pathogens harmless through the use of heat, antiseptics, antibacterial agents, etc.
D013551 Swimming Pools Excavations or containment structures filled with water and used for swimming. Pool, Swimming,Pools, Swimming,Swimming Pool
D014508 Urea A compound formed in the liver from ammonia produced by the deamination of amino acids. It is the principal end product of protein catabolism and constitutes about one half of the total urinary solids. Basodexan,Carbamide,Carmol
D014867 Water A clear, odorless, tasteless liquid that is essential for most animal and plant life and is an excellent solvent for many substances. The chemical formula is hydrogen oxide (H2O). (McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms, 4th ed) Hydrogen Oxide
D014874 Water Pollutants, Chemical Chemical compounds which pollute the water of rivers, streams, lakes, the sea, reservoirs, or other bodies of water. Chemical Water Pollutants,Landfill Leachate,Leachate, Landfill,Pollutants, Chemical Water
D054879 Halogenation Covalent attachment of HALOGENS to other compounds. Bromination,Chlorination,Fluorination,Iodination,Iodation

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