• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.11-19
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• 2016

Objectives: Exposure to volatile organic compounds such as trichloroethylene(TCE) and perchloroethylene(PCE), along with Agent Orange, that were issued around Camp Carroll US Army Base situated in Waegwan, Chilgok-gun, Gyeongsangbuk-do Province, Korea. The main objective of this study was to assess the exposure to TCE and PCE of residents of the area surrounding Camp Carroll. Methods: The TCE, PCE and trichloroethanol(TCEOH) concentrations in blood and trichlroroacetic acid(TCA) and TCEOH concentrations in urine were measured and analyzed in a total of 1,033 residents around Camp Carroll. TCA and TCEOH are metabolites of TCE and PCE, respectively. The information on demographic characteristics and exposure variables in relation to underground water were obtained through a questionnaire completed by the subjects. Results: TCE, PCE and TCEOH concentrations were not detected in blood. Detection rates of TCA and TECOH concentrations in urine were 98.5% and 36.6%, respectively. Creatinine-corrected average TCA and TCEOH concentrations were $12.23{\pm}23.81{\mu}g/g$ and $0.66{\pm}4.31{\mu}g/g$, respectively. A significant difference was not shown between the drinking group and no drinking group for underground water, which was assumed as a potential route of exposure to TCE and PCE through the consumption of ground water. However, females drinking ground water showed a significantly higher mean level of TCA in urine than did males. There was no significant difference according to drinking ground water as a potential source of exposure to TCE and PCE in residents around Camp Carroll. Conclusions: Considering the statistical analysis of factors affecting exposure to TCE and PCE in ground water along with previous reports, TCA in urine as exposure to TCE and PCE might not be appropriate because it is found in chlorinated drinking water. Therefore, TCA concentration in urine may be the result of drinking of chlorinated water.

• Environmental Mutagens and Carcinogens
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.118-121
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• 2001

The predictive screening of various molecular descriptors for predicting carcinogenic, mutagenic, teratogenic and alkylation activity of chlorinated disinfection byproducts (DBPs) has been investigated for the application of quantitative structure-activity relationships (QSAR). The toxicity index for 29 compounds were computed by the PASS program and active values were employed in this study. Studies show that different descriptors account for the model equation of each genotoxic endpoint and that thermodynamic descriptors significantly played a major role on prediction of endpoints of chlorinated aliphatic compounds.

• Environmental Analysis Health and Toxicology
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• v.12 no.3_4
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• pp.23-29
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• 1997

The main reason of applying chlorination is to sterilize microbes existing in the drinking water treatment. But chlorination could lead to the formation of disinfection by-products (DBPs) by the reaction of free chlorine with humic substance in the water. Especially the DBPs including trihalomethanes (THMs), haloacetic acids (HAAs), haloacetonitriles (HANs), and haloketones (HKs) exist in the tap water. The US environmental protection agency (US EPA) defines that trihalomethanes, dichloroacetic acid, trichloroacetic acid, and dichloroacetonitrile among DBPs are probable/possible human carcinogens. US EPA suggests maximum contaminant levels (MCLs) for THMs (80$\mu$g/L) and HAAs (60$\mu$g/L) in drinking water. In Korea, THMs in drinking water has been surveyed but DBPs in general has not been studied in drinking water practically. Therefore only THMs have been regulating as criteria compounds since 1990 but neither HAAs nor HANs. Researches on HAAs are yet to be found. HAA formation potentials(HAAFPs) have not been practiced. HAAs depends on the characteristics of water sources by chlorination. In this study, HAAFPs from three distinct sources were investigated by laboratory chlorination experiments. This study was performed to measure the level of HAAs in drinking water in Seoul area. At April 1996, after collecting the raw waters from the three sites with the different properties, the water samples were chlorinated at various conditions(pH 5.5, pH 7.0 and without pH adjustment) in the state of raw water to have 0. 5mg/L of residual chlorine concentration. And the raw water, treated water, and tap water of water treatment were collected to measure the HAAs concentration. The quantitative analysis of HAAs was conducted by US EPA methods.

• Journal of Korean Society on Water Environment
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• v.24 no.6
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• pp.758-766
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• 2008

To evaluate homologue patterns and removal efficiency before and after water treatment, the concentrations of dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs), polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs) and coplanar polychlorinated biphenyls (Co-PCBs) were determined in 122 samples from 42 drinking water treatment plants throughout Japan over a two year period. The mean concentrations and toxic equivalent (TEQ) values of dioxins in raw and treated waters were 60.24 pg/L (0.14 pg-WHO-TEQ/L) and 4.15 pg/L (0.016 pg-WHO-TEQ/L), respectively. The dioxins contribution ratio of drinking water in relation to dioxins tolerable daily intake (TDI, 4 pg-TEQ/kg/day) was 0.016%. The mean TEQ removal rate of dioxins by drinking water treatment was over 88%. However, the mean removal rate of 2, 3, 7, 8-TeCDF (tetrachlorodibenzofuran) by water treatment in the 122 samples was minus 17%. Therefore, to identify which process affected the level of 2, 3, 7, 8-TeCDF, the removal efficiencies at both the advanced and conventional water treatment plants were investigated. For the TEQ removal rate across the processes, the dioxin congeners, TeCDF and non-ortho-PCBs remarkably indicated minus values after chlorination in both the advanced and conventional water treatments plant. From this study, the level of 2, 3, 7, 8-TeCDF was found to be increased as a result of chlorination.

• Environmental Mutagens and Carcinogens
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.113-117
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• 2001

The screening of various molecular descriptors for predicting carcinogenic, mutagenic and teratogenic activities of chlorinated aliphatic compounds as drinking water disinfection byproducts (DBPs) has been investigated for the application of quantitative structure-activity relationships (QSAR). The present work embodies the study of relationship between molecular descriptors and toxicity parameters of the genotoxicity endpoints for the screening of relevant molecular descriptors. The toxicity Indices for 29 compounds constituting the testing set were computed by the PASS program and active values were chosen. We investigate feasibility of screening descriptors and of their applications among different genotoxic endpoints. The correlation to teratogenicity of all 29 compounds was significantly improved when the same analysis was done with 20 alkanes only without alkene compounds. The HOMO (highest occupied molecular orbital) energy and number of Cl parameters were dominantly contributed.

• Journal of Korean Society of Water and Wastewater
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.395-407
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• 2007

Disinfection by-products(DBPs) are formed through the reaction between chlorine and natural organic matter(NOM) in water treatment. For reducing the formation of chlorinated DBPs in the drinking water treatment, there is a need to evaluate the behavior of NOM fractions and the occurrence of DBPs for each fraction. Among the six fractions of NOM, the removal of HPOA and HPIN got accomplished through coagulation and sedimentation processes. Advanced water treatment processes were found to be most significant to remove the HPOA and HPON. It was found that HPOA made the most THMFP level than any other fractions and HPIA and HPOA formed higher HAAFP. The fraction of NOM with MW less than 1k Da was 32.5~54.3% in intake raw water. Mostly the organic matter with MW more than 1k Da was removed through coagulation and sedimentation in the drinking water treatment processes. In case of advanced water treatment processes, the organic matter with MW 1k~100k Da decreased by means of ozone oxidation for high molecular weight substances. As the result low molecular organic matter increased. In the BAC and GAC processes, the organic matter with MW less than 100k Da decreased.

• Environmental Analysis Health and Toxicology
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.35-41
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• 2001

Barley or corn tea, which is usually prepared with municipal chlorinated tap water, is commonly consumed by the public as a substitute for the supplied water itself. This is because most people believe that harmful organic and inorganic compounds can be removed from the tap water by the adsorption mechanism during the tea preparation. In this study, three kinds of commercial grain tea materials-roasted barley grains, a tea bag containing barley grain pieces, and roasted corn grains-were tested for metal removal by preparing 1 liter of tea with deionized/distilled water according the manufacturer's recommended preparation procedures, assuming that the water is contaminated with eight selected metals at levels of 50$\mu\textrm{g}$/l. Of the tested teas, barley tea prepared with roasted grains showed the highest removal efficiency for Cu, As, Ni, Co, Pb, and Cd, ranging from 48 to 71%, followed by corn tea with roasted grains and barley tea with a tea bag. Cr was nearly maintained at the initial concentration in all kinds of tea. The Mn levels. however, were elevated during the tea preparation, particularly in both barley teas, probably because the metal was extracted into the water from the tea materials without significant adsorption. Therefore, it should be considered in the ingestion exposure analysis for metals that their concentrations are altered during the tea preparation with roasted barley or corn grain materials.

• Environmental Analysis Health and Toxicology
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• v.12 no.3_4
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• pp.31-41
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• 1997

Public concerns about hazardous health effect from the exposure to organic by-products of the chlorination have been increased. There are numerous studies reporting that chlorination of drinking water produces numerous chlorinated organic by-products including THMs, HAAs, HANs. Some of these products are known to be animal carcinogens. The purpose of this study was to estimate health risk of DBPs by chlorinated drinking water ingestion in Seoul based on methodologies that have been developed for conducting risk assessment of complex-chemical-mixture. The drinking water sample was collected seperately at six water treatment plant in Seoul at March, April, 1996. In tap water of households in Seoul, DBPs were measured wilfh the mean value of 36.6 $\mu$g/L. Risk assessment processes,. which include processes for the estimation of human cancer potency using animal bioassay data and calculation of human exposure, entail uncertainties. In the exposure assessment process, exposure scenarios with various assumptions could affect the exposure amount and excess cancer risk. The reference dose of haloacetonitriles was estimated to be 0.0023 mg/kg/day by applying dibromoacetonitrile NOAEL and uncertainty factor to the mean concentration. In the first case, human excess cancer risk was estimated by the US EPA method used to set the MCL (maximum contaminant level). In the second and third case, the risk was estimated for multi-route exposure with and without adopting Monte-Carlo simulation, respectively. In the second case, exposure input parameters and cancer potencies used probability distributions, and in the third case, those values used point estimates (mean, and maximum or 95% upper-bound value). As a result, while the excess cancer risk estimated by US EPA method considering only direct ingestion tended to be underestimated, the risk which was estimated by considering multi-route exposure without Monte-Carlo simulation and then using the maximum or 95% upper-bound value as input parameters tended to be overestimated. In risk assessment for Trihalomethanes, considering multi-route exposure with adopting Monte-Carlo analysis seems to provide the most reasonable estimations.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.13 no.7
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• pp.661-665
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• 2004

As the concentration of ammonium nitrogen could be reached 2～3 mg/L in the winter in the river. It was clear that the excessive concentration of chlorinated organics could be produced with the increase of chlorine addition to remove ammonium nitrogen. In the innovative ammonium nitrogen removal process, zeolite adsorption is very efficient as substitute for rapid sand filtration without other adverse quality change in the water. This study is conducted to evaluate the feasibility of ammonium nitrogen removal and regeneration by zeolite adsorption in drinking water treatment. Also, the reuse possibility of zeolite is evaluated to change the removal efficiency of ammonium nitrogen through several times of regeneration. The ammonium nitrogen was not removed in sand filter, but it was almost removed in zeolite filter during 7 days. The sand and zeolite filters have a similar result of turbidity removal. Therefore, zeolite filtration was confirmed the removal of turbidity and ammonium nitrogen as a media. When compared KCl with NaCl as a chemical for zeolite regeneration, it is demonstrated that KCl was more efficient than NaCl in the ability of zeolite regeneration. The adsorption rate of ammonium nitrogen was almost not decreased in the results of several times of regeneration. It is indicated that both zeolite and regeneration solution were possible to reuse without variation of regeneration rate through this study.

• Journal of Korean Society on Water Environment
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.176-183
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• 2005

Chlorination of wastewater is recently practiced in Korea. While many researchers have studied the kinetics of aqueous chlorine(HOCl) with nitrogeneous compounds and other organic/inorganic contaminants in drinking water, the researches of wastewater chlorination are relatively few. The purpose of this study was to investigate the chlorine decay kinetics and parameters on wastewater chlorination. Chlorine decay rate increased with increasing initial chlorine concentration. The parameters affecting chlorine decay rate were different in each wastewater treatment plant. One of the most important parameters affecting chlorine decay was initial chlorine concentration, and other parameters such as $NH_3-N$, total coliform, $UV_{254}$ and Fe were also affected. The decay ratio of chlorine was decreased with increasing initial chlorine concentration, and the disinfection efficiency showed good correlation with the decay ratio.