Effect of Chlorine vs. Chloramine Treatment Techniques on Materials Degradation in Reclamation Infrastructure

Project ID: 6871
Principal Investigator: Jessica Torrey
Research Topic: Condition Assessment
Priority Area Assignments: 2013 (Advanced Water Treatment)
Funded Fiscal Years: 2013
Keywords: chlorine, chloramine, treated water, infrastructure materials

Research Question

This scoping study will examine current state of knowledge in the field, the effects on Reclamation structures, and propose any research required to answer the following questions:

- What is the impact of chlorine and/or chloramine treatment on the lifetime and reliability of infrastructure such as pipeline materials, tanks, concrete and protective polymeric coatings?

- Is there a preferred treatment method, free chlorine vs. chloramines, for a given material? Conversely, given a specified treatment method, which materials should be considered for infrastructure design?

- What are the recommended water chemistries to prevent or inhibit materials degradation?

Need and Benefit

The findings of this scoping study will help guide materials selection when designing infrastructure for treated water either directly, through the identification of prior work, or indirectly by leading to recommendations for future research in this field.

Contributing Partners

Contact the Principal Investigator for information about partners.

Research Products

Bureau of Reclamation Review

The following documents were reviewed by experts in fields relating to this project's study and findings. The results were determined to be achieved using valid means.

Effect of Chlorine vs. Chloramine Treatment Techniques on Materials Degradation in Reclamation Infrastructure (final, PDF, 594KB)
By Jessica Torrey
Report completed on September 30, 2013

The Bureau of Reclamation is increasingly involved in water treatment and transport of treated water to local distribution systems. Disinfectants have been shown to adversely affect the performance and lifetime of infrastructure, specifically metallic pipeline materials, through corrosion. This scoping study examines the current practices for chlorine and chloramine water treatment and state of knowledge of the effects of this treatment on corrosion.

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Last Updated: 6/22/20