Relationship between trihalomethanes and haloacetic acids with total organic halogen during chlorination

The effects of bromide ion, pH and reaction time on the formation of four trihalomethanes, nine haloacetic acids and total organic halogens in chlorinated drinking water have been investigated. In this extensive study, the relationships of total trihalomethanes and total haloacetic acids with total organic halogen have been evaluated. The study determined the concentration range of nine haloacetic acids and four trihalomethanes as percentage of total organic halogen. The results showed that the percentage of total organic halogen made up of total trihalomethanes plus total haloacetic acids significantly increases with increasing bromide ion concentrations and pH. These observations suggest that both a higher bromide concentration and pH cause the formation of mainly brominated trihalomethanes with the reduction of haloacetic acids which could be identified and quantified by current U.S. Environmental Protection Agency methods.