Disinfection byproducts in swimming pool water in Sanandj, Iran

The present study aimed to determine the concentrations of several disinfection byproducts (DBPs), including trihalomethanes (THMs), haloacetic acids (HAAs), and haloacetonitriles (HANs), in the public and private swimming pools in Sanandaj, Iran (n=16). Correlations between DBP levels with water quality parameters (free chlorine, pH, total organic carbon, temperature, number of swimmers, and gender of swimmers) and various DBP categories were investigated and compared. According to the results, concentrations of THMs in public and private pools were lower than the recommended limit in Iran (200 μg/L). In addition, HAAs had the highest concentrations, followed by THMs and HANs, respectively. Among the HAAs, THMs, and HANs, trichloroacetic acid was the most dominant species, followed by chloroform and dichloroacetonitrile, respectively. DBP levels were not affected by the gender of swimmers, number of swimmers, pH, temperature, and free chlorine. However, total organic carbon showed a fairly good correlation with TTHM, THAA, and DBP levels (r=0.45-0.78; P<0.05). Some correlations were also observed between various DBP categories.