对美国饮用水公用事业公司进行了两次调查，以澄清磷酸盐抑制剂使用的趋势。调查结果表明，饮用水设施添加磷酸盐抑制剂的原因多种多样，包括:控制铁、铅和铜的腐蚀；防止方解石沉淀。磷酸盐的剂量范围从0毫克/升到1毫克/升，磷酸盐的剂量范围从0毫克/升到1毫克/升，磷酸盐的剂量范围从1毫克/升到1毫克/升。令人惊讶的是，大多数公用事业公司在选择抑制剂时只考虑了有限的信息，而且通常没有直接确认抑制剂是否有效。 包括5个参考文献、图表。

Two surveys of US drinking water utilities were conducted to clarify trends in phosphate inhibitor use. Survey results indicated that drinking water utilities add phosphate inhibitors for a variety of reasons including: control of iron, lead, and copper corrosion; and, prevention of calcite precipitation. Types of inhibitors used include polyphosphate, orthophosphate, zinc orthophosphate, and phosphate blends with dosage ranges from less than 0.2 mg/L to more than 3 mg/L as phosphate, with most utilities dosing between 1 to 2 mg/L as phosphate. Surprisingly, most utilities only considered limited information when selecting an inhibitor, and often did so without any direct confirmation that the inhibitor would be effective. Includes 5 references, figures.