The
objectives of this project were to identify surrogate parameters and indicator compounds
for wastewater-derived chemical contaminants that might be useful in the assessment of
indirect potable reuse systems; and, to validate the ability of chosen surrogates and
indicators to predict the occurrence and removal of wastewater-derived contaminants in
indirect potable water reuse systems. The approach for monitoring wastewater-derived
contaminants developed in this study utilized a combination of surrogate parameters
and indicator compounds tailored to monitor the removal efficiency of individual unit
processes comprising an overall treatment train. Selecting multiple indicators
representing a broad range of properties will allow accounting for compounds currently
not identified ("unknowns"), and new compounds synthesized and entering the
environment in the future (i.e., new pharmaceuticals) provided they fall within the range
of properties covered. The underlying concept is that absence or removal of an indicator
compound during a treatment process would also assure absence or removal of
unidentified compounds with similar properties. Thus, a system failure will be indicated
by poor removal of the indicator compound while normal operating conditions will be
indicated by partial or complete compound removal. This concept was validated through
monitoring efforts at pilot- and full-scale water reuse facilities. Indicator compounds and
surrogate parameters identified were classified into categories of different treatability and
for each treatment process, a master list of indicator compounds was provided by
recruiting compounds, for which analytical methods existed, from the final list of viable
indicator compounds present in secondary or tertiary treated wastewater effluents. As
expected, results of these efforts also revealed that surrogate parameters are not
strongly correlated with the removal of indicator compounds occurring at ng/L-level concentrations. Includes reference, table.