Abstract
The quantity and quality of the supply of fresh water to households, commercial areas, small industries, green spaces irrigation and public and private institutions in large cities face challenges from the supply sources availability and suitable distribution network performance to the full satisfaction of the established drinking water guidelines. In Mexico, the main source of water comes from groundwater. Most of the Mexican aquifers are located in arid and semi-arid weather conditions. The groundwater’s physical–chemical properties are closely related to geology. This study was carried out at the north-central part of the country in which igneous and sedimentary rocks predominate, with high calcium carbonate (CaCO3) concentrations. The accumulation of CaCO3 in the pipelines is also known as scale deposit that decreases the fluid flow, causing a deficiency in the water supply. The main objectives of this study were determining the physical–chemical groundwater parameters and saturation indexes injected into the drinking water networks and characterizing the scale deposits by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The results indicate that the scale deposits are mainly calcium carbonate and silica oxide crystals, caused by the water aggressiveness according to the saturation indexes and the lack of control over the saturation pH.
Highlights
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutralEnsuring drinking water supply is vital for human health and consumption [1]
The main source of water to supply the different human demands and develop its different activities comes from groundwater, it is necessary to continue researching the evolution of its quality and quantity
The focus of the study was to identify the origins of the scale deposits that occur in the distribution network of drinking water, which reduce the useful life of the pipe and generate problems in the delivery of water to the population
Summary
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutralEnsuring drinking water supply is vital for human health and consumption [1]. The main source of water to supply the different human demands and develop its different activities comes from groundwater, it is necessary to continue researching the evolution of its quality and quantity. Arid and semi-arid regions face the most challenges in meeting the demand for water for urban public use, irrigation, industry and landscape conservation [2]. Every day, this resource becomes more scarce, while the population grows, which generates a greater demand for water to satisfy its needs, coupled with the fact that natural resources are limited due to global warming, which has caused a greater spatiotemporal variation of the rainfall, in addition to the increase in industrial activities, and the contamination of water resources, generating a deterioration in living standards [3,4].
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