Chemometric exploration of the abundance of trace metals and ions in desalinated and bottled drinking water in Kuwait

Abstract

Chemometric exploration of desalinated and bottled water in Kuwait was employed to interpret the spatial variation in the physicochemical parameters. The data set consisted of the concentrations of principal macronutrient elements, ions, trace elements, temperature, pH, electrolytic conductivity, and total dissolved solids measured in indoor, outdoor, and bottled water samples. Quantitative assessment of the Cd, Hg, and Sb contents revealed rare cases of elevated concentrations; however, these concentrations were always below international health agency standards. Two general clusters of similar parameters were discovered in the variables mode and were associated with “natural” water characteristics or “conditions” of the pipeline system. We found that an increase in temperature facilitates the leaching of metals from the metallic equipment in the system. Spatial variation in the water quality was discovered, which indicates that residential areas fed from the Az-Zoor plant are supplied with water that contains lower concentrations of Ca, Cr, Mg, Mo, Ni, Na, TDS, and SO4 2− than the desalinated water produced and fed from the Doha plant. However, on the basis of the aluminum concentration in the water, cement mortar lining is assumed to be prevalent in the pipeline systems of the Mubarak Al-Kabeer, Ahmadi, Umm Al-Haiman, and Sorra areas.