Fundamental Studies of Taste and Odor in Water Supplies

Abstract

odors in drinking water are of considerable concern to consumers, water works operators, and public health officials. The control of these taste and odors is a major problem in the field of water purification. It is believed that most tastes and odors in water supplies are due to the presence of organic chemicals. The organic impurities may arise from industrial wastes, domestic sewage, natural runoff, and the growth and decay of aquatic plants and animals. The concentration of these tasteand odor-producing substances in water is usually so small that they cannot be detected nor measured by ordinary analytical techniques. For this reason, little has been learned concerning the chemical composition of these materials, with the exception of the phenolic type compounds, which have been studied extensively to determine their relation to taste and odor in water supplies. The Public Health Service Drinking Water Standards (1) state that no more than 1.0 part per billion (ppb) of phenol shall be present in finished water. Studies of phenolics have been possible because satisfactory procedures for the measurement of small quantities of phenol in water and wastes have been developed (2, 3). Other organic chemicals may be as important or more important than phenol in causing objectionable conditions in water.