Particle Counting for Early Detection of Contaminants in Drinking Water
Abstract
As pointed out for many years there is a flux of particles in drinking water distribution systems which may originate from the treatment plant itself or may be generated in the distribution system (biofilm sloughing, sediment resuspension, flocculation, …). Most of these particles are below 50 µm with an average size of 5 µm. These particles, which are easy to mobilise by a water flow above normal and generally consist of iron (60%) and organic matter (20%).