An investigation of a Swedish drinking-water distribution system combined µFTIR particle analysis with pyrolysis-GC/MS polymer-mass analysis.
Source details
Inga V. Kirstein, Fides Hensel, Alessio Gomiero, Lucian Iordachescu, Alvise Vianello, Hans B. Wittgren, Jes Vollertsen. Water Research. 2021.
DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2020.116519
Findings
An investigation of a Swedish drinking-water distribution system combined µFTIR particle analysis with pyrolysis-GC/MS polymer-mass analysis.
Scroll horizontally for methods and limitations.
| Endpoint | Source-reported result | Locator |
|---|---|---|
| Drinking water distribution samples | 174 ± 405 MPs/m³ | PDF p. 6 §3.2; PDF p. 3 sampling and p. 4 §2.6 |
| Extracted drinking-water particles | 6.6 µm nominal minimum | PDF p. 4 §2.6 |
| Detected drinking-water particles | 8 to 374 µm | PDF p. 8 §3.4 and Figure 4 |
Methods and scope
Triplicate samples at five stations, with 200-1100 L filtered through 5 µm steel filters. Filter cleaning, extraction, optional density separation, sample splitting, µFTIR imaging and automated classification plus Py-GCMS. Nominal µFTIR floor 6.6 µm after minimum-pixel rule. Five station blanks averaged 46 ± 63 MPs/blank. Polymer-specific blank values subtracted, negative count differences set to zero; size analysis used uncorrected detections. µFTIR mass estimated from shape/density; Py-GCMS independently measured polymer mass.
What this source can support
Supports blank-corrected source-specific counts and separately characterized dimensions. Demonstrates why spectroscopic count and thermal polymer mass are distinct measurements.
Single system/campaign; relatively sparse detections and variable blanks. Aliquots, not every particle, shared across methods. Zero after subtraction is not proof of absence. Size distributions use uncorrected detections. Model-derived particle mass is not directly measured mass. Primary volume year is 2021 despite 2020 filename/DOI/online date. No clinical outcomes or category-wide safety threshold.
Related evidence
Reported values and source locations
| Reported value | Measurement basis | Conditions and size context | Original document location |
|---|---|---|---|
| 174 ± 405 MPs/m³ | Mean ± SD across sampled distribution system | Swedish waterworks and connected distribution stations; source-specific polymer blank subtraction Nominal µFTIR minimum 6.6 µm; observed major dimensions 8-374 µm | PDF p. 6 §3.2; PDF p. 3 sampling and p. 4 §2.6 |
| 6.6 µm nominal minimum | Analytical nominal size | µFTIR minimum-pixel rule applied to automated identification Nominal size threshold, not a validated complete recovery floor | PDF p. 4 §2.6 |
| 8 to 374 µm | Observed range, not blank-corrected size distribution | Uncorrected detections used for dimension analysis Major dimension | PDF p. 8 §3.4 and Figure 4 |
Source provenance
Primary PDF SHA-256: 41d8667b76f0ce12b3a80e5e2c422806a0b75ee98cc52075f2ea396c81aeae1f
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