AWWA ACE91049

Utilities need to be able to predict corrosion byproduct formation in order to prevent it. The problem of predicting corrosion and corrosion byproduct formation with indices is briefly presented in this paper. A laboratory study is described which sought to determine experimentally the effect of water chemistry on rates of corrosion byproduct formation. A field experiment was conducted in an attempt to measure the underlying corrosion rate using metal coupon tests. Finally, a field investigation was conducted of a database containing chemical analyses of tap samples collected by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection. Following a brief introduction to corrosion byproduct formation, the author describes each of the three studies in detail. The author concludes that controlling the pH of drinking water can limit lead byproduct formation by reducing the driving force for lead dissolution and by causing the formation of a calcite scale. In the absence of enough calcium to form scale, pH adjustment alone might not be able to prevent particulate lead from appearing in drinking water.