Identification of new drinking water disinfection byproducts formed in the presence of bromide

Using a combination of mass spectrometry and infrared spectroscopy, disinfection byproducts were identified in ozonated drinking water containing elevated bromide levels and in ozonated water treated with secondary chlorine or chloramine. Only one brominated byproduct-dibromoacet- onitrile-was found in the water treated with only ozone. This compound was found only in one of the three treatment rounds and was also present in the untreated, raw water but at levels 20 times lower than in the ozonated water. Many more byproducts were identified when secondary chlorine or chloramine was applied after ozonation. A number of these byproducts have not been reported previously. When comparing low-bromide water to water with elevated bromide, a tremendous shift in speciation was observed for samples treated with secondary chlorine or chloramine. Without high bromide levels, chlorinated species dominate (e.g., chloroform- , trichloroacetaldehyde, tetrachloropropanone, dichloroacetonitrile, trichloronitromethane); with elevated bromide levels (1 mg/L), these shift to brominated species (e.g., bromoform, tribromoacetaldehyde, tetrabromopropanone, dibromoacetonitrile, tribromonitromethane). An entire family of bromo- and mixed chlorobromopropanones was identified that was not present in library databases and has not been reported previously. They were observed mainly in the ozone-chloramine samples but were also present in ozone-chlorine-treated water. These brominated byproducts were also observed in water treated with only chloramine or chlorine.