Monitoring of organic matter in water and wastewater

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Date: 2025-09-18Read: 29

Total Organic CarbonTOC monitoring is an important tool for the industry to understand the quality of its water or wastewater. It helps to determine the presence of organic compounds in wateramount of substanceIt has multiple uses. TOC monitoring also benefits different industries in multiple ways, including improving safety and strengthening environmental protection, saving costs, and better compliance with relevant regulations. However, TOC monitoring may also bring challenges in terms of technical implementation and cost, depending on the complexity of the application and the suitability of the instruments used.

What are BOD, COD, and TOC?

The analytical technique used to detect organic matter content is biological oxygen demand (BOD). With the development of technology, regulations allow for the use of other methods to analyze organic pollution, such as chemical oxygen demand (COD) and total organic carbon (TOC). Although BOD and COD have been widely used, TOC has become an increasingly accepted alternative method.

BOD is one of the most common parameters for determining organic pollution in wastewaterThis method relies on microorganisms to decompose organic matter by consuming oxygen in the sample. If the organic content in the water sample is high, it will lead to an increase in dissolved oxygen consumption. By measuring the amount of oxygen consumed during five days of cultivation at a temperature of 20 ℃,BOD testCan indirectly indicate organic pollution.

Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) is another method used to determine the degree of organic pollution in wastewaterThis experiment useschemical oxidationTo decompose pollutants in water and measure the oxygen consumed during the decomposition process. If the oxygen consumption increases, it indicates an increase in the organic matter content in the product. The analysis time of 2-3 hours is less than the time required for BOD, butToxic reagents are required.

Over the years, technological advancements have been introducedTotal Organic Carbon (TOC) analyzer, used for direct and rapid detection of organic matter content in waterUnlike BOD or COD, which determine organic matter content based on oxygen demand,toc analyzerIt is the direct detection and quantitative analysis of carbon in the sample. The TOC analyzer oxidizes organic matter into CO2, which is then measured by conductivity or non dispersive infrared detection (NDIR). The different methods used for sample oxidation include ultraviolet persulfate, combustion, and supercritical water oxidation (SCWO). TOC can be converted into BOD and COD through specific correlations. However, in emission regulationshaveThe trend of replacing BOD/COD with TOC.

Challenge and TOC Solution

For the industry, total organic carbon (TOC) monitoring is crucial to ensure the safety of its products and processes, while also helping to detect the amount of organic compounds in samples.

In terms of TOC monitoring, if the industry cannot match its application requirements with appropriate TOC technologies, it will face many challenges. There are many reasons for this situation, including inadequate sampling techniques, difficulty in detecting low concentrations of organic compounds, and unreliable analytical methods. Instrument manufacturers have developed different TOC solutions to address these issues, therebyReduced the complexity and cost of TOC monitoringAs shown in the following two examples.

power industry

Challenge:

The coal gasification unit requires a water treatment capacity of approximately 5000-6000 GPM on site, with the goal of zero waste water discharge. Due to the use of recycled municipal water in the device, the sources of steam and condensate have high organic content. Therefore, it is necessary to monitor the organic load on the reverse osmosis (RO) membrane in order to adjust the treatment process and protect valuable assets.

Solution:

Initially, TOC analysis was conducted in the laboratory, and later online TOC analysis was adopted to monitor the RO pretreatment performance and verify its reliability. Real time monitoring can reliably and effectively adjust preprocessingcoagulantThe dosage added.

Food and beverage industry

Challenge:

For large sterile production enterprises, if non sterile products appear, it will repeatedly cause product losses. They have been using ATP swabs to detect microbial contamination. However, quality issues and product losses indicate that they need a new technology. In order to verify the cleanliness of the equipment and ensure quality and safety, they must ensure the removal of contaminants and residual products before starting sterilization. In addition to improving their cleaning validation process, production companies also hope to reduce water consumption and costs.

Solution:

Food and beverage production enterprises need to adopt Sievers operating in turbo mode^®M9 TOC analyzer is used for TOC analysis - providing a data point every 4 seconds to monitor the washed samples after in-situ cleaning (CIP). During the review process, it was demonstrated that these data are valuable for the facility in terms of CIP effectiveness and equipment cleanliness. Through visual inspection, it was confirmed that the equipment was dirty, but through ATP swab testing, it was found that the equipment was clean, but in fact it was not. Quantitative and comprehensive data from TOC monitoring can further reduce unnecessary CIP times and optimize them for different products, thereby saving water and improving cleaning processes.

Carbon monitoring

Carbon monitoring through TOC analysis is an important and useful method for detecting water quality as it passes through industrial facilities. By detecting any potential process interruptions,Prevent downtime and high maintenance costsThis is still oneA good way to protect valuable equipment assets.

Carbon monitoring is very useful in the following areas:

Asset protection
process optimization
quality control
Meet regulatory requirements

Source water quality

The level of source water pollution will undergo significant changes. Water quality may be affected by various factors such as seasonal changes, storm runoff, and local fires, which can lead to organic pollution of source water.

What information did your source water tell you? By directly monitoring carbon in the source water, in order to:

Monitoring baseline—Determine the normal TOC level of the source water.
Identify the changes that have occurred—Has the municipal government changed the water source for the factory? Has a storm or weather event altered the quality of the source water entering the device?
Take corrective measures—Using real-time and direct carbon data to adjust water treatment processes. Ensure the proper operation of the processing device and adjust the flow rate to ensure sufficient removal ratio.

Water quality for public works

Industrial facilities often require heat to drive chemical reactions or process raw materials. In many industrial facilities, utility water is used to generate heat or facilitate heat exchange.

The generation of heat is usually achieved through the return of boiler feedwater and condensate. Ultra pure water is heated in a boiler and then converted into steam.

What information has your utility water told you? By directly monitoring the carbon emissions of public utility water, in order to:

Monitoring baseline—Determine the optimal TOC content for boiler feedwater to meet the quality requirements for equipment protection. Determine the normal level of condensate water.
Identify changes—Quickly detect changes in boiler feedwater caused by inefficient processing or changes in water sources. Whether it is the coolant itself or other process fluids, it can quickly detect condensate leaks.
Take corrective measures—Adjust the treatment to ensure the quality of boiler feedwater. If contaminated, transfer the condensate to wastewater collection facilities or implement shutdown to prevent contamination from affecting products or equipment.

Wastewater treatment process

Carbon monitoring can be used in various ways for wastewater treatment, including monitoring the wastewater load of treatment facilities, biological treatment efficiency, or whether the final discharge quality is compliant.

What information did your wastewater tell you? Direct carbon monitoring of wastewater to:

Monitoring baseline—Quantitatively analyze the carbon load in raw wastewater to understand the true nutrient load of the system.
Identify changes—Detect any potential changes or significant fluctuations that may affect processing.
Take corrective measures—Adjust the dosage, residence time, or diversion to optimize treatment and achieve the quality objectives specified in the wastewater discharge standards.

Implementing direct carbon monitoring of industrial water use can benefit many different industries greatly.TOC is a tool for controlling product quality, optimizing processes, protecting assets such as reverse osmosis membranes and boilers, and ensuring compliance with regulatory requirementsTOC can provide fast and accurate data for decision-making and is being written into more regulatory guidelines around the world. By adopting organic matter monitoring, many different industries around the world are effectively monitoring the quality of water and wastewater.

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