Chloronitramide anion is a decomposition product of inorganic chloramines
Inorganic chloramines are commonly used drinking water disinfectants intended to safeguard public health and curb regulated disinfection by-product formation. However, inorganic chloramines themselves produce by-products that are poorly characterized. We report chloronitramide anion (Cl-N-NO<sub>2</sub><sup>-</sup>) as a previously unidentified end product of inorganic chloramine decomposition. Analysis of chloraminated US drinking waters found Cl-N-NO<sub>2</sub><sup>-</sup> in all samples tested (<i>n</i> = 40), with a median concentration of 23 micrograms per liter and first and third quartiles of 1.3 and 92 micrograms per liter, respectively. Cl-N-NO<sub>2</sub><sup>-</sup> warrants occurrence and toxicity studies in chloraminated water systems that serve more than 113 million people in the US alone.
Authors
- Kristopher McNeill (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2981-2227)
- Julian L. Fairey (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3129-3929)
- David G. Wahman (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0167-8468)
- Juliana R. Laszakovits (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1486-6676)
- Duong Duc Thien (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0594-5313)
- Samuel D. Hodges (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3825-1169)
- Huong T. Pham (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0000-3797-8174)
Institutions
- Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (US)
- Environmental Protection Agency (GH)
- ETH Zurich (CH)
- University of Arkansas at Fayetteville (US)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Science
- Published
- 2024-11-21
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1126/science.adk6749
- Citations
- 22
- Primary Topic
- Water Treatment and Disinfection
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 6.92
Funders
- National Science Foundation
- University of Washington
- Eidgenössische Anstalt für Wasserversorgung Abwasserreinigung und Gewässerschutz