Survey of lead concentration in tap water in an old building on the National Taiwan University campus

• Main Authors: Shu-Wei Liu, 劉書瑋
• Other Authors: 林逸彬
• Format: Others
• Language: en_US
• Published: 2017
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/b5emc4

碩士 === 國立臺灣大學 === 環境工程學研究所 === 105 === Lead pipes have been banned in drinking water system in most countries in the 1980s. However, lead pipes still exist in old plumbing system. Furthermore, lead is commonly used as an additive in the manufacturing of various plumbing materials. The survey of lead contamination in tap water conducted in the US showed that lead contamination could be a widespread problem. In this study, a sampling campaign was conducted for 7 faucets in an old building (Building No.2) on the National Taiwan University campus, with a total of 9 sampling events. Total lead and soluble lead were measured along with other water quality parameters in this sampling campaign. Lead concentrations in samples collected by different sampling methods were compared. In 4 out of the 7 sampling sites where the lead pipes still exist, average total lead concentration greater than 10 µg/L were observed. Samples collected by four different sampling methods, namely first draw sampling, sequential sampling, random daytime sampling and flushing sampling showed variable lead levels in tap water. There were no obvious correlations between lead concentration and water quality parameters.