Characterization of Scale Formed in Drinking Water and Hot Water Pipes in the Taliouine Downtown—Morocco

Naima Hafid^1*, M’barek Belaatar¹, Said Ben-Aazza¹, Abdellah Hadfi¹, Mohamed Ezahri², Ali Driouiche¹

¹Engineering Process Laboratory, Department of chemistry, Faculty of Sciences, Ibn Zohr University, Agadir, Morocco.
²Materials and Environment Laboratory, Department of chemistry, Faculty of Sciences, Ibn Zohr University, Agadir, Morocco.

DOI: 10.4236/ajac.2015.68065                

Abstract

This paper presents the results of a comprehensive study of water scale found in water distribution system of Taliouine city in the south of Morocco. Physico-chemical properties of drinking water supplied to the city were evaluated. The data showed a high level of soluble salt in water. Concentrations were calcium 108 - 143 mg/1, magnesium 80 - 96 mg/1, bicarbonate 660 - 750 mg/l and hardness degree 660 - 690 mg CaCO₃/l. The water samples contain high amounts of minerals in the form of ions, especially the metals calcium and bicarbonate, which precipitated out and caused problems in water conducting or storing vessels like pipes. Scales were removed from the inside of two old pipes which transported drinking and hot water in the downtown of Taliouine city. Scale samples were investigated by XRF, XRD, SEM, DTA, TGA and SEM’s analytical techniques. This study was able to identify scales formed in pipes of water distribution systems. It was found that water scale in this city contains 53% of calcium oxide and 43% of organic matter. The XRD and SEM results revealed that calcite was the main crystalline structure in drinking water scale. Nevertheless, scale deposited in hot water pipe is well crystalline with peaks corresponding mostly to aragonite (88%) along with calcite (12%). The thermal behavior of scale samples confirms that calcium carbonate was the main compound in the scale samples. Further studies are needed to find an efficient antiscale in drinking water of this city.

Keywords

Drinking Water, Scale, Characterization, Calcium Carbonate

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

References

[1]	Larson, T.E. and Buswell, A.M. (1942) Calcium Carbonate Saturation Index and Alkalinity Interpretations. Journal of the American Water Works Association, 34, 1967-1979.
[2]	Ras, H.S. and Ghizellaoui, S. (2012) Determination of Anti-Scale Effect of Hard Water by Test of Electrodeposition. Procedia Engineering, 33, 357-365. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.proeng.2012.01.1215
[3]	Behera, R.K., Das, P.S., Das, R. and Das, N.N. (2013) Physicochemical Characterizations and Sorption Properties of Deposited Scale from Hard Water. Indian Journal of Chemical Technology, 20, 95-100.
[4]	Tyusenkov, A.S. and Cherepashkin, S.E. (2014) Scale Inhibitor for Boiler Water Systems. Russian Journal of Applied Chemistry, 87, 1240-1245. http://dx.doi.org/10.1134/S1070427214090080
[5]	Rodier, J., Legube, B., Merlet, N. and Brunet, R. (2009) L’analyse de l’eau. Paris, France.
[6]	Woodward, V.P., Williams, R.C. and Amjad, Z. (2010) Chapter 21: Analytical Techniques for Identifying Mineral Scales and Deposits. In: Amjad, Z., Ed., The Science and Technology of Industrial Water Treatment, USA, 425-445. http://dx.doi.org/10.1201/9781420071450-c21
[7]	NM 03.7.001 (2006) Moroccan Standard for the Quality of Water for Human Consumption. Official Bulletin No. 5404, March 16.
[8]	WHO (2004) Guidelines for Drinking-Water Quality. 3rd Edition, Vol. 1, World Health Organization, Geneva.
[9]	Renner, R. (2008) Pipe Scales Release Hazardous Metals into Drinking Water. Environmental Science and Technology, 42, 4241. http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/es087143m
[10]	Peng, C.-Y., Gregory, V.K., Richard, L.V., Andrew, S.H., Melinda, J.F. and Steve, H.R. (2010) Characterization of Elemental and Structural Composition of Corrosion Scales and Deposits Formed in Drinking Water Distribution Systems. Water Research, 44, 4570-4580. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2010.05.043
[11]	Gagnon, J.P. (2007) X-Ray Fluorescence Spectrometry: Development of Effective Fusion Procedures for Lime Products. JCPDS-International Centre for Diffraction Data, 76-82.
[12]	Andritsos, N., Kontopoulou, M., Karabelas, A.J. and Koutsoukos, P.G. (1996) Calcium Carbonate Deposit Formation under Isothermal Conditions. The Canadian Journal of Chemical Engineering, 74, 911-919. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/cjce.5450740614
[13]	Leeuw, N.H.D. and Parker, S.C. (1998) Surface Structure and Morphology of Calcium Carbonate Polymorphs Calcite, Aragonite and Vaterite: An Atomistic Approach. The Journal of Physical Chemistry B, 102, 2914-2922. http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/jp973210f
[14]	Zhou, G.T., Yu, J.C., Wang, X.C. and Zhang, L.Z. (2004) Sonochemical Synthesis of Aragonite-Type Calcium Carbonate with Different Morphologies. New Journal of Chemistry, 28, 1027-1031. http://dx.doi.org/10.1039/b315198k
[15]	Gerard, Y. (1987) Etude expérimentale des interactions entre déformation et transformation de phase, Exemple de la transition Calcite-Aragonite. Thèse de Doctorat, Université de Rennes I, Rennes.
[16]	Zhou, G.-T. and Zheng, Y.-F. (1998) Synthesis of Aragonite-Type Calcium Carbonate by Overgrowth Technique at Atmospheric Pressure. Journal of Materials Science Letters, 17, 905-908. http://dx.doi.org/10.1023/A:1026444118595
[17]	Amjad, Z., Kleptsanis, G. and Koutsoukos, P.G. (2002) Precipitation and Crystal Growth of Calcium Carbonate in the Presence of Acrylic Acid Copolymers. 15th International Symposium on Industrial Crystallization, Sorrento, 15-18 September 2002, 267.
[18]	Tzotzi, C., Pahiadaki, T., Yiantsios, S.G., Karabelas, A.J. and Andritsos, N. (2007) A study of CaCO3 Scale Formation and Inhibition in RO and NF Membrane Processes. Journal of Membrane Science, 296, 171-184. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.memsci.2007.03.031
[19]	Wray, J.L. and Danniels, F. (1957) Precipitation of Calcite and Aragonite. Journal of the American Chemical Society, 79, 2031-2034. http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/ja01566a001
[20]	Ogino, T., Suzuki, T. and Sawada, K. (1987) The Formation and Transformation Mechanism of Calcium Carbonate in Water. Geochimica and Cosmochimica Acta, 51, 2757-2767. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0016-7037(87)90155-4
[21]	Santomauro, G., Baier, J., Huang, W. and Pezold, S. (2012) Formation of Calcium Carbonate Polymorphs Induced by Living Microalgae. Journal of Biomaterials and Nanobiotechnology, 3, 413-420. http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/jbnb.2012.34041
[22]	Wang, H., Alfredsson, V., Tropsch, J., Ettl, R. and Nylander, T. (2013) Formation of CaCO3 Deposits on Hard Surfaces—Effect of Bulk Solution Conditions and Surface Properties. ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces, 5, 4035-4045. http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/am401348v
[23]	Kiaei, Z. and Haghtalab, A. (2014) Experimental Study of Using Ca-DTPMP Nanoparticles in Inhibition of CaCO3 Scaling in a Bulk Water Process. Desalination, 338, 84-92. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.desal.2014.01.027
[24]	Liu, D., Dong, W., Li, F., Hui, F. and Lédion, J. (2012) Comparative Performance of Polyepoxysuccinic Acid and Polyaspartic acid on Scaling Inhibition by Static and Rapid Controlled Precipitation Methods. Desalination, 304, 1-10. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.desal.2012.07.032
[25]	Jada, A., Ait Akbour, R., Jacquemet, C., Suau, J.M. and Guerret, O. (2007) Effect of Sodium Polyacrylates Molecular Weight on the Crystallogenesis of Calcium Carbonate. Journal of Crystal Growth, 306, 373-382. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jcrysgro.2007.05.046
[26]	Medeiros, S.K., Albuquerque, E.L., Maia Jr., F.F., Caetano, E.W.S. and Freire, V.N. (2006) Structural, Electronic, and Optical Properties of CaCO3 Aragonite. Chemical Physics Letters, 430, 293-296. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cplett.2006.08.133
[27]	Zhou, G.T., Yao, Q.Z., Ni, J. and Jin, G. (2009) Formation of Aragonite Mesocrystals and Implication for Biomineralization. American Mineralogist, 94, 293-302. http://dx.doi.org/10.2138/am.2009.2957
[28]	Smyth, J.R. and Ahrens, T.J. (1997) The Crystal Structure of Calcite III. Geophysical Research Letters, 24, 1595-1598. http://dx.doi.org/10.1029/97GL01603
[29]	Young, C.I. and Byung-Gap, C. (1998) Experimental Validation of Electronic Anti-Fouling Technology with a Plate Heat Exchanger. Heat Transfer, 6, 197-201.
[30]	Mantilaka, M.M.M.G.P.G., Karunaratne, D.G.G.P., Rajapakse, R.M.G. and Pitawala, H.M.T.G.A. (2013) Precipitated Calcium Carbonate/Poly(Methyl Methacrylate) Nanocomposite Using Dolomite: Synthesis, CHARACTERIZATION and properties. Powder Technology, 235, 628-632. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.powtec.2012.10.048
[31]	Stǎnǎsel, O., Iovi, A., Kristmannsdottir, H. and Stǎnǎsel, I. (2006) Physical-Chemistry Studies on Geothermal Waters and Scale Formations. Revue Roumaine de Chimie, 51, 179-185.
[32]	Borch, T., Camper, A.K., Biederman, J.A., Butterfield, P.W., Gerlach, R. and Amonette, J.E. (2008) Evaluation of Characterization Techniques for Iron Pipe Corrosion Products and Iron Oxide Thin Films. Journal of Environmental Engineering, 134, 835-844. http://dx.doi.org/10.1061/(asce)0733-9372(2008)134:10(835)
[33]	Westin, K.-J. and Rasmuson, A.C. (2005) Crystal Growth of Aragonite and Calcite in Presence of Citric Acid, DTPA, EDTA and Pyromellitic Acid. Journal of Colloid and Interface Science, 282, 359-369. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jcis.2004.03.029
[34]	Coto, B., Martos, C., Pena, J.I., Rodriguez, R. and Pastor, G. (2012) Effets in the Solubility of CaCO3: Experimental Study and Model Description. Fluid Phase Equilibria, 324, 1-7. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.fluid.2012.03.020
[35]	Kamari, A., Gharagheizi, F., Bahadori, A. and Mohammadi, A.H. (2014) Determination of the Equilibrated Calcium Carbonate (Calcite) Scaling in Aqueous Phase Using a Reliable Approach. Journal of the Taiwan Institute of Chemical Engineers, 45, 1307-1313. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jtice.2014.03.009
[36]	Antonogiannakis, E., Tzagkaraki, E. and Demadis, K.D. (2013) Use of a Pilot Scale Heat Exchanger-Cooling Tower System for the Evaluation of Mineral Scale Inhibitors. International Journal of Corrosion and Scale Inhibition, 2, 255-268. http://dx.doi.org/10.17675/2305-6894-2013-2-4-255-268
[37]	Goodman, W.H., Godfrey, M.R. and Miller, T.M. (2011) Scale and Deposit Formation in Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage (SAGD) Facilities. Nalco Company, Naperville.
[38]	Sarin, P., Snoeyink, V.L., Bebee, J., Kriven, W.M. and Clement, J.A. (2001) Physico-Chemical Characteristics of Corrosion Scales in Old Iron pipes. Water Research, 35, 2961-2969. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0043-1354(00)00591-1
[39]	Menzri, R. and Ghizellaoui, S. (2012) Chronoamperometry Study of the Inhibition of Groundwater Scaling Deposits in Fourchi. Energy Procedia, 18, 1523-1532. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.egypro.2012.05.169
[40]	Nicolet, J.P. and Vernet, J.P. (1965) Analyse thermique différentielle: Application au problème des carbonates. Bulletin de la Société Vaudoise des Sciences Naturelles, 69, No.318, Lausanne.
[41]	Faust, G.T. (1950) Thermal Analysis Studies on Carbonates, I-Aragonite and Calcite. The American Mineralogist, 35, 207-224.
[42]	Bischoff, J.L. and Hole, W. (1969) Temperature Controls of Aragonite-Calcite Transformation in Aqueous Solution. The American Mineralogist, 54, 149-155.