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Drinking water
standards
WHO's drinking-water
WHO's Guidelines for Drinking-water Quality, set up in Geneva, 1993, are the international reference standards
point for standard setting and drinking-water safety.
EU's drinking water
Element/
substance
Symbol/
formula
Periodic table
Aluminium
Al
Calculators
Ammonia
NH4
No guideline
Antimony
Sb
< 4 g/l
0.005 mg/l
Arsenic
As
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standards
0,2 mg/l
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0,01 mg/l
Asbestos
Lenntech BV
Rotterdamseweg 402 M
2629 HH Delft
The Netherlands
tel: +31 15 261 09 00
fax: +31 15 261 62 89
e-mail: info@lenntech.com
No guideline
Barium
Ba
0,3 mg/l
Berillium
Be
< 1 g/l
No guideline
Boron
< 1 mg/l
0,3 mg/l
Cadmium
Cd
< 1 g/l
0,003 mg/l
Chloride
Cl
250 mg/l
Chromium
0,05 mg/l
Colour
Not mentioned
Copper
Cu
2 mg/l
Cyanide
CN-
0,07 mg/l
Dissolved
oxygen
O2
No guideline
Fluoride
Hardness
mg/l
CaCO 3
No guideline
Hydrogen
sulfide
H2 S
No guideline
Iron
Fe
Lead
Pb
0,01 mg/l
Manganese
Mn
0,5 mg/l
Mercury
Hg
0,001 mg/l
Molybdenum
Mb
0,07 mg/l
Nickel
Ni
0,02 mg/l
Nitrate and
nitrite
NO 3 , NO 2
0,5 - 50 mg/l
1,5 mg/l
No guideline
50 mg/l total
nitrogen
Turbidity
Not mentioned
pH
No guideline
Selenium
Se
0,01 mg/l
Silver
Ag
5 50 g/l
No guideline
Sodium
Na
< 20 mg/l
200 mg/l
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< 20 mg/l
Sodium
Na
Sulfate
SO 4
500 mg/l
Inorganic tin
Sn
No guideline
TDS
200 mg/l
No guideline
Uranium
1,4 mg/l
Zinc
Zn
3 mg/l
Organic compounds
Group
Substance
Formula
Health based
guideline by the
WHO
Chlorinated
alkanes
Carbon tetrachloride
C Cl4
2 g/l
Dichloromethane
C H2 Cl2
20 g/l
1,1-Dichloroethane
C 2 H4 Cl2
No guideline
1,2-Dichloroethane
Cl CH2 CH2 Cl
30 g/l
1,1,1-Trichloroethane
CH3 C Cl3
2000 g/l
1,1-Dichloroethene
C 2 H2 Cl2
30 g/l
1,2-Dichloroethene
C 2 H2 Cl2
50 g/l
Trichloroethene
C 2 H Cl3
70 g/l
Tetrachloroethene
C 2 Cl4
40 g/l
Benzene
C 6 H6
10 g/l
Toluene
C 7 H8
700 g/l
Xylenes
C 8 H10
500 g/l
Ethylbenzene
C 8 H10
300 g/l
Styrene
C 8 H8
20 g/l
C 2 H3 N1 O 5 P 1 3
0.7 g/l
Monochlorobenzene (MCB)
C 6 H5 Cl
300 g/l
Dichlorobenzenes
(DCBs)
1,2-Dichlorobenzene
(1,2-DCB)
C 6 H4 Cl2
1000 g/l
1,3-Dichlorobenzene
(1,3-DCB)
C 6 H4 Cl2
No guideline
1,4-Dichlorobenzene
(1,4-DCB)
C 6 H4 Cl2
300 g/l
Trichlorobenzenes (TCBs)
C 6 H3 Cl3
20 g/l
Di(2-ethylhexyl)adipate (DEHA)
C 22 H42 O 4
80 g/l
Di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP)
C 24 H38 O 4
8 g/l
Acrylamide
C 3 H5 N O
0.5 g/l
Epichlorohydrin (ECH)
C 3 H5 Cl O
0.4 g/l
Hexachlorobutadiene (HCBD)
C 4 Cl6
0.6 g/l
C 10 H12 N2 O 8
200 g/l
N(CH2 COOH)3
200 g/l
Organotins
Dialkyltins
R2 Sn X2
No guideline
C 24 H54 O Sn 2
2 g/l
Chlorinated
ethenes
Aromatic
hydrocarbons
Chlorinated
benzenes
Miscellaneous
organic
constituents
Pesticides
Substance
Formula
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Health based
guideline by the
WHO
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C 14 H20 Cl N O 2
20 g/l
Aldicarb
C 7 H14 N2 O 4 S
10 g/l
C 12 H8 Cl6 /
0.03 g/l
C 12 H8 Cl6 O
Atrazine
C 8 H14 Cl N5
2 g/l
Bentazone
C 10 H12 N2 O 3 S
30 g/l
Carbofuran
C 12 H15 N O 3
5 g/l
Chlordane
C 10 H6 Cl8
0.2 g/l
Chlorotoluron
C 10 H13 Cl N2 O
30 g/l
DDT
C 14 H9 Cl5
2 g/l
1,2-Dibromo-3-chloropropane
C 3 H5 Br2 Cl
1 g/l
2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid
(2,4-D)
C 8 H6 Cl2 O 3
30 g/l
1,2-Dichloropropane
C 3 H6 Cl2
No guideline
1,3-Dichloropropane
C 3 H6 Cl2
20 g/l
1,3-Dichloropropene
CH3 CHClCH2 Cl
No guideline
Br CH2 CH2 Br
No guideline
C 10 H5 Cl7
0.03 g/l
Hexachlorobenzene (HCB)
C 10 H5 Cl7 O
1 g/l
Isoproturon
9 g/l
C 12 H18 N2 O
Lindane
C 6 H6 Cl6
2 g/l
MCPA
C 9 H9 Cl O 3
2 g/l
Methoxychlor
(C 6 H4 OCH3 )2 CHCCl3
20 g/l
Metolachlor
C 15 H22 Cl N O 2
10 g/l
Molinate
C 9 H17 N O S
6 g/l
Pendimethalin
C 13 H19 O 4 N3
20 g/l
Pentachlorophenol (PCP)
C 6 H Cl5 O
9 g/l
Permethrin
C 21 H20 Cl2 O 3
20 g/l
Propanil
C 9 H9 Cl2 N O
20 g/l
Pyridate
C 19 H23 ClN2 O 2 S
100 g/l
Simazine
C 7 H12 Cl N5
2 g/l
Trifluralin
C 13 H16 F3 N3 O 4
20 g/l
2,4-DB
C 10 H10 Cl2 O 3
90 g/l
Dichlorprop
C 9 H8 Cl2 0 3
100 g/l
Fenoprop
C 9 H7 Cl3 O 3
9 g/l
MCPB
C 11 H13 Cl O 3
No guideline
Mecoprop
C 10 H11 ClO 3
10 g/l
2,4,5-T
C 8 H5 Cl3 O 3
9 g/l
Chlorophenoxy
herbicides
(excluding 2,4-D
and MCPA)
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Substance
Formula
Health
based
guideline by
the WHO
Disinfectants
Chloramines
NHn Cl(3-n) ,
where
n = 0,
1 or 2
3 mg/l
Chlorine
Cl2
5 mg/l
Chlorine dioxide
ClO 2
No guideline
Iodine
I2
No guideline
Br O 3 -
25 g/l
Chlorate
Cl O 3 -
No guideline
Chlorite
Cl O 2 -
200 g/l
2-Chlorophenol (2-CP)
C 6 H5 Cl O
No guideline
2,4-Dichlorophenol (2,4-DCP)
C 6 H4 Cl2 O
No guideline
2,4,6-Trichlorophenol (2,4,6TCP)
C 6 H3 Cl3 O
200 g/l
Formaldehyde
HCHO
900 g/l
MX (3-Chloro-4-dichloromethyl-5-hydroxy-2(5H)furanone)
C 5 H3 Cl3 O 3
No guideline
Trihalomethanes
Bromoform
C H Br3
100 g/l
Dibromochloromethane
CH Br2 Cl
100 g/l
Bromodichloromethane
CH Br Cl2
60 g/l
Chloroform
CH Cl3
200 g/l
C 2 H3 Cl O 2
No guideline
Dichloroacetic acid
C 2 H2 Cl2 O 2
50 g/l
Trichloroacetic acid
C 2 H Cl3 O 2
100 g/l
C Cl3 CH(OH)2
10 g/l
Chloroacetones
C 3 H5 O Cl
No guideline
Dichloroacetonitrile
C 2 H Cl2 N
90 g/l
Dibromoacetonitrile
C 2 H Br2 N
100 g/l
Chlorophenols
Halogenated
acetonitriles
Bromochloroacetonitrile CH Cl2 CN
No guideline
Trichloroacetonitrile
C 2 Cl3 N
1 g/l
Cyanogen chloride
Cl CN
70 g/l
Chloropicrin
C Cl3 NO 2
No guideline
Copyright 1998-2014 Lenntech B.V | Email: | Tel. +31 15 261 09 00 | Fax. +31 15 261 62 89
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