Contaminant Diffusion, Solubility, and Material Property Differences between HDPE and PEX Potable Water Pipes
Publication: Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 136, Issue 2
Abstract
The objectives of this work were to identify differences between the composition, bulk properties, contaminant diffusivity and solubility for new high-density polyethylene (HDPE) pipe and crosslinked polyethylene (PEX) pipe, as well as determine which contaminant and polymer properties are useful for predicting contaminant fate in water pipe. Variations in PE pipe density , crystallinity (69–72%), crosslinking (60 and 76%), and oxidative induction time (33 to .) were detected. While numerically these differences seem minor, results show that slight material differences have a notable effect on contaminant diffusivity and solubility. Nonpolar contaminant diffusivity and solubility were best predicted by bulk density. Polar contaminants were more soluble and diffused faster through PEX than HDPE pipes because PEX pipes contained a greater amount of oxygen. For all materials, dipole moment and Log were good predictors of contaminant fate and molecular volume was only useful for predicting diffusivity and solubility values for haloalkane and nonpolar aromatic contaminants.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
Acknowledgments
Funding for this work was provided by the National Science Foundation (Grant Nos. NSFCBET-0755342 and NSFDGE-0333378) and the Water Research Foundation. Opinions, findings, conclusions, and recommendations expressed in this material are those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect the views of the funding agencies. The writers also thank the following people at Virginia Tech for their assistance: Rebecca Huyck, Vicki Long, Rory Polera, Sha Yang, Dr. Marc Edwards, Dr. James Tanko, and Dr. Herve Marand. The insight by Dr. Brian Love, University of Michigan, was also greatly appreciated.
References
American Water Works Service Company Inc. (AWWSC). (2002). “Deteriorating buried infrastructure, management challenges and strategies.” Rep. Prepared for Environmental Protection Agency, Voorhees, N.J.
Aminabhavi, T. M., and Naik, H. G. (1999). “Sorption/desorption, diffusion, permeation and swelling of high density polyethylene geomembrane in the presence of hazardous organic liquids.” J. Hazard. Mater., 64(3), 251–262.
Arima O., and Hasegawa Y. (1991). “Estimation of durability of SUMIKEI PEX tubes to residual chlorine in tap water.” Sumitomo Keikinzoku giho, 32(2), 143–148.
ASTM. (2001). “Standard test method for determination of gel content and swell ratio of crosslinked ethylene plastics.” D2765, ASTM, Pa.
ASTM. (2003a). “Standard test method for compositional analysis by thermogravimetry.” E1131, Pa.
ASTM. (2003b). “Standard test method for density of plastics by the density-gradient technique.” D1505, Pa.
ASTM. (2007). “Standard test method for oxidative-induction time of polyolefins by differential scanning calorimetry.” D3895, Pa.
ASTM (2008).“Standard specification for crosslinked polyethylene (PEX) tubing.” F876, Pa.
AWWA. (1996). Water stats survey/database, AWWA, Denver.
AWWA. (2003). Water stats survey/database, AWWA, Denver.
AWWA. (2007). “Crosslinked polyethylene (PEX) pressure pipe, 1/2 in (12 mm) through 3 in. (76 mm), for water service.” C904-06, Denver.
Barrett, W. M., and Stessel, R. I. (1999). “Correlating solubility of chemicals and mixtures with strength of exposed high density polyethylene geomembrane.” Environ. Sci. Technol., 33(8), 1274–1279.
Barton, A. F. M. (1975). Handbook of solubility parameters and other cohesion parameters, CRC, Boca Raton, Fla.
Bensason, S., Minick, J., Moet, A., Chum, S., Hiltner, A., and Baer, E. (1996). “Classification of homogeneous ethylene-octene copolymers based on comonomer content.” J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys., 34, 1301–1315.
Britton, L. N., Ashman, R. B., Aminabhavi, T. M., and Cassidy, P. E. (1989). “Permeation and diffusion of environmental pollutants through flexible polymers.” J. Appl. Polym. Sci., 38, 227–236.
Chao, K. P., Wang, P., and Wang, Y. T. (2007). “Diffusion and solubility coefficients determined by permeation and immersion experiments for organic solvents in HDPE geomembrane.” J. Hazard. Mater., 142, 227–235.
Chao, K. P., Want, P., and Lin, C. -H. (2006). “Estimation of diffusion coefficients and solubilities for organic solvents permeation through high-density polyethylene geomembrane.” J. Environ. Eng., 132(5), 519–526.
Comyn, J. (1985). Polymer permeability, Elsevier, New York.
Crank, J. (1975). The mathematics of diffusion, 2nd Ed., Oxford University Press, Oxford, England, 204–265.
Crank, J. S., and Park, G. S. (1968). Diffusion in polymers, Academic, San Diego.
Davis, P., Burn, S., Gould, S., Cardy, M., Tjandraatmadja, G., and Sadler, P. (2006). Final report: Long term performance prediction for PE pipes, AWWA, Denver.
Dear, J. P., and Mason, N. S. (2006). “Effect of chlorine on polyethylene pipes in water distribution networks.” Proc. Inst. Mech. Eng., Part L, 220, 97–111.
Desai, S., Thakore, I. M., and Devi, S. (1998). “Effect of crosslink density on transport of industrial solvents through polyether based polyurethanes.” Polym. Int., 47, 172–178.
Gedde, U. W., Viebke, H., Leijstrom, H., and Ifwarson, M. (1994). “Long-term properties of hot water polyolefin pipes—A review.” Polym. Eng. Sci., 34(24), 1773–1787.
Geosynthetic Institute (GSI). (2006). “Standard specification for test methods, test properties and testing frequency for high density polyethylene (HDPE) smooth and textured geomembranes.” GRI test method GM1, Folsom, Pa.
Glaza, E. C., and Park, J. K. (1992). “Permeation of organic contaminants through gasketted pipe joints.” J. Am. Water Works Assoc., 84(77), 92–100.
Hansen, C. M. (2000). Hansen solubility parameters—A user’s handbook, CRC, Boca Raton, Fla.
Haxo, H. E., Jr., and Lahey, T. P. (1988). “Transport of dissolved organics from dilute aqueous solutions through flexible membrane liners.” Hazard. Waste Hazard. Mater., 5(4), 275–294.
Haxo, H. E. Jr., Rosenberg, M. L., and Lahey, T. P. (1988). “Factors assessing the compatibility of FMLs (flexible membrane liners) and waste liquids.” Rep. No. EPA-600-2-88-017, Matrecon, Alameda, Calif.
Holsen, T. M., Park, J. K., Jenkins, D., and Selleck, R. E. (1991). “Contamination of potable water by permeation of plastic pipe.” J. AWWA., 83(8), 53–56.
Hopman, R., and van de Hoven, T. J. J. (1992). “Permeation of organic chemicals through plastic water pipes.” J. Wat SRT Aqua., 41(3), 158–162.
Iowa Dept. of Natural Resources (IADNR). (2007). “Underground storage tank program.” Petroleum permeation of plastic water line survey, Iowa Dept. of Natural Resources, Des Moines, Iowa.
Jelinski, L. W., Dumais, J. J., Luongo, J. P., and Cholli, A. L. (1984). “Thermal oxidation and its analysis at low levels in polyethylene.” Macromolecules, 17, 1650–1655.
Joo, J. C., Kim, J. Y., and Nam, K. (2004). “Mass transfer of organic compounds in dilute aqueous solutions into high density polyethylene geomembranes.” J. Environ. Eng., 130(2), 175–183.
Joo, J. C., Nam, K., and Kim, J. Y. (2005). “Estimation of mass transport parameters of organic compounds through high density polyethylene geomembranes using a modified double-compartment apparatus.” J. Environ. Eng., 131(5), 790–799.
Karlsson, K., Smith, G. D., and Gedde, U. W. (1992). “Molecular structure, morphology, and antioxidant consumption in medium density polyethylene pipes in hot-water applications.” Polym. Eng. Sci., 32(10), 649–657.
Lundback, M. (2005). Long-term performance of polyolefins in different environments including chlorinated water: Antioxidant consumption, migration, and polymer degradation, KTH Fibre and Polymer Technology, Germany.
McCall, D. W., Douglass, D. C., Blyer, L. L., Johnson, G. E., and Bair, H. E. (1984). “Solubility and diffusion of water in low-density polyethylene.” Macromolecules, 17, 1644–1649.
Ong, S. K., Gaunt, J. A., Mao, F., Cheng, C. L., Esteve-Agelet, L., and Hurburgh, C. R. (2008). Impact of hydrocarbons on PE/PVC pipes and pipe gaskets, AWWA, Denver.
Park, J. K., Holsen, T. M., Bontoux, L., Jenkins, D., and Selleck R. E. (1989). “Permeation of plastic pipes by organic chemicals.” Sanitary Engineering and Environmental Health Laboratory Report (SEEHLF), University of California, Berkley, Calif.
Park, J. K., and Nibras, M. (1993). “Mass flux of organic chemicals through polyethylene geomembranes.” Water Environ. Res., 65(3), 227–237.
Peacock, A. J. (2001). “The chemistry of polyethylene.” J. Macromol. Sci., Polym. Rev., 41(4), 285–323.
PEX Connection (PexConn). (2004). PEX connection catalog, PEX Connection, Oklahoma City, Okla.
R Foundation for Statistical Computing (RFound). (2008). R Project, version 2.7.1, Vienna.
Rabaud, B., and Rozental-Evesque, M. (2008). “Interactions between polyethylene water pipes and disinfectants used in drinking water treatments: How to characterize the ageing?” Proc., EuroConference, Edinburgh, U.K.
Rigal, S., Kiene, L., and Guillermou, J. -L. (1992). “Study of potential hazards of permeation on site experimentation in Paris.” J. Francais d’Hydrologie., 23(2), 191–200.
Rowe, R. K., Sangam, H. P., and Lake, C. B. (2003). “Evaluation of an HDPE geomembrane after 14 years as a leachate lagoon liner.” Can. Geotech. J., 40, 536–550.
Sangam, H. P., and Rowe, R. K. (2001). “Migration of dilute aqueous organic pollutants through HDPE geomembranes.” Geotext. Geomembr., 19, 329–357.
Sangam, H. P., and Rowe, R. K. (2005). “Effect of surface fluorination on diffusion through high density polyethylene geomembrane.” J. Geotech. Geoenviron. Eng., 131(6), 694–704.
Selleck, R. E., and Marinas, J. M. (1991). “Analyzing the permeation of organic chemicals through plastic pipes.” J. Am. Water Works Assoc., 83(110), 92–97.
Sheu, K., Huang, S. J., and Johnson, J. F. (1989). “Effect of crosslink density on the diffusion of antioxidant in XLPE matrices.” Polym. Eng. Sci., 29(1), 77–81.
Suffet, I. H. (2007). “A re-evaluation of the taste and odor of MTBE (Methyl Tertiary Butyl Ether) in drinking water.” Water Sci. Technol., 55(5), 265–273.
Syracuse Research Corporation. (2009). “CHEMFATE.” ⟨http://srcinc.com/what-we-do/environment.aspx⟩ (January 10, 2009).
Thompson, C., and Jenkins, D. I. (1989). Review of water industry plastic pipe practices, AWWA, Denver, Colo.
Thompson, D., Weddle, S. A., and Maddus, W. O. (1992). Water utility experiences with plastic service lines, AWWA, Denver.
United Kingdom Water Research Limited (UKWIR). (1995). Pipe materials selection manual, 2nd Ed., United Kingdom Water Research, Wilshire, U.K.
Vonk, M. W., and Veenedaal, G. (1983). “Permeation of methylbromide and other chemicals through PE and PVC pipes for drinking water supply.” Water Supply, 2, 61–69.
Wavefunction Inc. (1997). “Spartan chemical.” ⟨http://www.wavefunction.com⟩ (January 10, 2009).
Wunderlich, B. (1980). “Macromolecular physics.” Crystal melting, Vol. 3, Academic, San Diego.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 136 • Issue 2 • February 2010
Pages: 227 - 237
Copyright
© 2010 ASCE.
History
Received: May 14, 2009
Accepted: Aug 19, 2009
Published online: Aug 22, 2009
Published in print: Feb 2010
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.