DAVID A. COZZIE. Characterization of the Mutagenicity Formed During The Reaction Of Monochloramine And Fulvic

DAVID A. COZZIE. Characterization of the Mutagenicity Formed During The Reaction Of Monochloramine And Fulvic Acid. (Under the Direction of Dr. LOUISE M. BALL) Monochloramine has been recommended as an alternative disinfectant to chlorine to aid in reducing production of THMs. This study sought to develop an effective protocol for recovery of mutagenic by-products from chloramination of fulvic acid solutions and then to characterize the mutagens present. Three methods of recovery were used: resin adsorption, lyophilization, and liquid-liquid extraction. Liquid-liquid extraction at low pH (pH=2) proved to be the most effective method of recovery. The total activity was 19% of that formed by chlorination of humic materials. The mutagens formed were direct-acting in nature and induced base-pair substitutions. Glutathione greatly reduced the activity present. BSA had a limited effect. HPLC fractionations to separate the compounds showed the most mutagenic activity to be in the most polar fraction. Efforts to determine the presence of the strong mutagen MX showed MX could account for as much as one-third of the total mutagenic activity formed by the reaction of monochloramine and fulvic acid.