Performance of household water desalinations devices and health risks assessment of fluorides (F⁻) and nitrate (NO₃⁻) in input and output water of the devices in Behbahan City southwest Iran

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate the performance of household water desalination and the health risks of NO₃⁻ and F⁻ in the input and output water of the desalination device in Behbahan City. The results show that the fluoride concentration (0.22 ± 0.07 mg/L) was not within the acceptable standard. Residual-free chlorine concentration was below the detection limit, and output of the water of 15 devices was contaminated by total coliforms. The highest and lowest removal ratio was 80.4% observed from TDS and 45% observed from sodium, respectively. The results of health risk assessment showed that 2–6-year-old children face the highest health risks due to exposure to nitrate and fluoride through drinking water intake. The hazard quotients (HQ) of nitrate and fluoride for children were 0.5 and 0.67 before desalination and 0.24 and 0.18 after it, respectively. The results indicated that HQ of these devices decreased 50% of the hazard quotient of NO₃⁻ and over 70% of fluorides and their non-carcinogenic risks sharply after the use of the devices. The findings may provide helpful information for stockholders and decision-making as to drinking water with high health risk of nitrate and fluoride, especially in arid and semiarid regions.

Keywords:

• household water desalination devices
• fluorides and nitrate
• health risk assessment

Acknowledgment

The results presented in this study are from performed research project at Behbahan Faculty of Medical Sciences.