Isolation of natural organic matter — The influence on the assimilable organic carbon

The biofilm formation potential (BFP), determined by the assimilable organic carbon (AOC), was measured in water samples containing natural organic matter (NOM), and in “identical” samples reconstructed from NOM isolated by reverse osmosis (RO) and dissolved in distilled water. The results showed identical BFP in natural and reconstructed NOM water samples within the standard deviation of the AOC measurements. These results indicate that the composition of the NOM is the single most important parameter for the BFP of natural waters, and that the RO isolation of NOM produces a powder which, after dissolution in distilled water, is representative for the natural water containing NOM with regard to BFP determined by AOC.