Influence of biofilm and calcium carbonate scaling on lead transport in plastic potable water pipes: A laboratory and molecular dynamics study

This study investigated lead (Pb) transport through new, biofilm-laden, and calcium carbonate-scaled crosslinked polyethylene (PEX-A) and high-density polyethylene (HDPE) potable water pipes. The research focused on Pb accumulation through short-term exposure incidents (6 h) and Pb release for a longer duration (5 d). A mechanistic investigation of the surface morphology variations of plastic pipes following biofilm and scale formation has been conducted. The nanoscale surface asperities in new PEX-A pipes and microscale roughness features in new HDPE pipes supported the differences in biofilm abundance, scale formation, and metal uptake results between these two pipes. Biomass analysis and dissolved organic matter (DOM) quantification using three-dimensional excitation emission spectroscopy revealed a greater release of biofilm biomass during the Pb accumulation and release experiments from biofilm-laden HDPE pipes. Both biofilm-laden plastic pipes accumulated a significantly greater level of Pb compared to the new and scaled pipes. However, scaled pipes showed the highest Pb release, while biofilm-laden pipes released the least. Additionally, investigation of Pb2+ exchange from the pipe surface in the presence of Ca2+ in the solution indicated that divalent cations in water can trigger further Pb release from the pipe surface. Furthermore, the molecular dynamics simulation provided valuable insights into the interaction between different pipe surfaces with Pb with respect to affinity and binding energy. [Display omitted] •Biofilm-laden pipes accumulate the most lead; scaled pipes release the most.•Low pH and divalent cations in solution facilitate lead release from plastic pipe surfaces.•Nanoscale surface irregularities of PEX-A pipes compared to microscale surface features of HDPE pipes facilitated more lead uptake.