The Hach SL1000 Cuts Chloramination Testing Time by 75%!

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The Hach SL1000 Cuts Chloramination Testing Time by 75%!

05/21/2024 Technical Article, Testing

Get up to speed on the Hach® SL1000® and learn how faster, easier testing can improve your day-to-day operations. We'll review how to avoid nitrification, what the chloramination curve is, and how the new SL1000 significantly speeds up testing compared to older methods.

Understanding Nitrification and Its Potential Dangers

What is nitrification? During water treatment and processing, nitrite and nitrates are created when nitrifying bacteria perform the biological oxidation of ammonia. Though it’s important to keep your ammonia, chloramines, chlorine, nitrate and nitrites in equilibrium, changing environments, chemical concentration, and other factors such as warmer temperatures and low water usage can put your system at risk of a nitrification event. Excess ammonia from source water, treatment addition or chloramine breakdown can result in nitrification. This excess can lead to biofilm growth, poor water quality and even boil orders.

Ammonia is present in drinking water naturally or added during secondary disinfection. Chloramination, the process of mixing chlorine and ammonia, provides better disinfection from source to tap than chlorine alone and prevents harmful disinfection by-product formation (DBPs). Operators can use various methods to avoid nitrification, including replacing aging infrastructure, but monitoring water quality via testing is critical to understanding chloramination and where you are on the breakpoint chlorination curve. Optimizing chloramination is necessary to maintain proper monochloramine levels for disinfection and avoid nitrification.

Understanding where you are on the curve is vital for providing high-quality drinking water. Conditions change throughout different times of the year resulting in varying influent levels, biomass, and temperature. Part of staying in line with the curve is knowing your chemical concentration and biomass levels while testing for monochloramine, free and total chlorine, ammonia, nitrates, nitrites, and other nitrogen compounds. The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Analyzer (PPA) is the best choice for busy operators to save time and reduce waste when process testing.

What’s New in Chloramination Testing: Colorimetric and Probe Testing

Even today, many operators practice the traditional method of testing with a colorimeter, disposable powder pillows, solutions, and glass beakers and test tubes. This method only allows one parameter to be tested at a time, resulting in repeated steps. The older method can still be useful, but the added complexity, instruments, disposal and clean-up can greatly increase the time spent and the potential for mistakes while testing. In contrast, the Hach SL1000 combines colorimetric and probe testing, requiring fewer bulky accessories like powder pillows or glass vials.

A process that took 30-40 minutes to test a single sample can be done in just 8 minutes using the Hach SL1000. The time savings becomes exponential when accounting for the size of an operation, and the average plant can see immediate benefits with a system that uses less labor, steps, and manual entry. The Hach SL1000 is another innovative step toward performance and reducing complexity and potential mistakes when reporting. This single instrument combines colorimetric and probe testing, giving operators the confidence to trust their results and reduces the number of samples needed, steps to test and potential for mistakes.

The Old Method Works. Why Is This Better?

The Hach SL1000 helps operators to continue focusing on important tasks by delivering consistent, repeatable results throughout the entire process, instead of relying on paper, powder pillows, colorimeters, and manual steps that introduce variability. With the SL1000, operators only need one instrument, one water sample, and the right Chemkeys®. The results are saved to the device and can be easily recorded in your database. The Hach SL1000 simultaneously measures up to 6 different parameters using chemkeys reagents and electrodes, delivering results 75% faster with less opportunity for error.

SL1000

The EPA-approved Chemkeys easily slide into the bottom of the instrument and contain all necessary chemistries and reagents, meaning you don’t have to do any methodical measuring or waiting. This automated procedure reduces the risk of human error and lessens the amount of waste and materials needed for ordinary testing.  To make things easier, the Hach SL1000 only requires one water sample to test for any of the compatible methods. Parts are easily replaceable, with modular components and accessories ensuring an operator won't need to spend excess time or money fixing their instruments.

All of this adds up to an extraordinary amount of time saved when using the Hach SL1000 and its entire testing suite. The manual processes associated with older testing methodologies can lead to costly delays, poor reporting data, and unnecessary headaches. The Hach SL1000 performs the same tests with fewer manual steps, leading to highly accurate results in a shorter time frame.

Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Analyzer Equipment Guide

The Hach SL1000 is available to purchase separately or as a kit with everything you need to start testing, right out of the box. It's designed to perform up to 6 tests in under half the time with minimal manual steps. Chemkeys are color-coded and labeled, allowing an operator to quickly identify the parameters they’re testing for. Each Hach SL1000 is rechargeable and can perform up to 200 tests before charging.

Making the switch to the Hach SL1000 is the easy choice when you find yourself struggling with excessive manual testing and reporting. The machine saves time, money, and energy while delivering foolproof results while being easily portable and user-friendly. It’s a single instrument that combines colorimetric and probe-based testing without bulky accessories or extra time spent cleaning and collecting more water samples. Chemkey reagents are EPA-approved and pre-loaded with chemistries and reagents, lessening bulk waste and materials required for multi-parameter testing, including drinking water disinfection.

The SL1000 PPA Portable Parallel allows for faster and more efficient testing of up to six parameters simultaneously. This feature highlights its capability to test multiple parameters with high accuracy, reduced manual steps, and faster testing times.