AWWA standards for single-use ion exchange and manganese oxide filter media

Water utilities rely on treatment equipment and materials that perform consistently and meet clearly defined requirements. Industry standards play an important role in establishing expectations, providing utilities, engineers, manufacturers, and regulators with a common foundation for selecting and specifying treatment technologies.

In a recent Journal AWWA article, “AWWA Standards for Single-Use Ion Exchange and Manganese Oxide Filter Media,” Carollo’s John Civardi and co-author Jon Reuther explore two new standards designed to provide that guidance: AWWA B104 for single-use ion exchange (IX) and AWWA B103 for manganese oxide filter media.

A New AWWA Standard for Single-Use Ion Exchange

Ion exchange has become an increasingly important drinking water treatment technology, particularly as utilities address contaminants such as PFAS.

Single-use IX resins capture contaminants as water passes through small resin beads. Once the media reaches its capacity, it is removed and disposed of rather than regenerated on-site. This approach can offer a smaller treatment footprint and avoids producing the liquid waste associated with regenerable resins.

As PFAS regulations and treatment needs expanded, utilities increasingly turned to single-use IX. However, there was no AWWA standard establishing consistent requirements for the technology.

AWWA B104 helps fill that gap. The standard covers single-use IX treatment for PFAS, perchlorate, hexavalent chromium, uranium, and radium and provides guidance on media requirements, system design, testing, commissioning, operation, and troubleshooting.

The standard also addresses pilot and bench-scale testing, which can help utilities evaluate treatment performance and establish design and operating parameters before moving to full-scale implementation.

Establishing Standards for Manganese Oxide Filter Media

AWWA B103 addresses another widely used treatment technology: manganese oxide filter media.

These media are commonly used in pressure and gravity filters to remove contaminants such as iron, manganese, radium, arsenic, and hydrogen sulfide. As newer manganese oxide media replaced traditional manganese greensand products, the industry needed updated guidance that reflected the range of products now available.

Rather than prescribing identical physical and chemical properties for every product, B103 requires manufacturers to provide key information about their media, including physical characteristics, operational limitations, and design and commissioning requirements.

The standard also provides clearer requirements for sampling and testing media delivered for a specific project, helping utilities confirm that installed products have consistent properties and can perform as intended.

Supporting Consistency in Water Treatment Design

Together, B103 and B104 give utilities and engineers a more consistent framework for evaluating, specifying, installing, and operating these treatment technologies.

As the authors explain, standards are becoming valuable throughout the project lifecycle, not simply during specification development. They can inform planning and design, support construction and commissioning, guide operations and maintenance, and provide regulators with a consistent reference when evaluating treatment systems.

As treatment technologies and regulations continue to evolve, standards like B103 and B104 can help translate industry experience into practical guidance that utilities can apply to future projects.

Read the full article in Journal AWWA to learn more about the development of these new standards and how they can support single-use ion exchange and manganese oxide treatment applications.