NSF/ANSI/CAN 60 Drinking Water Treatment Chemicals - Health Effects

The “NSF/ANSI/CAN 60 Drinking water treatment chemicals - Health effects” standard, developed jointly by the National Sanitation Foundation (NSF) and the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), describes the requirements for the transportation and delivery of drinking water treatment chemicals.

This standard is routinely monitored and updated by a joint committee comprised equally of public health experts, end users, and industry members.

This standard contains health effect requirements for drinking water treatment chemicals that are added directly to water and are intended to be present in finished water. This standard also contains health effect requirements for other chemical products that are added directly to water but are not intended to be present in finished water.

Chemicals covered by this standard include, but are not limited to:

• Coagulation and flocculation chemicals
• Softening, sedimentation, sequestration and pH adjustment chemicals
• Corrosion and scale control chemicals
• Disinfection and oxidation chemicals
• Various treatment chemicals
• Various water supply chemicals

In recognition of the fact that indigenous microorganisms may be present in drinking water, products resulting from the deliberate introduction of microorganisms for the treatment of drinking water are outside the scope of this standard. Also outside the scope of this standard are contaminants produced as by-products from the reaction of a treatment chemical with a component of the treated water.

Chemicals or mixtures of chemicals used for the various purposes discussed in this standard, but not specifically referenced, are acceptable as long as they meet the requirements of this standard.

When determining compliance with the specifications in this standard, ASTM E29-22 Standard Practice for Using Significant Figures in Test Data to Determine Compliance with Specifications is followed. When data is rounded, the rounding procedure in this standard is used.

For the purposes of this standard, the following terms and definitions apply:

• The analytical summary is a list of analytical procedures, both clinical and microbiological, selected to determine whether a product complies with the requirements of this standard.
• The term "on tap" refers to the point of delivery of potable water.
• A mixture is a treatment product made up of two or more separate chemicals that do not react with each other.
• A blender is a producer that produces a physical mixture of two or more components. The mixture can be further diluted with potable water. The definition of blender relates to physical mixtures of components, not to chemical products produced by chemical reaction in mixing processes.
• Bulk transfer facilities are a facility where a source product is transferred from one bulk vessel to another, with or without intermediate product storage.
• A by-product is a pollutant produced secondary to the production of the parent compound.
• A chain of custody is a record that documents the existence of positive control and security over an item, with countersignatures or other approvals at each stage of the transition of control/security responsibility.
• A chemical stock is a store or supply accumulated or available for production.
• A contaminant is any physical, chemical, biological or radiological substance in water. A contaminant may have a beneficial or detrimental effect on the drinkability of water.
• A diluent is a manufacturer that produces a product consisting of a single source product diluted with water to a specific concentration.
• A direct additive is any of a drinking water treatment chemical and contaminant added directly to water during drinking water production.
• Evaluation dose is the concentration of a direct additive used to evaluate impurities introduced into drinking water.

Direct additives should be evaluated and tested in accordance with Annexes A and B. The single product allowable concentration of a contaminant should be calculated as specified in Annex A. In accordance with the provisions of this standard, a product shall not contribute any contaminant to drinking water that exceeds the single product allowable concentration of the contaminant.

According to this standard, direct additives are:

• The treatment or water supply product itself
• Product specific contaminants listed in each product section of this standard
• Other ingredients identified in the formulation review

The manufacturer must provide at least the following information for each product:

• The maximum recommended use level for the product that is consistent with the requirements of Annex A.
• Full formulation information including:
  • Composition of the formulation (in percentages or parts by weight for each chemical in the formulation).
  • The reaction mixture used in the production of the chemical, if any.
  • The chemical summary number (CAS number), chemical name, and supplier for each chemical contained in the formulation.
  • List of known or suspected impurities in the treatment chemical formulation and the maximum percentage or parts by weight of each impurity.
  • Source and type of water used in the production of the treatment chemical and, if applicable, existing documentation on quality monitoring of this water source.
• A description or classification of the process by which the treatment chemical is manufactured, processed, and packaged.
• Selected spectra (e.g. UV/visible, infrared) are required for some additive products or their key components.
• A list of published and unpublished toxicological studies on the treatment chemical and the chemicals and impurities contained in the treatment chemical, when required by Annex A.

The formulation information provided by the manufacturer is reviewed and this review identifies formulation-related contaminants to be evaluated in addition to the product-specific analytes identified in each product section.

If the finished product contains water, the formulation information provided by the manufacturer is reviewed to determine if the water source used in the production of the finished product requires testing.

Water sources that require testing include, but are not limited to: untreated surface water, untreated groundwater, untreated rainwater, and water collected from other untreated sources. Testing of water sources includes analyses for: metals, volatile organic compounds, base/neutral/acid screening, radionuclides, herbicides/pesticides, and dioxin/furan screening.

Our organization has a strong staff that closely follows the developments in the world in the field of science and technology and constantly improves itself. Among the numerous test, measurement, analysis and evaluation studies provided for businesses in various sectors, there are also testing services in accordance with the "NSF/ANSI/CAN 60 Drinking water treatment chemicals - Health effects" standard.