TPT July 2007

Increased safety for pipe systems for potable water

the predetermined parameters, while data is continuously monitored, collected and documented by means of a data logging system. SKZ is contributing its expertise in the area of pipe systems for potable water supply and house installations. The company has many years’ experience in testing, supervising and certifying products and companies in the plastic industry. With the newly developed IPT unit, important knowledge will be gained regarding the long-term behaviour of these systems under the influence of complex chemical and physical conditions. The project will be supported directly by the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology (BMWi). Süddeutsches Kunststoff-Zentrum (SKZ) – Germany Fax : +49 931 4104 277 Email : j.wuest@skz.de Website : www.skz.de IPT Institut für Prüftechnik Gerätebau GmbH & Co KG – Germany Fax : +49 8237 966 481 Email : rainererdhofer@iptnet.org Website : www.iptnet.org

The quality requirements for drinking water are defined in various international standards. It has become common practice to disinfect potable water in order to eliminate possible health risks. Disinfection with chlorine has been proven as reliable and cost-effective, and has therefore become the most common treatment. However, an important consideration is how the chlorination might affect the service life of pipe systems. A project has been initiated

to research the long-term effects of chlorine on plastic pipe systems. This project is being organised by two professional institutions renowned for testing methods for plastics: the Süddeutsche Kunststoff-Zentrum (SKZ), Germany, an independent testing and research institute for plastics and plastics products, and IPT Institut für Prüftechnik Gerätebau GmbH & Co KG, a developer and manufacturer of test equipment for the plastic pipe industry.

fi Chlorine has become a common treatment for disinfecting drinking water

IPT’s specialists are designing and manufacturing suitable state-of-the-art equipment to provide the project with a test unit that will produce reliable results. Using this equipment, a sustained pressure test on pipe systems can be performed over a range of temperatures using chlorinated medium. During the entire test duration the pH level and free-chlorine concentration of the test fluid is measured and regulated to

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J uly /A ugust 2007