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Chemical Characterization of Carbonated Natural Mineral Waters Produced in Turkey: Compliance with European Water Quality Standards
Author(s) -
Güler Cüneyt,
Alpaslan Musa
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
clean – soil, air, water
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.444
H-Index - 66
eISSN - 1863-0669
pISSN - 1863-0650
DOI - 10.1002/clen.201000411
Subject(s) - environmental chemistry , fluoride , european union , chemistry , inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry , nitrate , sulfate , chloride , ammonium bicarbonate , population , mass spectrometry , inorganic chemistry , chromatography , raw material , sociology , business , economic policy , organic chemistry , demography
In this study, a total of 100 samples from 25 brands of carbonated natural mineral waters (CNMWs) produced in Turkey were analyzed for a total of 36 water quality constituents to determine their suitability for human consumption. Parameters examined include pH, electrical conductivity, ammonia, nitrate, nitrite, sulfate, sulfite, orthophosphate, chloride, fluoride, bicarbonate, and 25 major/trace elements analyzed by inductively coupled plasma‐mass spectrometry (ICP‐MS). The presence of these constituents in this type of water was investigated considering recent concerns about their quality and the lack of trace element information on the manufacturer labels. The analytical results obtained in this study were compared to the European Union (EU) norms, labeled values on bottles, as well as values from the literature. Results of this study have shown that Turkish CNMWs may contain high concentrations of sulfite, which is a known allergen, especially for chronic asthmatic population. CNMWs surveyed in this study have also appreciable amounts of fluoride (>1.5 mg L −1 ) that may have detrimental effects on health of children. The EU standards for As, Ba, Mn, and Ni were exceeded in seven CNMWs classified as “high mineral”. Compared to similar type of bottled waters from Europe and North America, CNMWs from Turkey generally contained higher elemental concentrations.