The usefulness of ascorbic acid degradation to analyze the effectiveness of water filtration in household water filter jugs

Introduction :  This study aimed to determine whether the degradation of ascorbic acid in aqueous solutions could be used to compare the filtration efficiency of various household water filter jugs. Materials and methods :  Based on absorbance measurements of ascorbic acid, a new water quality coefficient (WQC) parameter was defined. Differences between the WQC were determined for 4 different water filters commonly used in household water filter jugs in Poland. In addition, correlations between the WQC, the amount of filtered water (AFW), and a number of other parameters were examined for all 4 filters. Conclusions :  Significant differences were found in WQC among the 4 filters. A decreasing efficiency of calcium ion removal from the water was observed with the ongoing use of all 4 filter cartridges. Overall, this method could be a sensitive, simple, fast, eco-friendly, and relatively inexpensive tool for determining the effectiveness of water purification in household water filter jugs, which of course requires further research.