she said, though, water contamination was reported for all of the field studies reviewed. As part of her research, Kyungyeon found that although styrene — sus- pected to be a carcinogen — was the chemical most often reported in the 13 incidents studied, acetone, benzene, trimethylbenzenes, among others, were also sometimes found. Chad Jafvert, Ph.D., a professor of civil engineering and environmental and ecological engineering at Purdue, said the purpose of the research is to better understand CIPP risks and incident causes. “This research is being performed to identify any environmental ex- posures from CIPP and find ways to improve the practice to make this technology safer for the environment and for people,” Jafvert said. John Howarter, Ph.D., assistant professor of civil engineering and en- vironmental and ecological engineering at Purdue, echoed the need for more data and open communication regarding the risks of infrastruc- ture repair. “This report summarized data from many independent state agencies; being able to see the big picture will help reduce incident risks,” he said. Based on the research team’s findings, they recommend that those who perform, oversee, and monitor CIPP repairs enact several precautions until more research is conducted. Recommendations include: • Contractors should use impermeable plastic sheets immediately up- stream and downstream of the pipe to prevent materials from entering the environment. • Water flow should be diverted from the pipe until a complete resin cure has been established. This can vary depending on the material used, as well as the thickness of the material, the curing method, the condition of the pipe, and the ambient temperature. • The new CIPP should be rinsed with water and the waste collected. • Nearby waters should be tested before and after the repair for a variety of chemicals, not just styrene. The research was funded by six state transportation agencies under the Transportation Pooled Fund Program. The study follows prior work by several transportation agencies and Purdue University researchers to better understand how to limit chemical emissions and environmental impacts. “Health officials and worker safety professionals will also benefit from this study. Similar construction practices and materials are used for sanitary sewer CIPP installations,” Whelton said. The agencies that supported the pooled fund project include the Virginia Department of Transportation, California Department of Transportation, Kansas Department of Transportation, New York State Department of Transportation, North Carolina Department of Trans- portation, and Ohio Department of Transportation. Additional states that provided information include Alabama, Colo- rado, Delaware, Florida, Iowa, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Mexico,
A common water pipe repair process that uses resin to build a new liner in existing pipe is coming under increased scrutiny because of concerns about environmental and health effects, according to researchers at Purdue University. Photo: Purdue University
Nevada, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. A copy of the research paper is available at https://doi.org/10.1002/ awwa.1042. Purdue University assistant professor AndrewWhelton (left) said that although a process of repairing stormwater culverts has been used for approximately 30 years, still not much is known about the chemicals released into the water during the repairs. Photo: Purdue University
Information provided by Purdue University (www.purdue.edu).
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july 2018
csengineermag.com
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