Contribution of the FPA tasting panel to decision making about drinking water treatment facilities.

The flavour profile analysis (FPA) panel of Aigües de Barcelona has participated in three engineering projects initiated to improve both the quality of the water supplied and the use of the scarce resources available. The information provided by the panel enables a solid evaluation of the organoleptic quality of the water produced in the facilities, which is very useful in making decisions concerning the development of the projects. The first project refers to the Besòs full scale nanofiltration pilot plant. The study includes characterisation of the organoleptic quality of the water obtained and the behaviour of blends in different proportions with water from the Ter river. Secondly, this article presents the results obtained in El Papiol pilot plant for the reduction of trihalomethanes in water from the Abrera WTP, situated by the Llobregat river. The tasting results indicate that the stripping treatment slightly improves the quality of water, whereas the improvement is more remarkable with carbon filtration. The third project was the reverse osmosis pilot plant installed in the Sant Joan Despi WTP, which also collects water from the Llobregat river. A gradual improvement of the water treated was clearly observed when increasing amounts of reverse osmosis treated water were added. Some trends were also observed according to the characteristics of the feed water to the reverse osmosis facilities.

Taste and odor profiles (off-flavors) in the drinking waters of the Barcelona area (1996-2000).

The Aigües de Barcelona laboratory systematically monitors the organoleptic quality of the water it supplies. The water comes mainly from the Llobregat and Ter rivers, with the two sources having cleary differentiated chemical characteristics. Water is monitored by the tasting panel, which works according to FPA (Flavor Profile Analysis) principles. This paper reports the results from the period 1996-2000: characteristic organoleptic profiles, evolution of descriptors and the overall organoleptic evaluation of the water. The results show that in Llobregat water the descriptors chlorinous, medicinal, rubbery and salty are the most relevant, whereas in Ter water fresh nature/grassy and metallic are. The Aesthetic Quality Index drawn up by our laboratory confirms that Ter water has better organoleptic quality than Llobregat water. Monitoring also found that neither water lost quality significantly within the distribution network.

The panel of Aigües de Barcelona: 15 years of history.

The Aigües de Barcelona Laboratory has been working on odour and taste research in water for 15 years. During the entire period its basic tool has been the FPA (Flavour Profile Analysis) standard method, used by a group of trained tasters. This paper reports the main activities of the panel in recent years, such as the recruitment and training of panellists, the wheel of descriptors used, the Aesthetic Quality Index (AQI) developed for the quality control of water supplies, various research studies, and taste and odour episodes in which it has helped.