Molecular Characterization of Dissolved Organic Matter through a Desalination Process by High Resolution Mass Spectrometry

The effect of different water treatments such as ultrafiltration (UF) and reverse osmosis (RO) on dissolved organic matter (DOM) is still unknown. Electrospray ionization Fourier transform orbitrap mass spectrometry has been used to provide valuable information of marine DOM evolution through a desalination process on a molecular scale. In the present manuscript, the characterization of four real composite water samples from a desalination pilot plant installed in the coast of Barcelona (Spain) has been carried out. The sampling was performed on each point of the pilot plant: raw seawater (RSW), UF effluent, brine RO and permeate RO. The mass spectra of the different samples show several thousand peaks, however for the present screening study, only the mass range m/z 200-500 and the main signals in this mass range (relative intensities >= 1%) have been considered. The analysis of RSW and UF samples reveal that there is little effect on DOM by the UF pilot. However, when the water is treated on the RO an important change on DOM has been observed. The recurring periodical patterns found in RSW and UF are lost in Permeate RO sample. Compounds with more aliphatic character, with higher H/C ratio (H/C-av 1.72) are present in the Permeate and some of them have been tentatively identified as fatty acids.