Full Description

Low lead brass alloys comprised of copper-bismuth and selenium-bismuth alloys (SeBiLOY orEnvirobrass, and Federalloy) have been developed for use in potable water applications.These alloys are formed by substituting selenium and bismuth for lead, with these elementsreplicating the high machinability and pressure tightness of leaded brass. SeBiLOY I and II arered brasses and SeBiLOY III is a yellow brass (CDA 2005). Many water utilities throughout theU.S. have begun to proactively specify non-leaded materials for their systems; however, there areseveral knowledge gaps associated with the performance of in-line and premise plumbingcomponents made using these new non-leaded materials. Water utilities need to understand theperformance of these non-leaded components in the field, the associated operations andmaintenance issues that may arise with their use, and their potential for leaching othercompounds into the drinking water. Because the installation of non-leaded brass components hasonly taken place within the last 5 years in the water industry, there is a lack of detailedinformation available. The development and installation of low lead brass components is boundup with the litigation resulting from California's Proposition 65, so background information onthe lead lawsuits is also provided.This paper discusses the history and provisions of California Proposition 65, the so-called"LADWP lawsuit", general motivations for installing utility owned low lead brass componentsin the distribution system, and provides specific experience with these components from the LosAngeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP). Includes 9 references, tables, figures.

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Edition: Vol. - No. Published: 11/01/2006 Number of Pages: 9File Size: 1 file , 410 KB