Recently, a series of practical models was developed that can be usedto predict total organic carbon (TOC) breakthrough in granular activated carbon (GAC) absorbers. These models have beensuccessfully applied in a variety of unique situations that may be of interestto researchers, consultants, and others within the drinking water treatmentcommunity. The specific objectives of this presentation are to:demonstrate the practical applicability of the TOC breakthroughmodels; and,increase the general awareness of models within the drinking watercommunity.A brief discussion of model development and validation details is provided,but the focus of this work is on model application and presentation ofcase studies that demonstrate the usefulness and importance of themodels. Data used for model development was extracted from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (USEPA's) InformationCollection Rule (ICR) database. It included 221 individual small-scalebreakthrough tests performed using 35 different water sources. Two types of models were developed. One predicts throughput to a givenbreakthrough percentage (20, 30, ...70%). The other predicts throughput to agiven threshold concentration (1.0, 1.5, or 2.0 mg/L).Models were developed for two bituminous GAC field-scale sizes, 12x40 meshand 8x30 mesh, and two empty bed contact times, 10 and 20 minutes. The onlymodel inputs are values for influent TOC concentration (TOC<sub>0</sub>) and pH.External validation was performed using both small- and field-scale data.The presentation presents objectives, approach, and results for three applications that include: sensitivity analysis; GAC use rate estimation; and, optimization tool. Includes 3 references, tables, figures.
