Objective To establish a scientific and objective index of drinking water quality and to make it in accord with the actual situation in Shanghai. It may lay a foundation for the information construction of drinking water.
Methods After the properties of drinking water quality in Shanghai were taken into consideration, proper water quality indices were chosen and then calculated by using water quality testing data in Shanghai into a theory based on the comparison and adjustment of several different calculating theories of water quality index.
Results Five different water quality indices were calculated by using water quality testing data in Shanghai, the index calculated in the modified "penalty term" calculating method could reflect the actual situation of water quality. The above conclusion was also verified by the results of the five colors grade classification method.
Conclusion The new index of drinking water quality should be calculated as follows:use the "penalty term" calculating method based on the YUAN Zhi-bin method and modified according to the new edition of "Standards for drinking water quality". This method accords with the actual situation of water quality in Shanghai in that the contribution of all the items to the index has been considered and the influence of exceed-limit-items on drinking water quality has been shown by adding ‘penalty term’. The new index is also easy to understand by taking the five colors grade classification method as reference.
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