Variations of Bromide in Potable Ground Water in the United States

Abstract

Concentrations of bromide in potable ground water that has <10 mg/L chloride range from 0.0032 to 0.058 mg/L with a median value of 0.016 mg/L. The chloride/bromide mass ratio for the same water ranges from 43 to 285 with a median value of 101. The ratios, which resulted from screening approximately 165 analyses of water from 32 locations in 24 states in the United States, show a distinct geographic variation with highest values near the coast and trending toward a value of approximately 50 in the continental interior.