Carbon  is commonly used for removing organic constituents and residual disinfectants in water supplies. This not only improves taste and minimizes health hazards; it protects other water treatment units such as reverse osmosis membranes and ion exchange resins from possible damage due to oxidation or organic fouling. Activated carbon is a favored water treatment technique because of its multifunctional nature and the fact that it adds nothing detrimental to the treated water.