Chapter 1: Water

Quality

Prepared by:
Farah Hana Mejeni
2014851776
Hydrologic
Cycle
Atmospheric water condenses and falls to earth as rain,
snow or other forms of precipitation.

On earths surface, water flows into streams, lake,

oceans or percolates through soil and aquifers that
eventually discharge into surface water.

Through evaporation from surface water, water

molecules return to the atmosphere and repeat the
cycle.
Hydrologic
Cycle
Continu
e
Water is very pure in evaporation state.
Became impure during condensation because it requires
surface or nuclei.
Additional impurities are added as water travels through
hydrologic cycle and comes contact with materials in the air or
beneath the surface of the earth.
Human activities contribute to impurities in the form of
industrial, domestic wastes, agricultural chemicals and others.
Impurities accumulated in water caused by human activities
can be in dissolved and suspended forms.
Continu
e
Water pollution: presence of impurities in such
quantity and such nature as to impair the use of
the water for a stated purpose.
Water quality: intended use of the water, and a
gross determination of the quantity of suspended
and dissolved impurities
Physical Water
Quality

Suspende
Turbidity Colour
d solids

Temperat
Taste Odour
ure
Suspended solids: solids can be dispersed in water in both
suspended and dissolved forms.

Contains organic and inorganic particles or immiscible

Sources
liquids.
Inorganic solids: Clay, silt & soil constituents
Organic solids: Plant fibres & biological solids

Aesthetically displeasing & provides adsorption sites for

Impacts chemical and biological agents.

Suspended solid may degraded biologically causing
disease.

Measureme Gravimetric test involves mass of residues.

Total solid test quantifies all the solids in suspended
nt &dissolved, organic and inorganic.

Measure the quality of waste water effluent

Uses Monitor several treatment process
Measure quality of the effluent
Turbidity: Measure of the extent to which light is either absorbed or
scattered by suspended material in water which are influenced by
size and surface characteristics of suspended material.

Result from erosion of colloidal material: Clay, silt and rock fragments.

Sources Vegetable fibres and microorganisms may contribute turbidity.

Household and industrial wastewater contains a wide variety of
turbidity causing materials such as soap.

Aesthetically displeasing opaqueness.

Impacts Provides adsorption sites for chemicals that is harmful or caused odour
and taste.

Photometrically by determining the % of light given intensity is absorbed

Measurement or scattered.
Tubidity meter readings: Formazin turbidity units

Measure on clean water.

Uses Turbidity ranging from a few FTU to several hundreds
EPA standards maximum 1 FTU.
Colour: Pure water is colourless, but in nature is often coloured by foreign
substances whose colour is partly due to suspended matter known as apparent
colour. Colour contributed by dissolved solids that remain after removal of
suspended matter is true colour.
Contact with organic debris: leaves, weeds and wood water picks up
tannins, humic acid & humates causing yellowish brown hues.

Sources
Iron oxide=reddish
Manganese oxide=brown or blackish
Industrial waste from textile & dyeing operations, pulp and paper
production, etc.

Aesthetically displeasing to general public

Impacts Affect marketability for domestic and industrial use
Reduce effectiveness chlorine as disinfectant

Comparison with standardized coloured materials.

Measurement Colour comparison tube containing series of standards for direct comparison
Effluent uses spectrophotometric techniques

Uses Indirect measurement of humic substance

Taste & Odour: sensation of taste and smell are closely related because
wide variety of taste and odour in water will impart taste as well.

Minerals, metals and salt from soil, end product from biological
reactions and constituents of waste water.

Sources Inorganic substance produce taste, no odour. Organic substance

produce taste & odour
Alkaline materials imparts bitter taste & metallic salt give salty or
bitter taste.

Impacts
Aesthetically displeasing because water is tasteless and odourless.
Carcinogenic.

Measureme Gas or liquid chromatography

nt
Threshold odour number (TON)

Uses Associate with potable water. Max TON=3 by public health sevice.
Temperature: One of the most important parameter in natural surface
water systems where it governs to a large extent the biological species
present and their rates of activity, chemical reactions and solubility of
gases in water.

Source Ambient temperature, shallow bodies of water are more

affected by this temperature.
Dissipation of water of waste heat in industry

s
Removal of forest canopies and irrigation return flows increase
temperature

Impact
Cooler water have wider diversity of biological species as low
temperature slows the rate of biological activity.
Increase temperature=increase rate of biological activity

s
Affect the reaction rates and solubility levels of chemicals
Affects physical properties of water by increasing its density
and viscosity.
Chemical Water
Quality

Total
dissolved Alkalinity Hardness Fluorides
solids

Metals Organics Nutrients

Total dissolved solid: Material remaining in water after filtration for
the suspended solids analysis is considered to be dissolved.

Results from solvent action of water on solid, liquid and gas.

Sources Inorganic substance: minerals, metals and gases (atmosphere,

surface & soil)
Organic substance: decay of vegetation & organic gas

Impacts
Aesthetically displeasing colour, tastes and odours.
Chemicals may be toxic & carcinogenic

Measurement
Evaporating to dryness a sample of filtered water to remove SS.
Remaining residue is total dissolved solids (TDS)

Uses TDS is included in analysis of water and wastewater only as gross

measurement of the dissolves material.
Alkalinity: quantity of ions in water that will react to neutralize
hydrogen ions. Measure the ability of water to neutralize acids.

Phosphate=detergent in wastewater discharge and fertilizers and

insecticides from agriculture land.

Sources Hydrogen sulphide & ammonia=microbial decomposition of organic

material.
Bicarbonate, carbonate & hydroxide=from carbon dioxide in atmosphere &
microbial decomposition of organic material.

Imparts bitter taste to water.

Impacts Can foul pipes and other water systems appurtenances due to precipitation
caused by the reaction of alkalinity & cations in water.

Measurement
Titrating the water with acid & determine the hydrogen equivalent.

Uses
Analysis of natural waters to determine their buffering capacity.
Process control variable in water and wastewater treatment.
Hardness: concentration of multivalent metallic cations in solution. At supersaturated
conditions, hardness cations react with anion in water to form solid precipitate. Hardness
is divided into carbonate & noncarbonated hardness depending on the anion associates.

Multivalent metallic ion: calcium and magnesium.

Sources Iron, manganese, strontium & aluminium.

Hardness represented by sum of calcium & magnesium ions.

Soap consumption by hard water represents an economic lost to

the water user.
The precipitate formed by hardness & soap adhere to surface of
tubs, sinks & dishwasher & may stain clothing, dishes & etc.
Impacts Residues of hardness soap precipitate may remain in pores, caused
uncomfortable.
Carbonate hardness in boiler can cause fouling of water heater &
pipes.
Magnesium harness caused laxative effect on person.

Measureme Spectrophotometric techniques or chemical titration to determine

the quantity of calcium & magnesium ions in sample.

nt
Hardness can be measured directly by titration of EDTA using EBT
as indicator.

Analysis for hardness is made on natural waters & on waters

Uses intended for potable supplies & for certain industrial uses.
Range from 0 to several hundreds or even thousands ppm.
Colour: Pure water is colourless, but in nature is often coloured by foreign
substances whose colour is partly due to suspended matter known as apparent
colour. Colour contributed by dissolved solids that remain after removal of
suspended matter is true colour.
Contact with organic debris: leaves, weeds and wood water picks up
tannins, humic acid & humates causing yellowish brown hues.

Sources
Iron oxide=reddish
Manganese oxide=brown or blackish
Industrial waste from textile & dyeing operations, pulp and paper
production, etc.

Aesthetically displeasing to general public

Impacts Affect marketability for domestic and industrial use
Reduce effectiveness chlorine as disinfectant

Comparison with standardized coloured materials.

Measurement Colour comparison tube containing series of standards for direct comparison
Effluent uses spectrophotometric techniques

Uses Indirect measurement of humic substance

Fluoride: Associated with a few types of sedimentary or igneous rocks,
fluoride is seldom found in appreciable quantities in surface water &
appears in groundwater in only a few geographical regions.

Sources Associated with a few types on sedimentary & igneous rocks.

Toxic for human & other animals in large quantity, while

small may be beneficial. Concentration of 1 mg/L in
drinking water helps to prevent dental cavities in

Impacts
children.
Excessive intake caused decolouration of teeth called
mottling & bone fluorosis and other skeletal
abnormalities.
Metal: Metals are soluble to some extent in water. Excessive
amount may cause health hazards.

Dissolution from natural

deposits & discharges of
Sources
domestics, industrial or
agricultural wastewaters.

Atomic absorption
Measurement
spectrophometry.
Metal
s
Nontoxic metals Toxic metals

Nontoxic metals: sodium, iron, manganese, aluminium,

copper & zinc.
Toxic metals are harmful to humans & other organisms in
Sodium=the most common nontoxic metal which is abundant
small quantity.
in earths crust.
May be dissolved in water include arsenic, barium, cadmium,
Excessive concentrations cause bitter taste and health
chromium, lead, mercury & silver.
hazard to cardiac & kidney patients.
Traced to mining, industrial or agricultural source.
Sodium is corrosive to metal surface & toxic to plant.
Iron & manganese cause colour, taste & odour problems.
Organics: Soluble in water which comes from the natural sources
or may result from human activities. Natural organics consist of
decay of products of organic solids, synthetic organics in
wastewater discharge & agricultural practices.

Biodegradable organics Non-biodegradable organics

Organic materials resistant to biological degradation.

Organics that can be utilized for food by naturally occurring
microorganisms within reasonable length of time.
In dissolve form, consist of starches, fats, proteins, alcohols,
acids, aldehydes & esters which is the end product of
microbial decomposition of plant or animal tissue or domestic
or industrial wastewater discharge.
Can change colour, taste & odour.
Tannic & lignin acids, cellulose & phenols=Constituents of
woody plants
Molecules with strong bonds & ring structures are non-
biodegradable, ex: alkyl benzene sulfonate
Toxic to organism, contamination of surface streams & severe
problems at higher end food chain.
Measurement of non-biodegradable is by chemical oxygen
demand (COD), total organic carbon (TOC) which measure the
biodegradable fraction of the organics.