What does pH represent? What class of pollutants pH designed to quantify? What methods are currently used to quantify pH? Describe the harmful effects of extreme levels of pH within the environment? What are the current standards for pH for treated wastewater or sewage in Jamaica? The pH is a measure of how acidic (H+) or basic (-OH) a solution is. The pH stands for “potential hydrogen” which refers to the amount of hydrogen that is mixed with the water. A scale with values ranging from below 0 to above 14 is used to measure pH.
More acidic More basic
Neutral The pH of water determines the solubility (amount that can be dissolved in the water) and biological availability (amount that can be utilized by aquatic life) of chemical constituents such as nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen, and carbon) and heavy metals (lead, copper, cadmium, etc.). For example, in addition to affecting how much and what form of phosphorus is most abundant in the water, pH also determines whether aquatic life can use it. In the case of heavy metals, the degree to which they are soluble determines their toxicity. Metals tend to be more toxic at lower pH because they are more soluble. As a chemical component of the wastewater, pH has direct influence on wastewater treatability — regardless of whether treatment is physical/chemical or biological. Wastewater treatment often consists of removing heavy metals and/or organic compounds from effluent streams. pH adjustment by addition of acidic/basic chemicals is an important part of any wastewater treatment system as it allows dissolved waste to be separated from water during the treatment process. By chemically adjusting the pH we can remove heavy metals and other toxic metals from water. In most runoff or wastewater, metal and other contaminants are dissolved and will not settle out. If we raise the pH, the amount of negative hydroxide ions, the positively charged metal ions will form bonds with the negatively charged hydroxide ions. This creates a dense, insoluble, metal particle that can settle out of wastewater given time or be filtered out manually using a filter press. At an acidic pH the excess of positive hydrogen and metal ions have nothing to bond with and float around in the water, never settling. At a neutral pH the hydrogen ions are bonded with the hydroxide ions to form water while the metal ions remain. At a basic pH the excess hydroxide ions bond with the metal ions to form metal hydroxides which can be removed through filtering or settling. The pH of water can be used to kill off bacteria in wastewater in addition to the treatment mentioned above. Most organic matter and bacteria we are familiar with and contact daily are best suited to a neutral or slightly basic environment. At an acidic pH the excess hydrogen ions begin to form bonds with and break down the cell, slowing their growth or killing them outright. After a wastewater treatment cycle the pH must be raised back to neutral by use of additional chemicals or it will continue to damage any living cell it contacts metal hydroxides which can be removed through filtering or settling. A pH meter is an instrument used to measure acidity or alkalinity of a solution - also know as pH. After inserting the probe into the sample, wait for the reading to remain constant. Excessively high and low pHs can be detrimental for the use of water. High pH causes a bitter taste, water pipes and water-using appliances become encrusted with deposits, and it depresses the effectiveness of the disinfection of chlorine, thereby causing the need for additional chlorine when pH is high. Low-pH water will corrode or dissolve metals and other substances. Pollution can change a water's pH, which in turn can harm animals and plants living in the water. For instance, water coming out of an abandoned coal mine can have a pH of 2, which is very acidic and would definitely affect aquatic life. Excess Carbon Dioxide production as a result of burning fossil fuels increases the amount of acid rain in the atmosphere. When this rain comes down it kills trees and fish by changing the pH values of their habitat. This affects humans indirectly by limiting the amount of oxygen that can be recycled back into the atmosphere and in our dependency on fish as food or fish meal.