WATER QUALITY

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 1

“..IT IS THE NATIONAL GOAL THAT THE
DISCHARGE OF POLLUTANTS INTO
NAVIGABLE WATERS BE ELIMINATED BY
1985…”

U.S. Congress, PL 92-500, 1972

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 2

 WASTEWATER

 It is the term for discarded or

previously used water from municipality
or industry.

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 3

 WATER POLLUTION
 Any condition caused by human activity
adversely affects the quality of a stream,
lake, ocean or source of groundwater.
 The presence of any harmful chemical or
other constituent present in concentration
above the naturally occurring background
level.
 Contaminants that adversely affect the use of
natural water for human consumption or that
hurt any aquatic life or other wildlife that may
rely on the water.
DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 4
 BENEFICIAL USES OF WATER

 Power plant uses

 Industrial uses
 Agricultural uses
 Recreational uses

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 5

 Need for Testing Water Quality

 For drinking water: to assess safety and

palatability of water for consumption
 For raw water resource:to select treatment
treatment systems; to establish pollution control
monitoring systems.
 For wastewaters: to select type and degree of
treatment; to control treatment plant operation.
 For receiving waters: to evaluate their ability to
accept pollution loads; to monitor self-
purification.
DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 6
 MEASURING WATER QUALITY
Types of Examination
 Physical Examination: to determine aesthetic
quality
 Chemical Examination: to test for chemical which
affect the water quality and/or which indicative
pollution.
 Bacteriological Examination: to test for the
presence of bacterial indicators of pollution and
hence safety for consumption.
 Biological Examination: to determine the causes
of objectionable odors, clogging of filters, etc.
DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 7
 SOME SALIENT WATER QUALITY
PARAMETERS

 Temperature
 Turbidity
 Odors and Tastes
 Color
 pH
 Alkalinity and Acidity
 Chlorides
 Nitrogen compounds (organic N, ammonia N, nitrite N,
nitrate N)
 Hardness
DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 8
 SOME SALIENT WATER QUALITY
PARAMETERS

 Fluorides
 Iron and Manganese
 Sulfates
 Residual Chlorine
 Total Dissolved Solids
 Dissolved Oxygen
 Biochemical Oxygen Demand
 Chemical Oxygen Demand
 Coliforms
DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 9
 TEMPERATURE
Surface waters fluctuate in temperature with
season; in groundwaters there is only a small
variation.
 Significance:
 warm waters taste flat
 Influences rates of chemical and biological
activities
 Influences the saturation values of dissolved gases
 Heat pollution
 Fish kill when more than 30 - 35oC.

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 10

 TURBIDITY
Turbidity represents lack of clearness in
water (measure of interference
presented by suspended matter to
passage of light).

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 11

 TURBIDITY
Turbidity is due to:
 clay, silt, finely divided organic matter,
microorganisms

Water in:
 lakes and ponds: less turbid

 rivers: more turbid

 wells: low turbidity

Turbidity is not to be confused with true color!

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 12
 TURBIDITY

Significance:
 Aesthetic consideration

 Influences disinfection

 affects filtrability

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 13

 ODORS AND TASTES
Odors are caused by volatile substances associated with:
 oragnic matter (decaying)

 living organisms (algae)

 gases (hydrogen sulfide, chlorine)

Measurement of odor intensity: Threshold Odor Number

Tastes are caused by:

 chlorides and sulfates of calcium, magnesium and
sodium
 organisms (algae)

 industrial waste

Measurement of taste: Threshold taste Number

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 14
 pH
 pH: Common logarithm of the reciprocal of
hydrogen ion concentration
 pH is an intensity factor.
 pH = 7: Neutral
 pH < 7: Acidic
 pH > 7: Alkaline
 pH of most raw water sources: 6.5 - 8.5

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 15

 pH
Significance:
 Influences chemical reactions (in coagulation,
softening, disinfection, etc.)
 Corrosion problems (low pH)

 Many industrial waters require rigid pH control

 Optimum pH required for fish and other aquatic

life
 Sudden pH changes affect aquatic life

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 16

 ALKALINITY
 Capability to neutralize acids; Expressed in mg/L
as CaCO3.
 Most waters are alkaline because alkaline salts are
common in ground
 Alkalinity in water is due to:
 carbonates
 Bicarbonates
 Hydroxides
 Hydroxides are generally never present in natural
waters. Alkalinity is mostly due to bicarbonates of
Ca, Mg and Na.
DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 17
 ALKALINITY
Significance:
 Important in water treatment (especially
coagulation)
 In industrial waters: deposits, corrosion of steam

lines, cloudiness in ice, off flavors in beverages

and food products
 Many industrial waters require rigid pH control

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 18

 ACIDITY
 Less significant when compared to alkalinity
 Acid rain, water becoming acidic in some
treatment processes, etc.

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 19

 CHLORIDES
 Chlorides are present in all water sources.
 Chlorides get into water from:
 mineral deposits
 domestic wastewater discharges
 industrial wastewaters
 Irrigation drainage
 Human excreta (urine) contains chloride, about
6g/capita.d

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 20

 CHLORIDES
Significance:
 Undesirable taste

 Contributes to non-carbonate hardness

 In industrial waters: deposits, corrosion under

boiler conditions, affects ice, undesirable for

beverages and food products
 Natural waters have a uniform chloride content.
An increase above the normal chloride level is an
index of pollution by domestic wastewaters.

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 21

 NITROGEN COMPOUNDS
 Organic nitrogen
 Animal tissue is richer in nitrogen than plant tissues.
So, higher concentration indicates pollution by wastes
of animal origin.
 Characteristic of recent pollution
 Ammonia nitrogen
 Initial product of decomposition, and hence indication
of recent pollution
 Always found in sewage polluted waters
 Toxic to fish

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 22

 NITROGEN COMPOUNDS
 Nitrite nitrogen
 Oxidation product of ammonia nitrogen (Intermediate
product)
 Nitrites are easily and rapidly converted to nitrates,
hence indication of active biological processes

 Nitrate nitrogen
 End product of decomposition of organic matter

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 23

 NITRATES
 Occurs in water from:
 fertilizer use

 decayed vegetable and organic matter

 domestic effluents

 sewage sludge disposal to land

 industrial discharges

 leachate from solid waste landfills

 atmospheric washouts

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 24

 NITRATES
 Significance:
 infantile methaemoglobinaemia

 carcinogenicity of nitrosamines

 eutrophication of lakes

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 25

 HARDNESS
 Common in groundwater.
 Water is hard when it does not readily form lather with
soap.
 Hardness in water is due to:
 calcium (Ca) and magnesium (Mg)

 Carbonate hardness: due to carbonates and

bicarbonates of Ca and Mg
 Non-carbonate hardness: due to chlorides and sulpfates

of Ca and Mg

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 26

 HARDNESS
Significance:
 scale build-up in boilers and hot water systems

 excessive soap usage

 fuel wastage

 poor cleaning of clothes and reduced fabric life

 health effects: minor: dishpan hands, laxative

effects. Soft water: cardiovascular diseases?

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 27

 IRON AND MANGANESE
 Common in groundwater.
 Iron
 from soil, rock and plant matter
 from pipes; from coagulants
 Significance:
 stains plumbing fixtures and clothes
 growth of filamentous iron bacteria (crenothrix) in pipe
lines (red water complaints)
 corrosion of pipe lines
 taste and odor problems
DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 28
 IRON AND MANGANESE
 Manganese:
 though often associated with iron, less common
 troublesome even in small quantities
 problems similar to iron - black water complaints

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 29

 SULFATES
 Occurs in water from:
 solvent action of water on gypsum and others like
epsom salt
 decomposition of organic matter

 industrial wastewaters

 atmospheric SO (acid rain)

2
 Significance:
 laxative effects

 tastes

 affects ice

 scales in boilers

 hardness
DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 30
 FLOURIDES
 Occurs in water from:
 fluoride-containing minerals in the ground

 industries (fertilizers, bricks, ceramics, pharmaceutical

products)

 Significance:
 less than 1 mg/L: dental caries

 more than 1.5 mg/L: mottling of enamel of teeth

 3 to 6 mg/L: skeletal fluorosis

 more than 10 mg/L: crippling skeletal fluorosis

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 31

 DISSOLVED OXYGEN
 Oxygen-content of water
 Biological decomposition of organic matter uses up the
dissolved oxygen.
 Hence DO is the most important single criterion indicating
the sanitary condition of water.
 Water deficient in DO is likely to be polluted with organic
matter (Groundwater)
 Significance:
 Measure of the impact of oxidizable wastes in water

 Lack of DO affects fish and aquatic life

 Measure of progess of self-purification in rivers

 Influences solution and precipitation of of metals like Al and

Fe
 For determining biochemical oxygen demand of wastewaters
DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 32
 OXYGEN DEMAND

 A term for the amount of oxygen

required to oxidize a waste.
 An indirect measure of the amount of
organic (or carbon-containing)
impurities in water.
 It is important consideration because it
can deplete the oxygen in a stream or
lake, harming aquatic life.

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 33

 BIOLOGICAL OXYGEN
DEMAND (BOD)
 BOD is a measure of the DO required for the
utilization of organic matter as food by the aerobic
microorganisms.
 BOD test evaluates the loss of oxygen that
accompanies the decomposition induced and
maintained by the aerobic organisms.
 BOD is measured by DO determination before and
after an incubation period of 5 days at 20oC
 BOD is an indirect measure of the amount of readily
biodegradable organic matter.
 It is a measure of the strength of wastewater.

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 34

 BIOLOGICAL OXYGEN
DEMAND (BOD)
Significance:
 Pollutional strength of domestic and
indutrial wastewaters
 In stream pollution control activities

 Evaluation of self-purification capacity of

receiving waters
 Assessing efficiency of wastewater

treatment processes wastewater.

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 35

 CHEMICAL OXYGEN DEMAND
(COD)
 COD is obtained by oxidizing the waste with
boiling acid dichromate solution.
 In a COD test, 95% of organic matter is
oxidized, and results are available within 3
hours.

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 36

 CHEMICAL OXYGEN DEMAND
(COD)
Significance:
 COD test provides no information on the
proportion of waste that can be oxidized by
microorganism.
 It does not distinguish between stable and

unstable organic matter.

 It is very useful for wastewaters containing

toxic substances.

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 37

 TOTAL DISSOLVED SOLIDS
(TDS)
 TDS represents mainly inorganic substances
Principal constituents are: bicarbonates, chlorides and
sulfates of Ca, Mg, and Na.
 There is generally an increase of hardness with TDS.

Significance:
 Taste

 Laxative effects

 Indication of hardness

 Waters with high TDS not desirable for indusries

Conductivity test for rapid and rough determination of TDS

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 38
 TOTAL SOLIDS (TS)

 The amount of organic and inorganic material in a

water.

TS = mcf – mci
V
Where:
TS = total solids (mg/L)
mci = initial crucible mass (mg)
mcf = crucible mass after drying at 103oC (mg)
V = sample volume (L)

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 39

 VOLATILE SOLIDS (VS)

 The amount of matter that volatilizes (or burns)

when heated to 550oC.

VS = mcf – mcx
V
Where:
VS = volatile solids (mg/L)
mcx = crucible mass after ignition at 550oC (mg)
mcf = crucible mass after drying at 103oC (mg)
V = sample volume (L)

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 40

 Total Suspended Solids (TSS)

 The amount of matter suspended in the water

TSS = mff – mfi

V
Where:
TSS = total suspended solids (mg/L)
mfi = initial filter mass (mg)
mff = filter mass after drying at 103oC (mg)
V = sample volume (L)

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 41

 Volatile Suspended Solids
(VSS)

 The difference between the initial filter weight (from

the TSS determination) and the filter weight after
ignition 550oC divided by the sample volume.

VSS = mff – mfx

V
Where:
VSS = volatile suspended solids (mg/L)
mff = filter mass after drying at 103oC (mg)
mfx = filter mass after ignition at 550oC (mg)
V = sample volume (L)
DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 42
 Fixed Suspended Solids (FSS)

 The matter remaining from the suspended

solid analysis.
 It is unburnable at 550oC.

FSS = TSS - VSS

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 43

 COLIFORM

 Testing for pathogens is very difficult, and it

is impossible to monitor water for every
single pathogen:
 A wide variety of pathogens.
Tests for pathogens difficult and time
consuming
 The number of pathogens present is small

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 44

 COLIFORMS

Indicator organisms:
 Organisms normally present in the feces
of human are used as indicator
organisms.
 If present in water, they indicate the
presence of fecal material and hence
the presence of intestinal pathogens.

DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 45

 COLIFORMS

Coliforms as indicator organisms:

 The number of coliforms in feces is very
great; 125 - 400 billion per capita daily
discharge
 Rates of removal/decay/death of coliforms
are parallel to that of pathogens
Tests are simple
Easy numerical evaluation
Other Indicator organisms
DR. YVONNE LIGAYA F. MUSICO 46