ANALTICAL TECHNIQUES ASSIGNMENT

COURSE#605
PH (Potential of Hydrogen):
A measure of the degree of the acidity or the alkalinity of a solution as measured on a scale (pH
scale) of 0 to 14. The midpoint of 7.0 on the pH scale represents neutrality, i.e., a neutral solution is
neither acid nor alkaline. !um"ers "elo# 7.0 indicate acidity$ num"ers greater than 7.0 indicate
alkalinity. %t is important to understand that pH is a measure of intensity, and not capacity$ i.e., pH
indicates the intensity of alkalinity in the same #ay temperature tells ho# hot something is & "ut not
ho# much heat the su"stance carries.
The pH scale is logarithmic #hich means that mo'ing on (unit either #ay on the pH scale results in a
10 fold increase in the degree of alkalinity or acidity.
Some typical pH values are included in the following table
pH Product
0&1
hydrochloric,
sulfuric, nitric
acids
1&(
phosphoric,
sulfamic
acids
ACIIC (.0
citrus fruit
).*
+ilk
!"#$%A& 7.0
A&'A&I!" ,.0
-ggs
11.0
ammonia
1.&14
caustic soda,
Muhammad Danish
ANALTICAL TECHNIQUES ASSIGNMENT
COURSE#605
floor
strippers
$he Simple efinition:
pH is a logarithmic measure of hydrogen ion concentration, originally defined "y /anish
"iochemist 01ren 2eter 3aurit4 01rensen in 1505 617.
pH ( )log*H
+
,
#here log is a "ase&10 logarithm and *H
+
, is the concentration of hydrogen ions in moles per
liter of solution.
$he $heoretical efinition:
pH has "een more accurately defined as
pH ( )log aH
+
#here aH
8
is the hydrogen ion activity. %n solutions that contain other ions, acti'ity and concentration
are not the same. The acti'ity is an effective concentration of hydrogen ions, rather than the true
concentration.
Conductance:
efinition:
the a"ility of a component to conduct electricity, measured in siemens and e9ual to the ratio of the
current to the 'oltage: it is the reciprocal of resistance: sym"ol, ;.
-%
-lectricity is a study that is fre9uently e<plained in terms of opposites. The term that is the opposite of
resistance is =>!/?=TA!=-. =onductance is the a"ility of a material to pass electrons. The factors
that affect the magnitude of resistance are e<actly the same for conductance, "ut they affect
conductance in the opposite manner. Therefore, conductance is directly proportional to area, and
in'ersely proportional to the length of the material. The temperature of the material is definitely a
factor, "ut assuming a constant temperature, the conductance of a material can "e calculated.
The unit of conductance is the +H> (;), #hich is ohm spelled "ack#ards. @ecently the term mho
has "een redesignated 0%-+-!0 (0). Ahereas the sym"ol used to represent resistance (@) is the
;reek letter omega ( ), the sym"ol used to represent conductance (;) is (0).
C-!#C$I.I$/:
Muhammad Danish
ANALTICAL TECHNIQUES ASSIGNMENT
COURSE#605
=onducti'ity of a su"stance is defined as Bthe ability or power to conduct or transmit heat, electricity,
or soundB. %ts units are 0iemens per meter 60Cm7 in 0% and micromhos per centimeter 6mmhoCcm7 in
?.0. customary units. %ts sym"ol is or .
0ill distilled water conduct electricity:
it #ill conduct electricity&&"ut 'ery little compared to city #ater, #ell #ater, or salt #ater. The reason is
that the #ay a li9uid conducts electricity is through positi'ely or negati'ely charged ions that are in it
actually mo'ing from one of the electrodes to the other, carrying charge (electricity) #ith them. 0alt
#ater has salt in it, !a=l, #hich readily ioni4es or dissociates to ions of !a8 and =l& #hich can float
through the #ater carrying charge and thus conducting electricity.
/istilled #ater is #ater that #as "oiled to steam and recondensed to #ater. Any salt that #as
originally in it is left "ehind as the pure #ater "oils a#ay. 0o distilled #ater is relati'ely pure H(>
(H>H). Aater can ioni4e to H8 and >H& like salt does, "ut it ioni4es far, far, less and is therefore 9uite
resistant to conducting electricity.
$-$A& ISS-&." S-&IS ($S):
$otal issolved Solids ($S) are the total amount of mo"ile charged ions, including minerals, salts
or metals dissol'ed in a gi'en 'olume of #ater, e<pressed in units of mg per unit 'olume of #ater
(mgC3), also referred to as parts per million (ppm). T/0 is directly related to the purity of #ater and
the 9uality of #ater purification systems and affects e'erything that consumes, li'es in, or uses #ater,
#hether organic or inorganic, #hether for "etter or for #orse.
0hat Are $otal issolved Solids1
1. /issol'ed solids refer to any minerals, salts, metals, cations or anions dissol'ed in #ater. This
includes anything present in #ater other than the pure #ater (H(0) molecule and suspended solids.
(0uspended solids are any particlesCsu"stances that are neither dissol'ed nor settled in the #ater,
such as #ood pulp.)
(. %n general, the total dissol'ed solids concentration is the sum of the cations (positi'ely charged)
and anions (negati'ely charged) ions in the #ater.
.. 2arts per +illion (ppm) is the #eight&to&#eight ratio of any ion to #ater.
4. A T/0 meter is "ased on the electrical conducti'ity (-=) of #ater. 2ure H(0 has 'irtually 4ero
conducti'ity. =onducti'ity is usually a"out 100 times the total cations or anions e<pressed as
e9ui'alents. T/0 is calculated "y con'erting the -= "y a factor of 0.* to 1.0 times the -=, depending
upon the le'els. Typically, the higher the le'el of -=, the higher the con'ersion factor to determine the
T/0.
0here do issolved Solids come from1
Muhammad Danish
ANALTICAL TECHNIQUES ASSIGNMENT
COURSE#605
1. 0ome dissol'ed solids come from organic sources such as lea'es, silt, plankton, and industrial
#aste and se#age. >ther sources come from runoff from ur"an areas, road salts used on street
during the #inter, and fertili4ers and pesticides used on la#ns and farms.
(. /issol'ed solids also come from inorganic materials such as rocks and air that may contain
calcium "icar"onate, nitrogen, iron phosphorous, sulfur, and other minerals. +any of these materials
form salts, #hich are compounds that contain "oth a metal and a nonmetal. 0alts usually dissol'e in
#ater forming ions. %ons are particles that ha'e a positi'e or negati'e charge.
.. Aater may also pick up metals such as lead or copper as they tra'el through pipes used to
distri"ute #ater to consumers.
0hy Should /ou 2easure the $S level in your 0ater1
The -2A 0econdary @egulations ad'ise a ma<imum contamination le'el (+=3) of *00mgCliter (*00
parts per million (ppm)) for T/0. !umerous #ater supplies e<ceed this le'el. Ahen T/0 le'els
e<ceed 1000mgC3 it is generally considered unfit for human consumption. A high le'el of T/0 is an
indicator of potential concerns, and #arrants further in'estigation. +ost often, high le'els of T/0 are
caused "y the presence of potassium, chlorides and sodium. These ions ha'e little or no short&term
effects, "ut to<ic ions (lead arsenic, cadmium, nitrate and others) may also "e dissol'ed in the #ater.
The follo#ing are reasons #hy it is helpful to constantly test for T/0:
1. TasteCHealth High T/0 results in undesira"le taste #hich could "e salty, "itter, or
metallic. %t could also indicate the presence of to<ic minerals. The
-2ABs rescommended ma<imum le'el of T/0 in #ater is *00mgC3
(*00ppm).
(. Dilter performance Test your #ater to make sure the re'erse osmosis or other type of
#ater filter or #ater purification system has a high reEection rate and
kno# #hen to change your filter (or mem"rane) cartridges.
.. Hardness High T/0 indicates Hard #ater, #hich causes scale "uildup in pipes
and 'al'es, inhi"iting performance.
4. A9uariumsCA9uaculture A constant le'el of minerals is necessary for a9uatic life. The #ater in
an a9uarium or tank should ha'e the same le'els of T/0 and pH as
the fish and reefBs original ha"itat.
*. Hydroponics T/0 is the "est measurement of the nutrient concentration in a
hydroponic solution.
). 2ools and 0pas T/0 le'els must "e monitored to pre'ent maintenance pro"lems.
7. =ommercialC%ndustrial High T/0 le'els could impede the functions of certain applications,
such as "oilers and cooling to#ers, food and #ater production and
more.
,. =olloidal 0il'er Aater T/0 le'els must "e controlled prior to making colloidal sil'er.
5. =offee Dor a truly great cup of coffee, proper T/0 le'els must "e maintained.
10. =ar and Aindo#
Aashing
Ha'e a #asher #ith a spotless rinseF An inline dual T/0 monitor #ill
tell you #hen to change the filter cartridge or @> mem"rane
Muhammad Danish
ANALTICAL TECHNIQUES ASSIGNMENT
COURSE#605
How do you reduce or remove the $S in your water1
=ommon #ater filter and #ater purification systems:
1. Carbon 3iltration
=harcoal, a form of car"on #ith a high surface area, adsor"s (or sticks to) many
compounds, including some to<ic compounds. Aater is passed through acti'ated charcoal
to remo'e such contaminants.
(. %everse -smosis (%4-4) @e'erse osmosis #orks "y forcing #ater under great pressure against a semi&permea"le
mem"rane that allo#s #ater molecules to pass through #hile e<cluding most contaminants.
@> is the most thorough method of large&scale #ater purification a'aila"le.
.. istillation
/istillation in'ol'es "oiling the #ater to produce #ater 'apor. The #ater 'apor then rises to
a cooled surface #here it can condense "ack into a li9uid and "e collected. Gecause the
dissol'ed solids are not normally 'apori4ed, they remain in the "oiling solution.
4. eioni5ation (I)
Aater is passed "et#een a positi'e electrode and a negati'e electrode. %on selecti'e
mem"ranes allo# the positi'e ions to separate from the #ater to#ard the negati'e
electrode and the negati'e ions to#ard the positi'e electrode. High purity de&ioni4ed #ater
results. The #ater is usually passed through a re'erse osmosis unit first to remo'e nonionic
organic contaminants.
$otal Al6alinity:
Total alkalinity is the total concentration of "ases in #ater e<pressed as parts per million (ppm) or milligrams per
liter (mgC3) of calcium car"onate (=a=>.). These "ases are usually "icar"onates (H=>.) and car"onates (=>.),
and they act as a "uffer system that pre'ents drastic changes in pH. Dor e<ample, in #aters #ith lo# alkalinity,
pH might fluctuate from ) or lo#er to as high as 10 or a"o'e$ #hile in high alkalinity #aters, pH might fluctuate
from a"out 7.* to ,.*.
Total alkalinity is not the same as hardness. =alcium (=a
88
) and magnesium (+g
88
) are primarily responsi"le for
hardness. Ho#e'er, in most #aters, alkalinity and hardness ha'e similar 'alues "ecause the car"onates and
"icar"onates responsi"le for total alkalinity are usually "rought into the #ater in the form of calcium car"onate
or magnesium car"onate. Aaters #ith high total alkalinity are not al#ays hard, since the car"onates can "e
"rought into the #ater in the form of sodium or potassium car"onate.
Muhammad Danish
ANALTICAL TECHNIQUES ASSIGNMENT
COURSE#605
Al6alinity:
The alkalinity of #ater is a measure of ho# much acid it can neutrali4e. %f any changes are made to the #ater
that could raise or lo#er the pH 'alue, alkalinity acts as a "uffer, protecting the #ater and its life forms from
sudden shifts in pH. This a"ility to neutrali4e acid, or H
8
ions, is particularly important in regions affected "y acid
rain.
In the diagram below, for example, the lake on the right has low alkalinity. When acid rain falls, it is not
neutralized, so the pH of the water decreases. This drop in the pH level can harm or even kill some of the
auatic organisms in the lake. The lake on the left, however, has high alkalinity. When acid rain falls in this
lake, the acid is partially neutralized and the pH of the water remains fairly constant. In this way, a high
alkalinity level helps maintain the health of the water and the organisms that live there.
Alkalinity should not be confused with pH. The pH of a solution is a measure of the concentration of
acid, or H
+
ions, in the water. Alkalinity is a measure of the waters capacity to neutralize an acid, or
H
+
ions, thereby keeping the pH at a fairly constant level.
Muhammad Danish
ANALTICAL TECHNIQUES ASSIGNMENT
COURSE#605
The alkalinity of surface water is primarily due to the presence of hydroxide, !H
"
, carbonate, #!
$
%"
, and
bicarbonate, H#!
$
"
, ions.
Muhammad Danish