CHEMISTRY OF WATER

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Fish and aquatic animals need dissolved Why is dissolved oxygen essential for a
oxygen to survive. healthy aquatic ecosystem?
What happens to the amount of oxygen
The amount of oxygen that dissolves in
dissolved in water as the water tempera-
water decreases.
ture increases?
- The need for oxygen depends on the What determines the need for oxygen in
species and life stage. aquatic organisms?
- Temperature can affect the level of oxy-
What are the potential effects of temper-
gen and the ability of organisms to resist
ature change on water?
certain pollutants.
- pH stands for the 'power of hydrogen.' What does pH stand for in water testing?
- pH test measures the alkalinity or acid-
How is pH measured?
ity of water.
A pH of 7 is neutral. What is considered a neutral pH value?
As pH rises, so too does the toxicity to How does pH affect the toxicity to aquatic
aquatic organisms. organisms?
E. coli is a fecal coliform bacteria that What is E. coli and where does it come
comes from human and animal waste. from?
Disease-causing bacteria, viruses, and What can be present in water with elevat-
protozoans may be present. ed levels of E. coli?
Levels of E. coli can increase during What can cause an increase in E. coli
flooding. levels in water?
Specific conductance is a measure of
What is specific conductance a measure
how well water can conduct an electrical
of?
current.
Conductivity is affected by inorganic dis-
What factors affect the conductance of
solved solids and can be higher in water
water?
flowing through limestone and clay
High conductance readings can come What can cause high conductance read-
from industrial pollution or urban runoff. ings in water?
An oil spill tends to lower the conductivity What is the impact of an oil spill on water
of the water. conductance?

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Excessive amounts of nitrates increase What is the role of nitrates in algae
algae growth. growth?
Sources of nitrates may include human
and animal wastes, industrial pollutants, What can be sources of nitrates in the
and nonpoint source runoff from fertil- environment?
ized croplands and lawns.
At what concentration can high levels of
High levels of nitrates (10 mg/L or more)
nitrates in drinking water be toxic to hu-
in drinking water can be toxic to humans.
mans?
Transparency measures how far light What does transparency measure in wa-
can penetrate a body of water. ter?
Heavy rains and runoff can cause a de- What can cause a decrease in water
crease in water transparency. transparency?
Transparency usually decreases in the When is water transparency usually low-
summer. er?
Water transparency is measured with a
How is water transparency measured?
Secchi disk.
Water hardness can be caused by min-
What is water hardness caused by?
erals like calcium or magnesium.
Color contamination in water can be What can cause color contamination in
caused by iron. water?
Minerals in water can cause radioactivity. What can cause radioactivity in water?
Improper use of pesticides or fertilizers
How can water be contaminated by hu-
and improper waste disposal can conta-
mans?
minate water.
What are some examples of aquatic or-
Catfish, worms, and dragonflies.
ganisms that require dissolved oxygen?
How does an absence or small amount
It can severely affect the life of many
of dissolved oxygen affect aquatic organ-
aquatic organisms.
isms?

BOD stands for Biochemical Oxygen De-

What does BOD stand for and what does
mand and measures the amount of oxy-
it measure?
gen required by aerobic biological organ-
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isms to degrade organic material in a
water body.
BOD is commonly expressed in mil-
ligrams of oxygen consumed per liter
How is BOD commonly expressed?
sample during 5 days (BOD5) of incuba-
tion at 20°C.
Microorganisms feed upon decompos-
What do microorganisms do in relation to
ing organic matter, eventually making it
BOD?
oxidized.
A higher measure of BOD indicates that
more oxygen is being used up by mi- What does a higher measure of BOD
croorganisms, leaving less oxygen for indicate?
other life in the water.
COD stands for Chemical Oxygen De-
mand and identifies the amount of oxy- What does COD stand for and what does
gen needed to oxidize organic matter in it identify?
a water body.
COD is important to assess the effect of
discharged wastewater in the receiving Why is COD important?
environment.
A higher COD indicates a greater
amount of oxidizable organic material in What does a higher COD indicate?
a sample.
The ratio of BOD to COD indicates the
amount of organic materials in water that What does the ratio of BOD to COD indi-
can be degraded by natural microorgan- cate
isms.
Minerals in water provide vital nutrients
that the body does not produce on its Why are minerals significant in water?
own.
The main minerals found in water are cal- What are the main minerals found in wa-
cium, magnesium, sodium, and fluoride. ter?

Calcium is important for healthy growth

What is the importance of calcium?
and bone development, reducing the oc-
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currence of osteoporosis and hip frac-
tures.
Magnesium supports the immune sys-
tem, blood cell turnover, metabolic func-
What is the importance of magnesium?
tions, muscular activity, and nervous ac-
tivity.
Sodium is important for balancing elec-
trolytes and water in the body, as well
What is the importance of sodium?
as proper functioning of the nervous and
cardiac systems.
Fluoride is added to water to reduce lev-
What is the importance of fluoride?
els of tooth decay.
Water quality refers to the chemical,
physical, or biological characteristics of What does water quality refer to?
water.
The common standards used to assess
What are the common standards used to
water quality relate to health and its im-
assess water quality?
pact on aquatic species or human uses.
Water quality is measured based on its What is the relationship between water
impact on swimming as a human use. quality and swimming?
Water quality is measured based on its What is the relationship between water
impact on drinking as a human use. quality and drinking?
Physical impurities, chemical impurities, What are the types of impurities in water
biological impurities based on their nature?
Turbidity, color, taste, odor, temperature, What are the physical impurities in wa-
radioactive substances ter?
Presence of suspended or colloidal in-
What does turbidity in water indicate?
soluble matter including coarse particles
Discharge of industries like chemical,
What causes the water to have color?
textile, paper, etc.
Presence of chromium and appreciable What does a yellowish color in water in-
amount of organic matter dicate?
What does a yellowish red color in water
Presence of iron
indicate?
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What does a red brown color in water

Presence of peaty matter
indicate?
Dissolved minerals, but not odor What produces taste in water?
Waste products discharged from indus-
tries, containing compounds like chlo- What imparts odor and taste to water?
rine, hydrogen sulfide, etc.
It can alter the physical and chemical How does temperature affect water qual-
properties of water ity?
Discharge from nuclear power plants or What are some sources of radioactive
research centers substances in water?
They can destroy self-purification prop- What is the harmful effect of acids in
erty of water and harm life water?
Compounds like sulphide and ammonia
What inorganic compounds can be found
from industries like fertilization and oven
in water?
industry
What are the types of chemical impurities
Organic compounds, pH
in water?
Presence of fats, protein, and carbohy- What can cause the presence of organic
drates, decayed fruits, and dead animals compounds in water?
Whether a substance is acidic, neutral,
What does pH measure in water?
or basic
0 to 14 What is the range of pH scale?
Acidity of the substance What does a pH below 7 indicate?
Basic or alkaline nature of the substance What does a pH above 7 indicate
7 What is the pH of neutral water?
What causes biological contamination of
Biological organisms or pathogens
water?
What are microorganisms in water com-
Germs
monly called?
Due to dead bodies and unhygienic dis- How are pathogenic bacteria, fungus,
charge of sewage without treatment and viruses developed in water?

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Severe diseases like typhoid fever, What are the health effects of drinking
dysentery, cholera, gastroenteritis, etc. water contaminated with germs?
What group of bacteria is commonly test-
Coliform or E-coli
ed for in water?
Membrane purification filters out all bac-
What is the difference between mem-
teria, while UV purifier kills bacteria but
brane purification and UV water purifier?
leaves their bodies in water
Contaminated water from human use What is wastewater?
Remove contaminants and convert it into
What does wastewater treatment aim to
an effluent for reuse or return to the wa-
do?
ter cycle
Commercial, industrial, rainwater, resi-
What are the sources of wastewater?
dences, establishments, institutions
Commercial and household wastes
(sometimes industrial), excluding What does a sanitary sewer collect?
stormwater
Collect runoff from streets, land, and
What is the purpose of a storm sewer?
roofs
Both sanitary and stormwater What does a combined sewer collect?
Short-term overloading conditions at
What can high flows during storms cause
treatment plant, impacting treatment ef-
in a combined sewer?
ficiencies

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