WATER QUALITY:

DEFINITIONS,
CHARACTERISTICS AND
PERSPECTIVES

THE HYDROLOGIC CYCLE AND

WATER QUALITY
Water - cover of the earth surface
Over 97% of the total water is not
readily usable oceans and other
saline bodies of water
Over 2% is inaccessible ice caps and
glaciers, atmospheric and soil moisture
Only 0.62% for human fresh water
lakes, rivers & groundwater supplies

HYDROLOGIC CYCLE
Atmosphere
Condensation

Evaporation

Evapotranspiration

Earths surface

Surface runoff
Percolation

Ground water flow

IMPURITIES IN WATER
1. Surface, or nuclei during condensation
2. Liquid water travels through the
remainder of the hydrologic cycle
contact with other material in air or
earth
3. Human activities industrial and
domestic waste
* Impurities can be both in suspended
and dissolved form

WATER QUALITY
Predicted on the intended use of the
water
Water pollution defined as the presence
in water of impurities in such quantity and
of such nature as to impair the use of the
water for a stated purpose
Standard method analytical procedures
to measure the impact of impurities on
water

PHYSICAL PARAMETERS

1. SUSPENDED SOLIDS
SOURCES
Natural contaminants resulting from the
erosive action of water flowing over
surfaces
Result from human use of water
domestic wastewater
Contain inorganic (clay, silt) or organic
(plant fibers, bacteria)particles,
immiscible liquids (oil and grease)

IMPACT
Aesthetically displeasing
Provide adsorption site for chemical
and biological agents
May be degraded biologically or may
include diseases-causing organisms
MEASUREMENT
Filtering the water, drying the residue
and filter to a constant weight at
104oC and lastly determine the mass
of the residue retained on the filter

FILTERABLE RESIDUE AND

NONFILTERABLE RESIDUE
Term used in laboratory analysis to
represent the SS and DS
Filterable residue closely related to DS
while nonfilterable residue more closely
to SS
USE
Measure the quality of wastewater
influent
Monitor several treatment processes
Measure the quality of the effluent

2. TURBIDITY
A measure of the extent to which light is
either absorbed or scattered by suspended
material in water
Not a direct quantitative measurement of SS
SOURCES
results from the erosion of colloidal material
such as clay, silt, rock fragments, metal
oxides from the soil, vegetables fiber,
microorganism, soaps, detergent,
emulsifying agents

IMPACT
Aesthetically displeasing opaqueness
will appear
Provides adsorption sites for chemicals
and biological organism that may be
harmful or cause undesirable tastes and
odors
May interfere with light penetration and
photosynthetic reactions in streams and
lakes

MEASUREMENT
Measured photometrically by
determining the percentage of light of a
given intensity that is either absorbed
or scattered
Turbidity is a relative measure, not
absolute measures.
It is usually expressed as nephelometric
turbidity units (NTU) or as metres
depth. Other units, formazin turbidity
units (FTU) or Jackson turbidity units
(JTU)

Turbidimeter using light scattering

at sample surface

Turbidimeter using the

scattered/transmitted light method

USE
Made on clean
waters

3. COLOR
Apparent color color of water partly
due to suspended matter
True color color contributed by DS
SOURCES
Yellowish-brown water contact with
organic debris
Reddish cause by iron oxide
Brown/blackish manganese oxide
Industrial waste textile and dyeing
operations, food processing

IMPACT
Unsuitable for laundering, dyeing,
papermaking, dairy production
Affect the market of domestic and
industrial company
Organic compound reduce the
effectiveness of chlorine as
disinfectant
MEASUREMENT
Comparison with standardized colored
materials (unit used TCU)

One unit is equivalent to the color

produced by 1 mg/L of platinum in
the form of chlorplatinate ions
Special spectrophotometric
techniques used for industrial
waste effluents
USE
used in potable water analysis (true
color) indirect measurement of
humic substances in the water

4. TASTE & ODOR

SOURCES
Mineral, metals and salts from the soil
end products from biological reactions
Inorganic substances taste
Alkaline material & metallic salts
cause a bitter taste to water
Organic material contributed to both
taste and odor

IMPACT
Consumer associates T&O with
contamination
Organic substances carcinogenic
MEASUREMENT
Can be made if the causative agents
are known
Organic cause gas or liquid
chromatography
Qualitative test threshold odor
number (TON)

TON = (A + B)/A
Where A = volume of odorous water
(mL)
B = volume of odor-free water
required to produce a 200-mL
mixture
USE
Serves as guideline for potable water
TON of 3 recommended by the Public
Health Service

5. TEMPERATURE
Algae growth higher in
warm water, causes algae
mats secrete oil and
dead algae will causes
taste & odor prob.

Affect solubilities
of gases in water

Affect chemical
reaction rate

IMPACT OF
TEMPERATURE

Physical properties e.g

viscosity and density
affect planktonic
microorg.

Biological
activities higher
in higher T

CHEMICAL WATER QUALITY

PARAMETERS

1. TDS

Materials remaining in water after SS

removal
Organic sources decayed product of
vegetation, organic chemical
Inorganic sources minerals, metals, gases
Produce undesirable substances in water
(color, taste, odor, toxicity problem)
Some are essential: distilled water taste flat,
readily dissolved added to pure water to
reduce its tendency to dissolve pipes and
plumbing

2. ALKALINITY

The ability of water to neutralize acids

(quantity of ions that can neutralize H +)
Ions sources
dissolution of mineral substances in
soil and atm (CO32-, HCO3-, OH-, NH3 etc)
- HPO42- from detergent, fertilizers and
insecticide
- HS- and NH3- from byproduct of
decomposition of organic material

3. HARDNESS
Amount of multivalent metallic cation in
water
Sum of Ca & Mg ions in water
Other ions very little Fe, Mn
IMPACT

Soap consumption higher

Form precipitation with soap sticks to
surface of sinks, dishwasher, rough skin,
stain clothes
Economic loss: fouling of water heaters and
boilers

4. FLUORIDE
Appears in groundwater in few
geographical regions
Toxic in high conc, beneficial in low
conc
1 mg/L help prevent dental cavities,
stronger teeth
>2 mg/L discoloration of teeth (mottling)
Higher conc bone fluorosis

5. METALS
NONTOXIC METAL
If exist in small amount Zn, Fe, Mn, Al
Ca and Mg hardness ions
Na most common
TOXIC
Mining and industrial industry
Ar, Ba, Cd, Pb, Hg goes up food
chain, greatest danger to top of chain
MEASUREMENT by AAS

6. NUTRIENTS
Nitrogen is often the limiting nutrient
in ocean waters and some streams
Can exist in numerous forms, but
most common are nitrate, nitrite,
ammonia
Sources are primarily from fertilizers
and acid deposition

 Phosphorus is typically the limiting

nutrient in lakes and algae growth is
linked to phosphorus inputs
Problems
Taste and odor in drinking water
Can be toxic, especially to farm animals
Fouling
Diurnal DO cycles

Sources fertilizers and detergents

Can exist in a variety of chemical
forms, so total P is normally measured

7. ORGANICS
Soluble in water
Obtained from natural sources and
human activities
Categories of dissolved organic
Biodegradable
Nonbiodegradable

7.1 BIODEGRADABLE ORGANICS

Consist of organics that can be utilized
for food by naturally occurring microorg
within a reasonable length of time
Organic material exist in dissolved from
- starches, fats, proteins, alcohols,
acids, aldehydes and esters
Microbial utilization involved oxidation
(more efficient) and reduction

 BOD the amount of O2 consumed

during microbial utilization of organics
(how much available O2 is used by
bacteria to decay organic matter in the
water)
BOD test: determine the O2 consumed
from a sample placed in an airtight
contained in controlled environment fro
selected time.
Standard 300 ml bottle, incubated at
20oC, 5 days in dark room (prevent
algae growth produce O2)

BOD CALCULATION

Where DOi = initial DO (mg/L)

DOf = final DO (mg/L)
P
= decimal fraction of
sample in
300 mL bottle

BOD FROM SEWAGE TREATMENT PLANT IN

MALAYSIA (2006)
State

No. of STP

Total PE

Flow
(m3/day)

BOD Load
(kg/day)

Selangor

2,563

5,908,450

1,329,401

332,350.31

Perak

1,343

1,300,430

292,597

73,149.19

Johor

1010

1,198,417

269,644

67,410.96

Negeri Sembilan

928

931,458

209,578

52,394.51

Kedah

755

556,637

125,243

31,310.83

Melaka

725

570,192

128,293

32,073.30

Pulau Pinang

650

2,149,001

483,525

120,881.31

Pahang

486

314,830

70,837

17,709.19

WP Kuala Lumpur

299

2,571,877

578,672

144,668.08

Terengganu

224

75,184

16,916

4,229.10

Perlis

36

16,156

3,635

908.78

WP Labuan

32

39,265

8,835

2,208.66

72,833

16,387

4,096.86

9,060

15,704,730

3,533,563

883,391.08

WP Putrajaya
Total

Example 1: Determining
BOD5
The BOD of w/water is suspected to range from 50 to 200
mg/L. Three dilutions are prepared to cover this range. The
procedure is the same in each case. First the sample is
placed in the standard BOD bottle and is then diluted to 300
mL with organic-free, oxygen-saturated water. The initial
DO is determined and the bottles tightly stoppered and
placed in the incubator at 20oC for 5 days, after which the
DO is again determined.
Given:

Wastewater, L DOi (mg/L)

DOf (mg/L)

0.005

9.2

6.9

0.010

9.1

4.4

0.020

8.9

1.5

7.2 NONBIODEGRADABLE
ORGANIC
Some organics materials are resistant to
biological degradation tannic and lignic
acid, cellulose,phenols
Polysaccharides (strong bond) and benzene
(ringed struct) are also nonbiodegradable
e.g detergent compound ABS
Insecticide, herbicide, pesticide accumulate
to top food chain, can cause extinction of
animal species

BIOLOGICAL WATER QUALITY PARAMETER

All members of biological community are
water quality parameters
1. PATHOGEN
Organism capable of infecting, or
transmitting disease to human
Usually require an animal host for growth and
reproduction
Can be transported by natural water systems
Include bacteria, viruses, protozoa and
helminths (parasitic worm)

1.1 BACTERIA

Diseases causes by bacteria

gastrointestinal disorder, cholera,
typhoid

1.2 VIRUSES

Diseases disorder of the nervous system,

poliomyelitis, infectious hepatitis

1.3 PROTOZOA

Diseases dysentery, malaria

1.4 HELMINTHS

Serious case of liver, intestine and

urinary system

WATER QUALITY REQUIREMENTS

Vary according to the proposed use
of the water
Represent a known/assumed need &
based on prior experience of the
water user
WQS set by government

WATER QUALITY STANDARDS

Standards

RIVER WATER QUALITY

MONITORING

BOD
COD
Ammonical nitrogen
pH
DO
SS
Optional heavy metals and bacteria

WATER QUALITY INDEX

Give info on water quality conditions & trends
To measure the degree of water pollution and
a tool in water quality classification
Reflect changes in physio-chemical quality of
surface water & indicator of ecological
change
Easiest method to explain the pollution level
of water esp to public using ranges
between excellent, good, medium, bad and
very bad

WQI - continuous
Is used to relate a group of variables to a
common scale
Varies with changes in parameters values
that would be indicative of changes in the
quality of waters
WQI system and parameters vary from
country to country
Measures general water quality conditions
and does not reflect the presence of toxic
compounds or specific toxic conditions

TUTORIAL
2.4, 2.8, 2.24, 2.31, 2.43 and 2.44