TAS 3101 : WATER TREATMENT TECHNOLOGY

CHAPTER 8 :

Measurement
Unit

CHAPTER 3:
Environmental Microbiology

© SHAHRUL ISMAIL, DESc.

Izan Jaafar, Engineering Science, FST, UMT University College of Science and Technology Malaysia
 Menu

1) Introduction
2) mg/L Unit
3) meq/L unit
4) Hardness & Alkalinity
Measurement Unit

Izan Jaafar, Engineering Science, FST, UMT

 Introduction

- Water management begins with knowing the quantity of water

available
- Basic information on water measurement units and convenient
conversion factors.
- Conversion factors simplify changing from one unit of measurement to
another.
- There are two conditions under which water is measured—water at
rest and water in motion. Water at rest is measured in units of volume.
Water in motion is measured in units of flow— unit of volume for a
convenient time unit. It is important that the difference between a unit of
volume and a unit of flow be kept in mind.

Izan Jaafar, Engineering Science, FST, UMT

Volume Units v/s Flow Units
•Volume Units
•Water at rest; i.e., ponds, lakes,
reservoirs, and in the soil, is
measured in units of volume —
gallon, liter, cubic meter, cubic
foot, ha-m, square km-m, acre-
inch, and acre-foot.

•Flow Units
•Water in motion; i.e., flowing in streams,
canals, pipelines, and ditches, is
measured in units of volume per unit of
time—gallons per minute (gpm), cubic
meter per seconds(cms-cumec) cubic feet
per second (cfs-cusec), acre-inches per
hour and acre feet per day.
Izan Jaafar, Engineering Science, FST, UMT
 mg/L unit

mg/L = ppm (parts per million)

ppm = 1 part = 1 mg substance

106 part 106 mg water

Water density, p

p = 1000 kg = 103 g = 106mg = 1 lb water

m3 L L 10lb water

∴ 106mg of water = 1 L of water

∴ 1 ppm = 1 mg substance
1 L water

Izan Jaafar, Engineering Science, FST, UMT

 meq/L unit

- Measurement that involved in combination of several different

element
Meq/L = concentration ion mg/L x 1 / equivalent mass

- Equivalent mass = atomic or molecular mass (g) / valence

- Example :
- Atomic mass for Ca2+ = 40 g
- Valence = 2+
− ∴ [valence] = 2
− ∴ Equivalent mass for Ca2+ = Atomic mass/Valence
= 40/2
= 20

Izan Jaafar, Engineering Science, FST, UMT

Hardness & Alkalinity

- Mg/L as CaCO3 = meq/L x Equivalent mass for CaCO3

- Equivalent mass for CaCO3 :

Equivalent mass of Ca2+ + Equivalent mass of CO32-

Solution:

Equivalent mass of Ca2+ = 40/2 = 20

Equivalent mass of CO32- = 60/2 = 30

∴ Equivalent mass for CaCO32- = 20 + 30 = 50
Izan Jaafar, Engineering Science, FST, UMT
 Water Hardness
• Water hardness is commonly defined as the sum of the
polyvalent cations dissolved in the water.
• The most common such cations are calcium and
magnesium, although iron, strontium, and manganese
may contribute . Therefore, Water hardness is an
expression for the sum of the calcium and magnesium
cation concentration in a water sample.
• Hardness is usually reported as an equivalent quantity of
calcium carbonate (CaCO3).

Total hardness = Total meq/L Ca2+ and Mg2+ x Equivalent mass for CaCO3

Hardness (in mg/L) as CaCO3 = M2+ (mg/L) x (100 g/mol CaCO3/ atomic weight of M2+ )

Izan Jaafar, Engineering Science, FST, UMT

Water Hardness - Category
Level of hardness Total hardness as mg/l CaCO3

soft 0-60 mg/l

moderately hard 61-120 mg/l

hard 121-180 mg/l

very hard >180 mg/l

Izan Jaafar, Engineering Science, FST, UMT

 Solution
A sample of water was analyzed for common ions with the
result shown below:

1) Convert these concentration

HCO3- = 300 mg/L from mg/L to meq/L

Na+ = 115 mg/L 2) Construct a bar diagram in

miliequivalent per liter for this
SO42- = 240 mg/L water
3) Calculate the water hardness
Mg2+ = 36.6 mg/L in term of mg/L CaCO3
Cl- = 71.0 mg/L 4) Categorized the strength of the
water hardness
Ca2+ = 100 mg/L

Izan Jaafar, Engineering Science, FST, UMT

 Solution
A sample of water was analyzed for common ions with the
result shown below:

1) Separate cation and anion

HCO3- = 300 mg/L
2) Tabulate the component,
Na+ = 115 mg/L equivalent mass and meq/L
3) Draw the bar diagram
SO 4
2-
= 240 mg/L
Mg2+ = 36.6 mg/L
Cl- = 109 mg/L
Ca2+ = 100 mg/L

Izan Jaafar, Engineering Science, FST, UMT

 THANKS FOR
YOUR ATTENTION…..

Izan Jaafar, Engineering Science, FST, UMT