Water Treatment Grade 2 Flashcards
Molarity is the number of
a. gram equivalent weights of solute per liter of solution.
b. gram atomic weight per oxidation number.
c. moles of solute per kilogram of solvent.
d. moles of solute per liter of solution.
d. moles of solute per liter of solution.
“CaCO3” is the _____ of calcium carbonate.
a. chemical symbol
b. atomic formula
c. chemical formula
d. chemical equation
c. chemical formula
The first step in calculating percent by weight of an element in a compound is to determine the
a. percent by weight.
b. molecular weight.
c. chemical equation.
d. coefficient.
b. molecular weight.
What term refers to the equivalent number of weights of solute per liter of solution?
a. Normality
b. Equivalent weight
c. Molecular weight
d. Coefficient
a. Normality
A solution consists of 2 parts: a solvent and a
a. diluent.
b. solute.
c. concentrate.
d. suspension.
b. solute.
How many minutes are there in a day?
1 day = 1,440 minutes
How many gallons of water are in a cubic foot?
1 cubic foot = 7.48 gallons
What equation is used to calculate the volume (in cubic feet) of a circular basin or tank?
Volume = .785 x Diameter Squared x Depth = Cubic Feet
What equation is used to find the volume (in cubic feet) of a square/rectangle basin or tank?
Volume = Length x Width x Depth = Cubic Feet
What equation would you use to calculate the number of gallons in a tank or basin?
Total Gallons = Cubic Feet (tank or basin volume) x 7.48 gallons per cubic foot
1 Gallon = ______ mL
1 Gallon = 3,785 mL
How would you calculate the Detention Time (in hours) of water in a basin or tank?
Hours of Detention Time = Volume (gallons) in Basin divided by Flow Rate in gallons per hour
How would you convert Gallons per Minute (gpm) to Millions of Gallons per Day (MGD)?
GPM to MGD = GPM x 1,440 minutes per day then divided by 1,000,000 gallons
What Equation is used to find the Chemical Feed Rate in Pounds per Day?
Pounds per Day = Dosage (mg/L) x MGD x 8.34 pounds per gallon divided by % of chemical (x % purity of the chemical)
How do you calculate the Filtration Rate (gallons per minute per square foot)?
Filtration Rate (gpm/ft2) = Flow Rate (gpm) divided by the Filter Surface Area (ft2)
Pressure measured in terms of the height of water (in meters or feet) is referred to as
a. gauge pressure.
b. head.
c. barometric pressure.
d. absolute pressure.
b. head.
How is Volume calculated?
Surface Area (ft2) x a third dimension
In the equation to convert milligrams-per-liter concentration to pounds per day, (dosage) (flow rate) (conversion factor) =
a. feed rate.
b. feed demand.
c. feed capacity.
d. total feed.
a. feed rate.
What is the formula for calculating the area (ft2) of a circle?
.785 x Diameter squared
What is the action level for copper?
a. 0.5 mg/L
b. 1.0 mg/L
c. 1.3 mg/L
d. 1.8 mg/L
c. 1.3 mg/L
Water being served to the public for a population greater than 3,000 must not have a disinfectant residual entering the distribution system below _____ for more than 4 hours.
a. 0.5 mg/L
b. 0.2 mg/L
c. 0.3 mg/L
d. 0.4 mg/L
b. 0.2 mg/L
Where are the sampling point(s) located for required sampling of turbidity in a community water system?
a. At representative points within the distribution system.
b. 75% at locations representative of population distribution and 25% at the farthest points in the distribution system.
c. At point(s) where water enters the distribution system, including all filter effluents in a surface water treatment plant.
d. At effluents of all filters in a surface water treatment plant, at entry points to the distribution system, and at locations representative of population distribution.
c. At point(s) where water enters the distribution system, including all filter effluents in a surface water treatment plant.
Under the Surface Water Treatment Rule, disinfection residuals must be collected at the same location as
a. coliform samples.
b. total trihalomethanes.
c. disinfection by-products.
d. alkalinity, conductivity, and pH for corrosion studies.
a. coliform samples.
What is the MCL for haloacetic acids (HAA5)?
a. 0.040 mg/L
b. 0.060 mg/L
c. 0.080 mg/L
d. 0.100 mg/L
b. 0.060 mg/L
What is the MCLG for substances that are suspected carcinogens?
Zero
An example of _____ is determining the lowest monthly average during 12-month monitoring of Giardia and virus inactivation.
a. benchmarking
b. profiling
c. categorizing
d. surveying
a. benchmarking
Which regulation is designed to limit human exposure to harmful organisms, including Cryptosporidium, by promoting achievement of particle and turbidity removal targets for surface water treatment systems?
IESTWTR (Interim Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule)
Which regulation is designed to reduce the risk of exposure to fecal contamination that may be present in public water systems that use groundwater sources?
GWR (Ground Water Rule)
Which regulation is designed to promote routine surveillance of distribution water quality to search for contamination from fecal matter and/or disease-causing bacteria?
TCR (Total Coliform Rule)
What is the optimal pH range for the removal of particle matter when using alum as a coagulant?
a. 4.5 to 5.7
b. 5.8 to 6.5
c. 6.5 to 7.2
d. 7.3 to 8.1
c. 6.5 to 7.2
Which forces will pull particles together once they have been destabilized in the coagulation-flocculation process?
a. van der Walls forces
b. Zeta potential
c. Ionic forces
d. Quantum forces
a. van der Walls forces
Which of the following is a common mistake that operators make in regard to flocculation units?
a. Allowing excessive flocculation time
b. Lack of food grade NSF-approved grease on the flocculation units
c. Keeping the mixing energy the same in all flocculation units
d. Too short of a flocculation time
a. Allowing excessive flocculation time
Ferric sulfate has which advantage over aluminum sulfate (alum)?
a. Less staining characteristics
b. Less cost
c. More dense floc
d. Not as corrosive
c. More dense floc
The lower the _____, the more difficult it is to form proper floc.
a. temperature
b. turbidity
c. pH
d. alkalinity
b. turbidity
Jar test results are expressed in
a. milligrams per liter (mg/L).
b. gallons per day (gpd).
c. whatever unit the treatment system has decided to use.
d. parts per million (ppm).
a. milligrams per liter (mg/L).
What are some characteristics of raw water that must be considered in selecting a treatment chemical?
- Type & Concentration of Contaminants
- Temperature
- pH
- Alkalinity
- Turbidity
- Color
- Total Organic Carbon (TOC)
Raw water temperature that approaches the freeing point has what effect on coagulation and flocculation processes?
As the water temperature decreases, the viscosity of the water increases, which slows rate of floc settling.
How much time is required to develop heavy floc particles during the flocculation process?
30 Minutes
If enteric disease-causing protozoans have been found in the effluent of a water plant, which of the following is the most probable solution?
a. Where possible, use powdered activated carbon (PAC) throughout the water plant; backwashing filters will remove the PAC.
b. Use PAC only in the sedimentation basin; backwashing the filters will remove the PAC.
c. Use the multibarrier approach - coagulation, flocculation, sedimentation, and filtration.
d. Superchlorinate the water plant.
c. Use the multibarrier approach - coagulation, flocculation, sedimentation, and filtration.
Conventional sedimentation has a _____ removal of Cryptosporidium oocysts.
a. less than 0.5-log
b. 0.5-log
c. 1.0-log
d. 2.0-log
a. less than 0.5-log
What is the major cause of short-circuiting in a sedimentation basin?
a. Open basins that are subject to algal growths and thick slime growths on the side of the basin.
b. Basins without a wind break.
c. Poor inlet baffling.
d. Density currents.
c. Poor inlet baffling.
Dissolved-air flotation is particularly good for removing
a. sulfides.
b. inorganics.
c. manganese and iron.
d. algae.
d. algae.
As solids settle to the bottom of a sedimentation basin,
a. tank pressure is reduced.
b. a sludge layer develops.
c. movement of sediment accelerates.
d. water pH decreases.
b. a sludge layer develops.
What are some components of a typical rectangular sedimentation basin?
- Sludge pipe
- Scum trough
- Flights
- Collector drive
- Baffle
- Adjustable effluent weirs
What is the maximum weir loading rate for light alum floc in solids-contact basins?
10 gpm/ft
Which regulation basically requires that surface water systems maintain specified C x T values before the treated water reaches the first customer?
SWTR (Surface Water Treatment Rule)
What is the primary test used to indicate proper sedimentation?
Turbidity
Which type of sludge cannot be discharged to a sanitary sewer system because its deposits might build up and block the sewers?
Lime sludge
Gravel displacement in a filter bed from backwash rates with too high of a velocity could eventually cause
a. compaction of the filter media.
b. loss of media into backwash troughs.
c. a sand boil.
d. bed shrinkage.
c. a sand boil.
If filter run times between backwashes are long (e.g., 1 week) because high-quality (low-turbidity) water is being applied to the filters, which problem could still arise?
a. Mudball formation
b. Air binding and formation of mudballs
c. Extended backwashing due to media becoming too compacted
d. Floc breakthrough
d. Floc breakthrough
Which conventional treatment step is eliminated by direct filtration?
a. Oxidation
b. Aeration
c. Flocculation
d. Sedimentation
d. Sedimentation
Which of the following is the layer of solids and biological growth that forms on the top of a slow sand filter?
a. Biosolids-film
b. Bio-carbonated scale layer
c. Schmutzdecke
d. Saprophytic layer
c. Schmutzdecke
Filter tanks are generally
a. spherical and constructed of steel.
b. rectangular and constructed of concrete.
c. rectangular and constructed of steel.
d. cylindrical and constructed of concrete.
b. rectangular and constructed of concrete.
In a typical air-scour sequence, air is applied _____ backwash water is introduced.
a. before
b. while
c. after
d. both before and after
a. before
What is the filtration flow rate through a high-rate mixed media filter?
3 - 8 gpm/ft2
Which system is the first and oldest type of underdrain system, having a central manifold pipe with perforated lateral pipes on each side?
Pipe lateral collectors
Prehistoric deposits of the skeletal remains of microscopic aquatic plants are the source of what useful filtering element?
Diatomaceous earth
Which regulation requires that all filters in a surface water treatment plant have online turbidimeters, and they monitor the filter while it is in operation?
Interim Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule (IESWTR)
The advantage to using the oxidant ozone is that it
a. is easily generated using relatively little energy.
b. is easily fed into the treatment process.
c. is noncorrosive.
d. has little pH effect.
d. has little pH effect.
Pretreatment with chlorine is being eliminated at many water treatment plants because it has been shown to
a. react with floc and not much with organics, pathogens, or algae; this it is a waste of resources and money.
b. react with organics almost exclusively and not much with pathogens or algae; thus it is a waste of resources and money.
c. sometimes produces disinfection by-products known to be carcinogenic.
d. react by as much as 95% of its concentration with concrete walls and metal structures before oxidizing pathogens, organics, and algae.
c. sometimes produces disinfection by-products known to be carcinogenic.
C x T values are based on
a. concentration of chlorine, contact time, and pH.
b. concentration of chlorine, contact time, pH, and temperature.
c. concentration of chlorine, contact time, pH, and water impurities.
d. concentration of chlorine, alkalinity, pH, and temperature.
b. concentration of chlorine, contact time, pH and temperature.
Which index determines the calcium carbonate deposition property of water by calculating the saturation pH where a negative value indicates corrosive water and a positive value indicates depositing water?
a. Baylis Curve
b. Langelier Saturation Index
c. Marble test
d. Ryzner index
b. Langelier Saturation Index
Which type of chlorine gas feeder is most commonly used?
a. Pressure
b. Combination water and pressure
c. Vacuum
d. Combination pressure and vacuum
c. Vacuum
Which device(s) uniformly disperse(s) the chlorine solution into the main flow of water?
a. Injectors
b. Pressure regulating valve
c. Diffusers
d. Effluent nozzles
c. Diffusers
The pressure in a chlorine cylinder depends on the
a. amount of chlorine in the cylinder.
b. temperature of the chlorine liquid.
c. vacuum placed on the regulator.
d. amount of gas being withdrawn.
b. temperature of the chlorine liquid.
Chlorine cylinders and ton containers are equipped with valves, which must comply with standards set by which organization?
The Chlorine Institute
A venturi device that pulls chlorine gas into a passing stream of dilution water, forming a strong solution of chlorine and water.
Injector
A heating device used to convert liquid chlorine to chlorine gas.
Evaporator
Common problems related to chlorination include:
- Chlorine leaks
- Stiff container valves
- Hypochlorinator problems
- Tastes and odors
- Sudden change in residual
- Trihalomethane formation
Compared to air, how dense is chlorine gas?
2.5 times as dense
Which of the following would immediately occur if newly installed manganese greensand was not skimmed of the fines after backwashing and stratification steps were completed?
a. Uneven flow through the bed
b. Cracks in the bed
c. Mudball formation
d. Shorter filter runs
d. Shorter filter runs
Manganese greensand filters can be regenerated by using
a. a surface wash and an air-water backwash.
b. brine water during backwashing.
c. potassium permanganate solution during backwash.
d. a brine solution during the first backwashing cycle followed by potassium permanganate solution for the second backwash cycle.
c. potassium permanganate solution during backwash.
Which material is manganese greensand and which is the coating?
a. Quartz sand coated with manganese hydroxide [Mn(OH)2]
b. Garnet sand coated with manganese dioxide [MnO2]
c. Ilmenite sand coated with manganese hydroxide [Mn(OH)2]
d. Glauconite sand coated with manganese hydroxide [Mn(OH)2]
d. Glauconite sand coated with manganese hydroxide [Mn(OH)2]
Depending on water temperature, what is the typical backwashing flow rate for a manganese greensand filter bed?
a. 7-8 gpm/ft2
b. 8-10 gpm/ft2
c. 10-12 gpm/ft2
d. 12-14 gpm/ft2
c. 10-12 gpm/ft2
The length of run for manganese greensand filters can be increased by
a. adding a high-molecular-weight polymer filter aid.
b. keeping the pH above 9.0 and lowering it after filtration.
c. keeping the pH below 7.3 and raising it after filtration.
d. adding a layer of anthracite above the greensand.
d. adding a layer of anthracite above the greensand.
Sequestering is effective only for groundwater with a relatively
a. low level of dissolved iron and manganese high level of dissolved oxygen.
b. high level of dissolved iron and manganese and no dissolved oxygen.
c. low level of dissolved iron and manganese and no dissolved oxygen.
d. high level of dissolved iron and manganese and high level of dissolved oxygen.
c. low level of dissolved iron and manganese and no dissolved oxygen.
Iron and manganese treatment strategies must be evaluated in light of which regulation?
D/DBP (Disinfection and Disinfectant By-Product Rule)
Which type of filter uses a special type of medium that removes iron and manganese by a combination of both, adsorption and oxidation?
Manganese greensand filter
Unless pilot test have shown it to be necessary, what device is needed to hold water temporarily after aeration or the addition of an oxidant?
Detention chamber or Contact chamber
What type of regeneration process is preferred where raw water constituents interfere with the preoxidation/filtration process?
Intermittent regeneration
If the natural fluoride of the raw water is variable, the concentration in the raw water should be measured
a. every 8 hours.
b. every 12 hours.
c. every day.
d. continuously.
c. every day
People’s teeth are likely to become pitted when the fluoride concentration in drinking water goes above which amount?
a. 3 mg/L
b. 4 mg/L
c. 5 mg/L
d. 6 mg/L
b. 4 mg/L
How often should the fluoride concentration of treated water be measured?
a. Every 8 hours
b. Every 12 hours
c. Every day
d. Continuously
d. Continuously
Where should the fluoride injection point be located?
a. Right after flocculation
b. After sedimentation, but before lime softening
c. Before filtration
d. After water has received complete treatment
d. After water has received complete treatment
When adding fluoride, when should the fluoride level be measured to test for fluoride concentration?
Both, before and after fluoride is added
The operator must periodically check to ensure that at least _____ of the chemical is maintained in the saturator at all times.
a. 1-inch
b. 3-inches
c. 4-inches
d. 6-inches
d. 6-inches
If fluoride is added before filtration, a significant fluoride loss will occur, resulting in what?
Low fluoride readings
Recordings that should be maintained to monitor the fluoridation process include:
- Daily analysis of the raw water fluoride concentration (unless it is known to be stable)
- Daily analysis of finished water fluoride
- Daily records of the amount of chemical fed (in pounds or kilograms)
- Records by the operating shift of the chemical feed setting
- Daily computation of the theoretical concentration
Metering pumps are quite reliable, but the should receive routine maintenance according to what authority?
The manufacturer’s recommendations
Samples to be tested for coliforms can be refrigerated for up to _____ hours before analysis, but should be done as soon as possible.
a. 4
b. 6
c. 8
d. 12
c. 8