Week 2: Physical Characteristics of Water

Question 1

What are the three classifications of water quality character?

Answer 1

• physical
• chemical
• biological

Question 2

What four things must water sampling programs be?

Answer 2

• Representative
• Reproducible
• Defensible
• Useful

Question 3

What is “Total Solids”?

Answer 3

A variety of solid material found in water or wastewater

Question 4

Define each of these:

TS
TDS
TSS
TVS
VDS
VSS
TFS
FDS
FSS

Answer 4

TS - Total solids
TDS - Total dissolved solids
TSS - Total suspended solids
TVS - Total volatile solids
VDS - Volatile dissolved solids
VSS - Volatile suspended solids
TFS - Total fixed solids
FDS - Fixed (not volatile) Dissolved Solids
FSS - Fixed Suspended Solids

Question 5

Define WT and WWT

Answer 5

Water Treatment
Wastewater Treatment

Question 6

What temperature will organics volatize at (VSS)?

Answer 6

550 C

Question 7

TFS = ?

Answer 7

FDS + FSS

Question 8

TVS = ?

Answer 8

VDS + VSS

Question 9

TS = ?

Answer 9

TDS + TSS

Question 10

What is assumed to be usually very small in a lab analysis of solids?

Answer 10

VDS (Volatile Dissolved Solids)

Question 11

What is Turbidity?

Answer 11

A measure of light-transmitting properties of water (or scattering of light passing through)

Question 12

What are the units of turbidity?

Answer 12

NTU

Question 13

What’s the problem with turbidity?

Answer 13

It becomes a surrogate for contaminants (ability for them to hide/reside)

Question 14

What is the standard of turbidity allowable through the Seymour-Capilano Filtration Plant?

Answer 14

<0.3 NTU

Question 15

Why is colour of water considered?

Answer 15

Mainly aesthetics, but can come from industrial waste

Question 16

What does ACU stand for?

Answer 16

Apparent Colour Units

Question 17

What are considerations for temperature of water?

Answer 17

• water less soluble in warm temp
• chemical and biological reactions increase with temp
• perception of taste and odour