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Water Quality Primer

Well-Water Protection

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— Water Basics —

Water is very important to all things living, it is crucial for our survival. However, it has many more uses other than consumptive. What water is can be explained in many different ways. Some of them are given below:

Definitions of Water:

• Water is a binary compound that at room temperatures remain as a colorless, odorless and tasteless liquid form, and is widely used as a solvent.

• A fluid necessary for the life of most living organisms.

• Di-hydrogen oxide (molecular formula H₂0). The word is used ambiguously to refer to the chemical compound in general and to its liquid phase; when the former is meant, the term water substance is often used.

• Refers to the chemical compound, H₂O, as well as its liquid form. At atmospheric temperatures and pressures, it can exist in all three phases: solid (ice), liquid (water), and gaseous (water vapor). It is a vital, life-sustaining part of life on earth.

Ice is formed when water freezes.  In the process of freezing each H₂O molecule forms hydrogen bonds with four neighboring molecules, creating a tetrahedral shape. H₂O molecules in ice are highly ordered, which gives the crystalline shape to each ice crystal.

• Ice needs more energy  to melt than other refrigerating agents due to the strong hydrogen bonds

• Due to high polarity of H₂O molecules, water can dissolve many substances into it

• Water can act both as an acidic and basic medium because it can easily dissociate into Hydrogen ions (H⁺), which is acidic or in Hydroxyl ions (OH^-), which is alkaline in nature

• When vapor at ground level it forms frost and when it freezes in the clouds it forms snowflakes

• Ice can float under low stress over long periods of time or under high stress when pressure is low without breaking because the strong hydrogen bond cannot be broken

• Ice is less dense than water and thus requires 9% more space than water. This causes breaking of pipes and fissures in roads during winter season

Most of the water that occurs on earth is not potable as it is mostly the salty sea-water. Surface water that is present in lakes, rivers, and streams are the freshwater sources that humans can use effectively. These resources are replenished mainly from rainwater. Groundwater is another important source of usable water. Groundwater is stored within rock and soil structures under the ground. Its recharge is also dependent chiefly on rainwater.

Shelf-life of water depends, largely, on its original source, storage-temperature, and light-exposure. Treated water that is delivered in the households is said to have a shelf-life of 10 years. Untreated water originating from wells can be stored for almost 10-years with 16 drops of chlorine per gallon. Water stored over time may develop a disagreeable odor or taste or may have flat taste. Aeration of flat-tasting water with some fresh water may help regain the taste of stored water.

Many people may be under the impression that rainwater is safe and does not need treatment before use. But rainwater should also be stored in the same way as water from any other unknown source is. Rainwater is found to have high amounts of suspended solids and acidic quality to it.

The boiling point of water is 100 ⁰C at ground-level. At this temperature water the molecules of water are highly energized forcing water to changes to a vapor form, this form of water is steam. Steam conserves in itself high latent energy. The temperature at which water boils depends largely on the pressure, if the pressure is high, water can boil below its boiling point, whereas when the pressure is low (at heights) water may reach the boiling stage at higher temperatures than 100 ⁰C.

Since steam has a lot of energy stored into it, it has been effectively used as a source of power over the years, particularly in the power plant to generate electricity.

From the beginning of time when water first appeared, it has been constant in quantity and continuously in motion. Little has been added or lost over the years. The same water molecules have been transferred time and time again from the oceans into the atmosphere by evaporation, dropped upon the land as precipitation, and transferred back to the sea by rivers and groundwater. This endless circulation is known as the hydrologic cycle. At any instant, about 5 liters out of every 100,000 liters is in motion.

Over time, major cyclic changes in climatic processes have produced deserts and ice cover across entire continents. Today, regional short-term fluctuations in the order of days, months or a few years in the hydrologic cycle result in droughts and floods.