What’s in your water? We can tell you Melissa Friscia Richard Janosky Kiersten DeBlaker
What’s in your water? We can tell you
Melissa FrisciaRichard Janosky
Kiersten DeBlaker
We care, you should too.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJ3Khxf_I4c
Water samples
• Before starting this experiment, we had to collect water samples of the stream running through the campus
• WEATHER CONDITIONS:Cold, rainy and
possibly freezing rain.• Collected samples on
04/01/2011
Water samples
Tom’s Gas Station Rugby Field Walkway
Had ducks, and multiple trash objects(soda cans, Beer bottles/cans).Discoloration: More civilization
No trash visible and no animals.Rocky area
Water samples
Footbridge Driving Bridge
Smelled like a dirty fish tank.Food wrapper, orange peel
Somewhat civilized with students
No visible trash. Gate was closed sono cars recently gone through.
Somewhat rocky area
Water samples
MURPH’S!!! Well Water and Rain
Well water was collected in a civilized areaRain was collected in a bottle
Ducks, trash, iron bar, graffiti. Morecivilization (Apt, houses)
CalibrationCurves
0 2 4 6 8 10 120
1020304050607080
f(x) = 6.6527226848978 x + 2.4221432386533R² = 0.999999999974798
Arsenic Calibration Curve
Concentration (ppm)
Inte
nsity
(c/s
)
0 2 4 6 8 10 12405060708090
100110120
f(x) = 5.78346265450481 x + 51.1294324960875R² = 0.99999999966357
Cadmium Calibration Curve
Concentration (ppm)
Inte
nsity
(c/s
)
0 2 4 6 8 10 12440
460
480
500
520
540
f(x) = 8.43069899238651 x + 478.890434945393R² = 0.999999989707057
Chromium Calibration Curve
Series1Linear (Series1)
Inte
nsity
(c/s
)
0 2 4 6 8 10 1250
150
250
350f(x) = 22.5747018473053 x + 100.651327747343R² = 0.999999999717695
Copper Calibration Curve
Series1Linear (Series1)
Concentration (ppm)
Inte
nsity
(c/s
)
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 1030
35
40
45
f(x) = 0.944892651293464 x + 33.7340143245949R² = 0.999999998402447
Nickel Calibration Curve
Series1Linear (Series1)
Concentration (ppm)
Inte
nsity
(c/s
)
Calibration curves
• Our calibration curves for all eight of our standards showed that our standards were made to the best of our abilities.
• We were able to use our standards as a good prediction as to how our samples would turn out.
0 2 4 6 8 10 120
2000400060008000
10000
f(x) = 783.622199415109 x + 154.671188332205R² = 0.999999999981664
Zinc Calibration Curve
Series1Linear (Series1)
Concentration (ppm)
Inte
ncity
(c/s
)
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 140
100200300400500600
f(x) = 37.1193077662817 x + 25.1720599052036R² = 0.999999999943966
Lead Calibration Curve
Series1Linear (Series1)
Concentration (ppm)
Inte
nsity
(c/s
)
ICP Data
Tom’s(ppm)
Rugby Field
(ppm)
Footbridge
(ppm)
Driving Bridge(ppm)
MURPHS!!
(ppm)Well
(ppm)Rain
(ppm)
Arsenic 0.391 0.158 0.0127 0.164 0.0631 0.0884 0.045
Cadmium Below our standards
Below our standards
Below our standards
Below our standards
Below our standards
Below our standards
Below our standards
Chromium 3.714 4.667 5.147 3.666 5.014 4.455 3.932
Copper Below our standards
Below our standards 0.4381 Below our
standardsBelow our standards
Below our standards 0.0022
Nickel 1.480 0.6445 Below our standards 1.09 Below our
standards 1.365 1.402
Lead 0.095 0.0899 0.0474 0.1559 0.1403 0.1547 0.1639
Zinc Below our standards
Below our standards
Below our standards
Below our standards
Below our standards
Below our standards
Below our standards
What this means….
Chromium• Levels in water is supposed
to be around 0.06 ppb
• We obtained a calculated concentration of around 4 ppm
• RICHARD DOESN’T HAVE CANCER
Nickel• Levels in natural water
sources should be less then 10 ppb
• Levels in drinking water should be approximately 2 ppb
• RICHARD IS NOT DEAD
IC DataPeak
Height Tom’s Rugby Field Footbridge Driving
Bridge MURPHS!! Well Rain
Fluoride 0.326 0.180 0.367 0.425 0.375 0.661 0.724
Chloride 0.047 n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a.
Nitrite 225.418 193.581 170.591 149.340 176.373 10.567 1.131
Bromide n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a.
Nitrate 2.550 2.418 2.239 2.239 2.283 0.405 0.255
Phosphate 4.676 4.281 3.947 3.947 4.249 0.573 0.311
Sulfate n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a.
Ion Chromatography Data
What this Means
Nitrite• How we think it got there:
fertilizers and municipal sludge
• High levels in water can cause harm to infants and livestock if allowed to drink the water
• Ducks found in both places with the highest levels of nitrite in the water
Fluoride• Rain water : fluoride is
naturally found in rain water• Heath risks: excess amount of
fluoride• Treatment: Natural water
samples are not treated with fluoride like in a water treatment plant
• Civilization: more activity around the water decreased the amount of fluoride
What We Would Do Different NEXT TIME!!
• Collect samples before and after the rain storm
• Create standards in a smaller concentration
• Test samples in the other surrounding natural waters here in York, PA
Conclusions
• The ICP data was very skewed and did not give us accurate results; time restraints prevented us from re-running our samples
• The IC produced accurate levels of ions in the samples
• Would not advise drinking or playing in the stream running through York College
References
• http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/crops/00517.html• http://planetsave.com/2010/12/21/high-carcinogenic-chromi
um-levels-found-in-many-cities-tap-water/• http://www.eco-usa.net/toxics/chemicals/nickel.shtml• http://www.fluoridealert.org/fluoridation.htm