ENVIRONMENTAL LAB # 3

LAB TITLE:
DUE DATE: 02/26/15
PLAGIARISM STATEMENT

We, My Linh Pham, Matthew Wrobel and Joshua Correia understand the meaning and penalties
of plagiarism, and certify that the work contained in this report is an example of our group
efforts.

Signature #1/Date

Signature #3/Date

Signature #2/Date

Names: My Linh, Josh, Matthew

Lab date: 02/26/2015
CEN 314 Laboratory Report # 3
INTRODUCTION AND THEORY
Solids result from separating materials from water by settling, evaporation, or filtration.
The term total solid is what remains after evaporation has occurred and only leaves only solid
material behind (Beaudry 2015). The total solids are equal to the total dissolved solids plus the
total suspended solids.
Solids can be both organic and inorganic in nature. The organic material that burns when
ignited is called Volatile Solids. The inorganic material that could not be burned is called
Fixed Solids. Through performing this experiment, students will come to understand and know
how to determine the amount of total solids, total dissolved solids, the total suspended solids and
total volatile solids in a given water sample.
TSS are particles that are larger than two microns in size and they are found in the water
column. Anything that is smaller than two microns is considered TDS. Most suspended solids
make up of inorganic materials. TDS is not a concern for drinking water besides concerns with
the waters palatability.
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this experiment was to determine the weight of the total solids in given
water samples. This was accomplished by performing several experiments simultaneously, which
separated the solid from the liquids by methods evaporation and filtration. Each of the four
samples were randomly assigned to a group until all were passed out.
METHODS AND MATERIALS
The materials used for this lab were as follows: two evaporating dishes, a Gooch
Crucible, a vacuum flask, a hot plate, 50 mL graduated cylinder, fiberglass filter, tongs, an
evaporating furnace, and gloves. The sample that was provided for the team during this
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Names: My Linh, Josh, Matthew

Lab date: 02/26/2015
CEN 314 Laboratory Report # 3
experiment was tap water. Figure 1-5 are images of some materials that were used during this
experiment.

Figure 3: Vacuum Flask

Figure 1: Gooch Crubile

Figure 4: Evaporating oven

Figure 2: Evaporating dish

Figure 5: Heat plate

First the evaporating dish was weighed and recorded. Then 50mL of tap water was
collected in the 50mL graduated cylinder. Following that, approximately 25 mL of tap water was
poured into the evaporating dish and put on the hot plate. The hot plate was then turned on. Once
the liquid was nearly completely boiled, more of the tap water was poured into the evaporating
dish. When the liquid had completely boiled, tongs were used to remove the evaporating dish
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Names: My Linh, Josh, Matthew

Lab date: 02/26/2015
CEN 314 Laboratory Report # 3
from the hot plate, the evaporating dish was then placed into the evaporating oven. The oven was
previously preheated to between 103-105 degrees Celsius before the sample was placed in. After
the samples were in the evaporating oven for one hour, the sample was removed from the oven
and weighed, the weight was then recorded. These steps were done to determine the total solid of
tap water.
The next part of the experiment involved the use of the Gooch Crucible with the
fiberglass filter inserted into it. The Gooch crucible was initially weighed with the filter placed
inside. Both were attached to a rubber stopper, which was then attached to a vacuum flask. Then
20mL of deionized water was added to the Gooch Crucible to test the vacuum. This step was
repeated three times to make sure the vacuum worked correctly. After that, 50mL of tap water
was poured through the Gooch Crucible; the vacuum connected to the flask was turned on. Next,
the Gooch Crucible with filter was placed in the evaporating oven for one hour. After one hour, it
was taken out and weighed to measure the mass of the total suspended solids of the sample.
The dissolved solids went through the same procedure as the total solids. Instead of
getting another 50mL sample, the team had to use the liquid that was passed through the Gooch
Crucible with the fiberglass filter. This gave the team the amount of solids that was dissolved in
the A.D.
The final step was to take the total solid sample and place into the incinerator to heat it to
high temperatures for 15 minutes. At this temperature, the organic residue ignited leaving only
the inorganic solids. Once the sample was cool, it was weighed and recorded for a final value.

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Names: My Linh, Josh, Matthew

Lab date: 02/26/2015
CEN 314 Laboratory Report # 3
RESULTS & DISCUSSION
General Formulas:
TS = TDS +TSS (equation 1)
TS = TVS + TFS (equation 2)
Where:
TS = Total Solids
TDS = Total Diluted Solids
TSS = Total Suspended solids
TVS = Total Volatile Solids
TFS = Total Fixed Solids
Concentration=

mass
volume

(Equation 3)

Table 1: Recorded Weighted of Samples

Group
Tap water
Total Solids (g)
Initial evaporation 35.052

Fiji

Pond water

Sea water

44.541

48.448

32.784

dish
Final #1 (oven)
35.057
Total organic volatile solids

44.552

48.465

34.306

Final

evaporation 35.061

44.562

48.463

34.306

Total suspended solids

Initial
Gooch 18.724

20.550

18.364

18.791

dish #1

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Names: My Linh, Josh, Matthew

Lab date: 02/26/2015
CEN 314 Laboratory Report # 3
+filter
Final Gooch+filter 18.723
Total dissolved solids
Initial evaporation 33.136
dish #2
Final evaporation 33.136

20.550

18.371

18.792

46.363

33.061

43.623

46.382

33.079

44.937

dish #2 (oven)
Note: the shaded cells indicate our result from the experiments.
Group
Tap Water (mg) Fiji (mg)
TS
5
11
TIS
9
21
TVS
-4
-20
TDS
0.00
19
TSS
-1
0.3
Table 2: Measured Values of TS, TVS, TSS, and TDS

Pond Water (mg)

17
14.5
2.5
18
7

Sea Water(mg)
1519
1522
-3
1314
1

Table 3: Concentration value of group 4 experiment:

Concentration
(mg/L)
TS
TIS
TVS
TDS
TSS

Tap water
100
180
-80
0
-20

Fiji

Pond water
220
420
-400
380
6

Sea water
30380
30440
-60
26280
20

140
290
50
360
140

Sample calculations: Using table 1, tap water values

Measured total solid (TS)
TS = Final evap. dry weight initial empty dish weight
TS= 35.057-35.052 = 0.005 g = 5 mg
Measured total suspended solids (TDS)
TDS = post filtration weight initial empty crucible weight
TSS = 18.724 18.723 = 0.001 g = 1mg

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Names: My Linh, Josh, Matthew

Lab date: 02/26/2015
CEN 314 Laboratory Report # 3
Measured totals diluted solids (TSS)
TSS = post sample evap. weight initial empty dish weight
TDS = 33.136 33.136 = 0.000 g
Measured total inorganic volatile (TIS)
TIS = final evap. #1 (furnace) initial evap. #1
TVS = 35.061 35.057 = 0.004 g
Total inorganic solids (TVS)
TVS = TS - TIS
TVS = 0.005 0.004 = 0.001 g
Concentrations:
mass
Conc .=
volume
Conc .=

measureTS
sample volume

5 mg 1000 ml

=100 mg/ L
50 mL
L
Discussion:
Conc .=

The typical TDS for a lake is usually less than 1000mg/L. The United States has
established a secondary water quality standard of 500 mg/L to provide for
the palatability of drinking water. Total dissolved solids are normally
discussed only for freshwater systems, as salt water includes some of the
ions constituting the definition of TDS. Water with high TDS often have a bad
taste and/or high water hardness, and could result in a effect similar to a
laxative.
Total solids are important to measure in areas where there are discharges from sewage
treatment plants, industrial plants, or extensive crop irrigation. In particular, streams and rivers in
arid regions where water is scarce and evaporation is high tend to have higher concentrations of
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Names: My Linh, Josh, Matthew

Lab date: 02/26/2015
CEN 314 Laboratory Report # 3
solids and are more readily affected by human introduction of solids from land use activities. If
you look at Sea Water it has a high concentration of Total solids compared to other types of water
because its a source is on a larger scale than a river for example. This is a result of the ocean
having more imputes to be affected by than a river does, this then causes a larger concentration
of total solids.
Total solids are high for Seawater because of the salt present in the water, and compared
to the results from the experiment its pretty similar. Total dissolved solids are only .2, which
means there arent many solids taken out. The teams experiment for tap water resulted in a TS
value of only 1, which is an acceptable value for drinking water. Tap water is not the cleanest
water to drink and does have some impurities present, which is why not all the solids present
arent taken out. Total solids in surface water usually fall within the range of 20
mg/L to 500 mg/L. Values can go much higher especially after heavy rain
when the water levels are high
Solids in water are regulated through the EPA and Clean Water Acts. The Total
Dissolved Solids concentration is a secondary drinking water standard and therefore is regulated
because it is more of an aesthetic rather than a health hazard. (Total Dissolved Solids a Water
Quality). Total Dissolved Solids are not a concern for drinking water beside the palatability of
the water itself. For the watershed, it would be more of a concern because the water needs t be
treated properly before being discharged for the safety of the environment.
The theoretical value for TDS and the TDS value that was determined gravimetrically
during the lab seemed to be correct. Tap water has value of 0 for total diluted solids because it
has nothing dissolved in it. Pond water has a small amount of TDS because there are minerals,
and pollutants dissolved in it. As we compared the total diluted solids between pond water and
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Names: My Linh, Josh, Matthew

Lab date: 02/26/2015
CEN 314 Laboratory Report # 3
sea water, we could see there was a big different because the TDS level in ocean water are
about 100 times higher than lake water.(Determining TDS) This is also the reason why we
cannot drink seawater because it will cause the body to go into failure due to the high amount of
salt in it.

CONCLUSIONS
For this experiment, the team has developed a basic understanding of what dissolved
solids in water are and how to separate them from the water they are present in. Total solids are
the sum of total dissolved solids and total suspended solids found in a water sample. There are
three ways to determine the total solids in sample: evaporation, filtration, and settling. The team
has learned that solids can be broken down into two categories: inorganic and organic solids. To
the team it was surprising to see that the total solids of pond water was not much different from
tap water, and that sea water contained a lot more solids than any other water samples.

REFERENCES
Davis, M.L., & Conrnwell, D.A. (2015). Introduction to Environmental Engineering.
New York: McGraw-Hill
Beaudry, J. (2015). Solid Dtermination.

CEN 314 Course Handout. University of

Massachusetts Dartmouth, Dartmouth, MA.

Oram, B. (n.d.). Total Dissolved Solids. Retrieved February 26, 2015, from
http://www.waterresearch.net/index.php/watertreatment/tools/totaldissolvedsolids
Lab 2: Determining TDS. (n.d.). Retrieved February 26, 2015, from
http://www.chemistryland.com/CHM130FieldLab/Lab2/Lab2.html
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Names: My Linh, Josh, Matthew

Lab date: 02/26/2015
CEN 314 Laboratory Report # 3

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