LIST OF ABREVIATIONS

APHA American Public Health Association

JS 286.1997 Jordanian Standard for Drinking Water (286:1997)

WHO World Health Organization

:Literature review

A primary concern of people living in developing countries

throughout the world, such as Jordan, is that of obtaining clean
drinking water. Protecting water supplies, therefore, is the first
line of defense. Source protection is almost the best method of
insuring safe drinking water and is preferred over treating a
.contaminated water supply according to the WHO

The provision of safe drinking water of good quality and

quantity is the most important step which can be taken to
improve the health of a community by preventing the spread of
.waterborne diseases

The chemical aspects of water quality will be the main aspect of

our study. This implies the study of PH, free residual chlorine,
nitrate (NO3), nitrite (NO2), ammonium ion (NH4) and the
.heavy metals such as iron, zinc and aluminum

:pH

The pH range of drinking water specified in JS 286:1997 is 6.5 to

8.5. The affectivity of disinfection with chlorine is highly
effective when pH is less than 8 according to the WHO. pH is of
major importance in determining the corrosivity of water, and
in general, the lower pH, the higher the level of corrosion.
.Higher pH gives taste and a soapy feel to the water

Careful attention to control the pH is necessary at all stages of

water treatment to ensure satisfactory water clarification and
disinfection, and failure to control it can result in the
contamination of drinking water and in adverse effects on its
.taste, odor and appearance

Free residual chlorine

Chlorine is the most commonly used disinfectant worldwide

and when it is used as a disinfectant in a piped distribution
system, it is desirable to maintain a free residual chlorine of
0.2-0.5 mg/L throughout the system to reduce the risk of
.microbial regrowth and the health risk recontamination

Free residual chlorine is specified in JS 286:1997 ranging from

0.2 to 1.0mg/L. some of the advantages of chlorine is its
.relative cheapness, its affectivity and its ease of measurement

The parameters governing the effectiveness of chlorine are the

turbidity (<0.5 NTU), pH (<8.0) and the retention time
.(>30minutes)

The risks of health posed by chlorination by-products are

extremely small compared to those associated with inadequate
disinfection. It is important that disinfection should not be
.compromised by attempts to control such by-products

Nitrate (NO3) and Nitrite (NO2)

The nitrite ion is the stable form of combined nitrogen for

oxygenated systems. The higher acceptable level of nitrate ion
in drinking water specified in JS 286:1997 and WHO (1996) is
.50mg/L

The nitrite ion contains nitrogen in a relatively unstable

oxidation state. The higher acceptable level of nitrite ion in
drinking water specified in JS 286:1997 and WHO (1996) is
.2mg/L

The presence of nitrate and nitrite in water may result from the
excessive application of fertilizers or from leaching of
wastewater or other organic wastes into surface water and
.groundwater

Ammonium ion (NH4)

Ammonia (NH3) or ammonium (NH4) may be present in

drinking water as a result of disinfection with chloramines, the
presence of higher level of ammonium cation in drinking water
may be considered as an important indicator of fecal pollution.
The higher acceptable concentration of ammonium cation that
.is specified in JS 286:1997 is 0.5mg/L

The heavy metals iron, zinc and aluminum

The higher acceptable concentrations of iron, zinc and

aluminum as specified in JS 286:1997 and WHO (1996) are
.0.3,3.0 and 0.1 mg/L respectively

Concentration of iron in drinking water are normally <0.3mg/L

but may be higher in countries where various iron salts are
used as coagulating agents in water trearment plants and
where cast iron, steel and galvanized iron pipes are used for
.water distribution
Zinc is an essential and beneficial element in human growth.
Consenctreation above 5mg/L can cause bitter astringent taste
and an opalescence in alkaline water. Zinc most commonly
enters the domestic water supply from deterioration of
galvanized iron and dezinification of brass. Zinc in water may
.also result from industrial waste pollution

Aluminum salts are used as coagulants in water treatment.

Aluminum may be deposited in the distribution system, and
gradual reduction with increasing distance from the treatment
.plant may then be observed

Materials and methods

Samples
Samples collectin and sampling procedure for chemical
:examination

The samples for chemical examination where collected in 1

liter plastic bottles. The bottles must be cleansed with cleaning
solution (potassium dichromate's) and hot water, and rinsed
with hot water then finally rinsed several times with distilled
.water to remove any residual of cleaning solution

The bottles should be filled after flushing water line sufficiently

to ensure that the sample is representative of the supply. The
must be rinsed several times before filling and smaller air space
should be left to make shacking before analysis easier. Finally
.the bottles must be capped and labeled

Samples then must be immediately transferred into a nice box,

and should be transported within a maximum of 3 hours to the
laboratory where they must be analyzed immediately as soon
as received. The determination of free residual chlorine must
.be done in the field

Examination of drinking water samples

Chemical examinations include pH value, free residual chlorine

(Cl2), nitrate ion (NO3), nitrite ion (NO2), ammonium ion (NH4)
.and heavy metals such as iron (Fe), zinc (Zn) and aluminum (Al)

pH value

The pH value is measured electrometrically using pH meter

with a glass electrode. The pH meter must be calibrated at the
beginning of each samples series against freshly prepared 4 and
.7 pH units standard buffer solutions

Free residual chlorine (CL2)

The free residual chlorine is measured in the field using DPD (N,
N-diethyl-p-phenylene-diamine) method, which is
.recommended by the WHO

The color match comparator kit for determination of free

residual chlorine was used. The free residual chlorine in the
sample reacts instantly with DPD tablet indicator. The DPD
tablet is added to the water sample to produce red to pink
color in the test compartment, which is then compared with
standard colors in the control compartment in good,
transmitted natural light. The result was expressed in mg/L free
.residual chlorine

Nitrate (NO3)