TCE 527: Water Supply

Parameters of Water quality

Discussion

What are the parameters to be considered in

determining the quality of water?
 The most relevant water quality parameters
are:
 Dissolved oxygen (DO)
 Suspended solids (SS)
 Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD)
Water quality  Temperature
parameters  pH
 Nutrients, especially N and P
 VOC’s
 Metals, e. g. Hg, Pb, Cd etc
 Pesticides
Parameters of organic content of water quality

The organic content of a

wastewater effluent or a
BOD₅ - biochemical oxygen COD – chemical oxygen
streamwater is determined
demand demand
using either of the following
tests:

When an organic waste is

discharged to a stream, the
organic content of the
TOC – total organic carbon effluent undergoes a
biochemical reaction, i.e.
assisted by micro-organisms,
as follows:
Parameters of organic content of water
quality
Micro-
Organic matter + O₂ + nutrients organism new biomass +CO₂ + H₂O + stable
products

This is an oxidation reaction and consumes O₂ from the water body. If the
oxygen of the waste (BOD) is high enough, it may deplete the O₂ and the
worst-case scenario is an anaerobic water body.

BOD is defined as the amount of energy required by living organisms in the

stabilization of the organic matter of a water/wastewater.

The BOD test is fully described in Standard Methods (1992)

Example 1
The results from a BOD test, diluted by 100, are given in columns 1 and 2 in
the table below. Compute the BOD.

BOD₅ = p (DOꞁ - DOꝼ) --------------(1)

p = dilution of the sample in the BOD bottle (e.g. 100)
DOꞁ. DOꝼ = the initial and final DO concentrations
 Parameter of organic content of water quality

BOD₅ = p [(DOꞁ - DOꝼ) – (Bꞁ - Bꝼ)f] ---------------(2)

p = dilution factor
Bꞁ, Bꝼ = initial and final DO concentrations of the seeded diluted
water (blanks)
f = ratio of seed DO in sample to seed in blanks
= % seed in DOꞁ
% seed in Bꞁ
Example 1

Time (days) Diluted sample DO BOD (calculated)

(mg/L) (mg/L)
0 7.95 ------
1 3.75 420
2 3.45 450
3 2.75 520
4 2.15 580
5 1.80 615
Solution
Example 2
Use example 1 with corresponding DO values for the blank to determine the
corrected BOD₅

Time (days) Diluted Blank seeded BOD BOD

sample DO sample DO (Example 1) corrected
(mg/L) (mg/L) (mg/L) (mg/L)
0 7.95 8.15 ------- -------
1 3.75 8.1 420 415
2 3.45 8.05 450 440
3 2.75 8.00 520 505
4 2.15 7.95 580 560
5 1.80 7.9 615 590
Solution
Parameter of organic content of water quality

In
  
discussing water quality, we consider the rate of decomposition of organic matter to be
proportional to the amount of organic matter available. This relationship is formulated as
a continuous first-order reaction:
dLꭏ = -K₁Lꭏ ----------(3)
dt
Where Lꭏ = BOD, i.e. BOD remaining, mg/L
K₁ = BOD deoxygenation rate coefficient, day-¹
Integrating between L₀ and Lꭏ, we get
Lꭏ = L₀
Where L₀ = BODꭎ, i.e. ultimate BOD (or ultimate carbonaceous BOD)
(or initial BOD of effluent at point of discharge to a stream)
Parameter of organic content of water quality
  reference to Figure below, there is
With


BODꭏ = BODꭎ - BODꭇ ----------------(5)

BODꭏ = BOD exerted at time t (or oxygen demand)

BODꭇ = BOD remaining at time t

BODꭏ = L₀ - Lꭏ
= L₀ - L₀
= L₀ (1 - ) ---------------(6)
 Example 3

If example 1 has a Environment k₁ (to base

deoxygenation rate e)
coefficient of 0.15 day-¹
Untreated 0.35 – 0.7
determine the ultimate CBOD
wastewater
(carbonaceous BOD) i.e. BODꭎ
or L₀. Treated wastewater 0.10- 0.25
Polluted river 0.10 – 0.25
Typical k values is given in table
below:
Solution
Example 4

From the data of Example 1, determine the total oxygen

demand if the sample contains 25 mg/L of nitrogen.
Solution
Dissolved oxygen and biochemical
oxygen demand in streams
The 
 Streeter and Phelps (1925) model of the relationship of BOD and DO is still valid. They
considered that when biodegradable waste was discharged to a stream or river it consumed
oxygen, and the latter was only renewed by atmospheric reaeration. The process is
dDO = K₁L₁ - K₂DO = K₁L₀ - K₂DO ---------------------- (7)
dt
Where DO = saturation DO deficit, mg/L
or the difference between saturation

Lꭏ = CBOD, mg/L
K₁ = deoxygenation rate, day-¹
K₂ = reaeration rate, day-¹
Dissolved oxygen and biochemical
oxygen demand in streams
The 
 solution of equation (7) is
DO(t) = K₁L₀ ( - + DO₀ -----------(8)
K₂ - K₁
Where L₀ = oxygen demand at t = t₀
DO₀ = dissolved oxygen deficit at t = t₀
DO(t)= dissolved oxygen saturation deficit at any time t
Equation (8) is the Streeter-Phelps oxygen sag formula
Dissolved oxygen and biochemical
oxygen demand in streams
The 
 time (and also the distance downstream) of the occurrence of the minimum DO or
the maximum dissolved oxygen deficit Doc is obtained by differentiating equation (8)
with respect to t and setting it equal to zero.

tc = 1 ln {K₂ [1 - DO₀(K₂ - K₁)] } ------------(9)

K₂ - K₁ { K₁ K₁L₀}

DOc = K₁ L₀ ----------------------------------(10)
K₂
Example 5

A wastewater with a BOD of 25 mg/L is discharged through an outfall to a

freshwater stream of mean velocity 0.1 m/s. The DO upstream of the
outfall is 8.5 mg/L. Assuming the deoxygenated rate K₁ = 0.25/d and the
reaeration rate K₂ = 0.4 /d, determine:
(a) The time and distance downstream (Xc) where DO is a n=minimum and
(b) (b) The minimum DO
Solution
Transport processes in water bodies

The key transport processes (of a solute) in water bodies, be it a

river, a lake or an estuary are:
 Advection (by the mean velocity of the water body)
 Diffusion (molecular and turbulent)
Turbulent mixing in rivers

If the flow in a river or water body is turbulent, it will actualize much more aeration
through turbulent mixing than it will through Fickian diffusion. In rivers, mixing can be
imagined as occurring in the vertical, lateral (horizontal) and longitudinal axes. Fischer et
al. (1979), suggested the following mixing coefficients:
Vertical: έν = 0.067 du* ------------------------------(11)

Transverse: έt ≈ 0.15 du* -----------------------------(12)

≈ (0.01 – 0.2) du* for straight reaches
≈ (0.4 – 0.8) du* for real channels
έL > 0.15 du* -------------------------------(13)
where d = depth of water body
Turbulent mixing in rivers

u* = shear velocity ≈ √gds ------------------------(14)

Where s = channel bed slope
g = gravity
The above coefficients vary, depending on the channel type or estuary.
Fischer et al. (1979) also indicated that for spreading plumes the
concentration at the centre-line can be approximated by
Cmax = QC₀ 1
Ud √4∏ έt x/U -----------------------------(15)
Where Q = flow rate in m³/s
C₀ = initial concentration in ppm
x = distance downstream
U = mean velocity in m/s
Turbulent mixing in rivers

Fischer et al. (1979) also gives the downstream length for complete
mixing for a discharge at the centreline of a river estuary as

L ≈ 0.1 U W² / έt -------------------------------------(16)
Where W = the width of the river
Example 6
Determine the shear velocity, the transverse mixing coefficient and the
downstream length of complete mixing for a sidewall discharge of
wastewater, of 0.5 m³/s with an initial BOD concentration of 30 mg/L, if the
bed slope is 0.001 and the depth ≈b5 m. Also determine the maximum
concentration 1.5 km downstream if the river is meandering and has a width
of 100 m and a mean velocity of 0.5 m/s.
Solution
Water quality in lakes and reservoirs

Water quality problems in reservoirs are often due to cultural

eutrophication which is caused by:
 Municipal sewage discharges
 Industrial wastewater discharges
 Urban runoff
 Agricultural runoff with natural or artificial fertilizers causing high
nutrient loading
 Biocides from aquaculture
Water quality in lakes and reservoirs
The 
 key physical parameters affecting water quality in lakes are:
Wind movements
Temperature changes
Inflows/outflows

Lakes are defined with respect to stratification by their densiometric Froude number as:
Froude number F = V = Inertia force -------------------------(17)
gravitational force
Densimetric F = Fd = V --------------------------------------(18)
√∆р Dg/р₀
Where р₀ = reference density
∆р = density change over depth D
(if ∆р > 0.01 g/m³ = strong stratification)
Water quality in lakes and reservoirs

If Fd > 0.32 - no stratification

0.01 < Fd < 0.32 – moderate stratified
Fd < 0.01 – strongly stratified
Example 7

Determine the stratification category for a lake if its length by width by

depth is 10 km x 2 km x 25 m. The summer discharge is 10 m³/s. The
surface temperature in the summer is 25 ⁰ C.
Solution
Groundwater quality
Groundwater is a major resource in terms of freshwater. Groundwater moves
slowly, its rate of movement is defined by the hydraulic conductivity K.
 Coarse gravel has a K value of ~ 6.4 x 10-³ m/s
 Shale has a K value of ~ 1.2 x 10-¹² m/s
Groundwater can be contaminated either by point sources or diffuse sources.
 In rural farmyards where there are water wells, there is always the possibility
of wastewater runoff and other agricultural contaminants entering the
groundwater.
 The spreading of fertilizers and pesticides on land are potential diffuse sources
of pollution
 Accidental spillages of oil or leaking oil tanks in petroleum depots is a
potential source of point pollution
Groundwater quality

The transport process in groundwater quality is essentially advection,

with diffusion and hydrodynamic diffusion being insignificant. The
magnitude and direction of transport are governed by:
 The three-dimensional hydraulic conductivity, K
 The water table and its gradient
 The existence of sources (underground streams) or sinks (limestone
caverns)
 The shape of the flow domain
Groundwater quality
The 
 most simple model of decay of a contaminant plume is to assume the decay
to be a first-order reaction i.e.

r = -kC ------------------------------------------ (19)

C₁ = C₀

Where C₁ = concentration at time t, mg/L

C₀ = concentration at time zero, mg/L
t = time, d
k = first-order decay coefficient, usually determined from site investigation
Example 8
  
A confined sandstone aquifer of 5 % porosity, 15 m thick, has two
monitoring wells in it, spaced at 1 km. If the hydraulic conductivity is
5.8 x m/s and the gradient between the two wells is 10 m, determine
the time it takes a contaminant plume to travel from the upstream well
to the downstream well.
Solution