What are the chemical characteristics of groundwater?
Some of the most typical characteristics of groundwater are weak turbidity, a constant temperature and chemical composition and almost overall absence of oxygen. Circulating groundwater can have extreme variation in the composition with the appearance of pollutants and various contaminants.
What is the composition of ground water?
The major dissolved components of groundwaters include the anions bicarbonate, chloride and sulphate, and the cations sodium, calcium, magnesium and potassium. These constituents are typically present at concentrations in the range of a few mg/L to several hundred mg/L.
What effects the chemistry of groundwater?
Industrial discharges, urban activities, agriculture, groundwater pumpage, and disposal of waste all can affect groundwater quality. Contaminants from leaking fuel tanks or fuel or toxic chemical spills may enter the groundwater and contaminate the aquifer.
What minerals are in groundwater?
Ground water may contain dissolved minerals and gases that give it the tangy taste enjoyed by many people. Without these minerals and gases, the water would taste flat. The most common dissolved mineral substances are sodium, calcium, magnesium, potassium, chloride, bicarbonate, and sulfate.
What is the pH of groundwater?
about 6.0 to 8.5
In the absence of coal or iron sulfide minerals, the pH of groundwater typically ranges from about 6.0 to 8.5, depending on the type of soil and rock contacted.
What are some characteristics of groundwater?
Groundwater is the largest reservoir of liquid fresh water on Earth and is found in aquifers, porous rock and sediment with water in between. Water is attracted to the soil particles and capillary action, which describes how water moves through a porous media, moves water from wet soil to dry areas.
What are aquifer characteristics?
Aquifers are characterized by petro-physical properties such as hydraulic conductivity (alternatively called permeability ), transmissivity (product of hydraulic conductivity and aquifer thickness) and diffusivity (ratio of transmissivity and storage coefficient).
What is the pH of ground water?
What determines groundwater quality?
Factors like climate, slope, drainage conditions, water–rock interaction and anthropogenic activities contribute to the groundwater quality [4]. Turbidity in water arises from the presence of very finely divided solids [6]. Dissolved minerals, especially divalent cations cause total hardness in water.
Which element is responsible for groundwater pollution in various states?
Overall, the groundwater is contaminated with the presence of excess nitrate in as many as 386 districts followed by fluoride in 335 districts, iron in 301 districts, salinity in 212, arsenic in 153 districts, lead in 93 districts, chromium in 30 districts and cadmium in 24 districts of different states across India.
What causes turbidity in groundwater?
Turbidity is caused by particles suspended or dissolved in water that scatter light making the water appear cloudy or murky. Particulate matter can include sediment – especially clay and silt, fine organic and inorganic matter, soluble colored organic compounds, algae, and other microscopic organisms.
How is the chemical composition of groundwater determined?
Groundwater chemical composition is the result of the composition of water that enters groundwater reservoirs and the reactions with minerals present in the rock that may modify the composition. Generally, minerals are not soluble species, but their solubility may increase depending on the presence of CO2 in water.
How does ground water recharge affect a wetland?
Wetlands most commonly are ground-water discharge areas; however, ground-water recharge also occurs. Ground-water recharge or discharge in wetlands is affected by topographic position, hydrogeology, sediment and soil characteristics, season, ET, and climate and might not occur uniformly throughout a wetland.
How are the hydrologic and water quality of wetlands related?
The hydrologic and water-quality functions of wetlands are controlled by the following: Landscape position (elevation in the drainage basin relative to other wetlands, lakes, and streams) Topographic location (depressions, flood plains, slopes) Presence or absence of vegetation. Type of vegetation. Type of soil.
Which is the correct chemical formula for water?
Water is a chemical compound of hydrogen and oxygen with the formula H2O. The principal reason for the unusual properties of water can be discerned from the structure of the H2O molecule. The two bonds between the oxygen and the hydrogens form an angle of 105º.