Suspended Solids and Turbidity in Water Quality Parameters, Impact & Limits

Water Quality Parameters

I) Physical Parameter –

a) Suspended solid –

• It is a physical water parameter, while dissolved solids are chemical water quality parameters.
• It may come from inorganic particles (sand, silt, clay), or from organic particle (plant fibres, algae, etc.) or it may indeed due to immiscible liquids like oil and grease.

Impact –

• It has a psychological effect and makes the water aesthetically displeasing.
• If suspended solids are biologically active, then they may carry disease-causing microbes.
• Suspended solids provide adsorption sites for chemical and biological agents, which interfere with further treatment of water.
• It partially shield the microorganism and it reduce the efficiency of disinfection.

• In some cases, suspended solids smaller than the size of filter pores are measured as dissolved solids.
• To avoid this, the classification of solids is done as filterable solids and Non-filterable solids.
• Filterable solids corresponded to dissolved solids, and non-filterable solids corresponded to suspended solids.
• Acceptable / Rejection Limit = 30 mg/lit

b) Turbidity –

Sources – same as suspended solids

• There is no quantitative relation between suspended solids and Turbidity; only a qualitative relation exists. (More suspended solids – more Turbidity).
• All impacts of suspended solids are also applicable here.
• The Turbidity of water interferes with the penetration of sunlight in natural water bodies, which affects the photosynthesis, which affects the growth of aquatic life.

Measurement of Turbidity –

i) Turbidity Rod (needle method)

(drawing of apparatus with Aluminium rod & Pt mark)

• The turbidity is expressed in standard unit, which is obtained by adding 1 mg of SiO₂ (silica oxide) in one litre of pure water in powdered form.
• The unit is STU (Silica Turbidity Unit) or mg/l.

Suspended Solids and Turbidity in Water Quality Parameters, Impact & Limits

Also Read:-

• Decoding Noise Pollution: Understanding, Measuring, and Mitigating Unwanted Sounds:- https://engineerlatest.com/decoding-noise-pollution-unwanted-sounds/
• Types of Plumes and Their Behavior in Different Environmental Conditions:- https://engineerlatest.com/types-of-plumes-and-behavior-in-environmental/
• Air Pollution: A Comprehensive Analysis of Harmful Substances Impacting Humans, Animals, and the Environment:- https://engineerlatest.com/air-pollution-harmful-substances-impact/