What’s in your water? We can tell you

Melissa FrisciaRichard Janosky

Kiersten DeBlaker

We care, you should too.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJ3Khxf_I4c

Water samples

• Before starting this experiment, we had to collect water samples of the stream running through the campus

• WEATHER CONDITIONS:Cold, rainy and

possibly freezing rain.• Collected samples on

04/01/2011

Water samples

Tom’s Gas Station Rugby Field Walkway

Had ducks, and multiple trash objects(soda cans, Beer bottles/cans).Discoloration: More civilization

No trash visible and no animals.Rocky area

Water samples

Footbridge Driving Bridge

Smelled like a dirty fish tank.Food wrapper, orange peel

Somewhat civilized with students

No visible trash. Gate was closed sono cars recently gone through.

Somewhat rocky area

Water samples

MURPH’S!!! Well Water and Rain

Well water was collected in a civilized areaRain was collected in a bottle

Ducks, trash, iron bar, graffiti. Morecivilization (Apt, houses)

CalibrationCurves

0 2 4 6 8 10 120

1020304050607080

f(x) = 6.6527226848978 x + 2.4221432386533R² = 0.999999999974798

Arsenic Calibration Curve

Concentration (ppm)

Inte

nsity

(c/s

)

0 2 4 6 8 10 12405060708090

100110120

f(x) = 5.78346265450481 x + 51.1294324960875R² = 0.99999999966357

Cadmium Calibration Curve

Concentration (ppm)

Inte

nsity

(c/s

)

0 2 4 6 8 10 12440

460

480

500

520

540

f(x) = 8.43069899238651 x + 478.890434945393R² = 0.999999989707057

Chromium Calibration Curve

Series1Linear (Series1)

Inte

nsity

(c/s

)

0 2 4 6 8 10 1250

150

250

350f(x) = 22.5747018473053 x + 100.651327747343R² = 0.999999999717695

Copper Calibration Curve

Series1Linear (Series1)

Concentration (ppm)

Inte

nsity

(c/s

)

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 1030

35

40

45

f(x) = 0.944892651293464 x + 33.7340143245949R² = 0.999999998402447

Nickel Calibration Curve

Series1Linear (Series1)

Concentration (ppm)

Inte

nsity

(c/s

)

Calibration curves

• Our calibration curves for all eight of our standards showed that our standards were made to the best of our abilities.

• We were able to use our standards as a good prediction as to how our samples would turn out.

0 2 4 6 8 10 120

2000400060008000

10000

f(x) = 783.622199415109 x + 154.671188332205R² = 0.999999999981664

Zinc Calibration Curve

Series1Linear (Series1)

Concentration (ppm)

Inte

ncity

(c/s

)

0 2 4 6 8 10 12 140

100200300400500600

f(x) = 37.1193077662817 x + 25.1720599052036R² = 0.999999999943966

Lead Calibration Curve

Series1Linear (Series1)

Concentration (ppm)

Inte

nsity

(c/s

)

ICP Data

Tom’s(ppm)

Rugby Field

(ppm)

Footbridge

(ppm)

Driving Bridge(ppm)

MURPHS!!

(ppm)Well

(ppm)Rain

(ppm)

Arsenic 0.391 0.158 0.0127 0.164 0.0631 0.0884 0.045

Cadmium Below our standards

Below our standards

Below our standards

Below our standards

Below our standards

Below our standards

Below our standards

Chromium 3.714 4.667 5.147 3.666 5.014 4.455 3.932

Copper Below our standards

Below our standards 0.4381 Below our

standardsBelow our standards

Below our standards 0.0022

Nickel 1.480 0.6445 Below our standards 1.09 Below our

standards 1.365 1.402

Lead 0.095 0.0899 0.0474 0.1559 0.1403 0.1547 0.1639

Zinc Below our standards

Below our standards

Below our standards

Below our standards

Below our standards

Below our standards

Below our standards

What this means….

Chromium• Levels in water is supposed

to be around 0.06 ppb

• We obtained a calculated concentration of around 4 ppm

• RICHARD DOESN’T HAVE CANCER

Nickel• Levels in natural water

sources should be less then 10 ppb

• Levels in drinking water should be approximately 2 ppb

• RICHARD IS NOT DEAD

IC DataPeak

Height Tom’s Rugby Field Footbridge Driving

Bridge MURPHS!! Well Rain

Fluoride 0.326 0.180 0.367 0.425 0.375 0.661 0.724

Chloride 0.047 n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a.

Nitrite 225.418 193.581 170.591 149.340 176.373 10.567 1.131

Bromide n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a.

Nitrate 2.550 2.418 2.239 2.239 2.283 0.405 0.255

Phosphate 4.676 4.281 3.947 3.947 4.249 0.573 0.311

Sulfate n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a.

Ion Chromatography Data

What this Means

Nitrite• How we think it got there:

fertilizers and municipal sludge

• High levels in water can cause harm to infants and livestock if allowed to drink the water

• Ducks found in both places with the highest levels of nitrite in the water

Fluoride• Rain water : fluoride is

naturally found in rain water• Heath risks: excess amount of

fluoride• Treatment: Natural water

samples are not treated with fluoride like in a water treatment plant

• Civilization: more activity around the water decreased the amount of fluoride

What We Would Do Different NEXT TIME!!

• Collect samples before and after the rain storm

• Create standards in a smaller concentration

• Test samples in the other surrounding natural waters here in York, PA

Conclusions

• The ICP data was very skewed and did not give us accurate results; time restraints prevented us from re-running our samples

• The IC produced accurate levels of ions in the samples

• Would not advise drinking or playing in the stream running through York College

References

• http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/crops/00517.html• http://planetsave.com/2010/12/21/high-carcinogenic-chromi

um-levels-found-in-many-cities-tap-water/• http://www.eco-usa.net/toxics/chemicals/nickel.shtml• http://www.fluoridealert.org/fluoridation.htm