Water Hardness
11th Grade Chemistry Honors
Which Type of Water is the Hardest?
Hardness is the quality in water that is imparted by the presence of dissolved salts, especially calcium and magnesium. Hardness refers to how many mineral particles there are in water. The harder the water is, higher the contents of minerals. A geologist is a person who specialized in geologic research and study; a hydrologist is a geologist that studies the circulation, distribution, and properties of the waters of the earth and its atmosphere. A particle is a tiny or small bit. A mineral is any of a class of substances occurring in nature. Calcium is a silver-white divalent metal, and magnesium is a light ductile, silver-white, metallic element that burn with a dazzling white light. Dissolving is when you make a solution by mixing a solvent with a solute.
Pure water is neither acidic nor basic, but rainwater is slightly acidic; as it passes through mineral deposits, it reacts with the minerals for them to dissolve in water. When you wash dishes, if you have hard water you would need more soap to get the dishes cleaned. When measuring the hardness of water you can compare the measure of suds that form with liquid soap. Calcium and magnesium dissolved in water determines the hardness. Water hardness (mg/L)＝Ca(mg/L)×2.497 ＋ Mg(mg/L)×4.118. Water hardness is measured in grains per gallon, in milligrams of calcium (Ca) per liter, or parts per million.
Hardness is not the same everywhere; it varies throughout the United States. Water is harder in Florida, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, Wyoming, Nebraska, South Dakota, Iowa, Wisconsin and Indiana. In other places in the United States water is softer. There is slightly hard, moderately hard, hard and very hard water. Soft water has to have less than a grain of calcium or magnesium. Hard water isn’t as useful as soft water. The importance of softening water for a domestic purpose is beneficial because of the less amount of soap is required. Hardness in
Which Type of Water is the Hardest?
Hardness is the quality in water that is imparted by the presence of dissolved salts, especially calcium and magnesium. Hardness refers to how many mineral particles there are in water. The harder the water is, higher the contents of minerals. A geologist is a person who specialized in geologic research and study; a hydrologist is a geologist that studies the circulation, distribution, and properties of the waters of the earth and its atmosphere. A particle is a tiny or small bit. A mineral is any of a class of substances occurring in nature. Calcium is a silver-white divalent metal, and magnesium is a light ductile, silver-white, metallic element that burn with a dazzling white light. Dissolving is when you make a solution by mixing a solvent with a solute.
Pure water is neither acidic nor basic, but rainwater is slightly acidic; as it passes through mineral deposits, it reacts with the minerals for them to dissolve in water. When you wash dishes, if you have hard water you would need more soap to get the dishes cleaned. When measuring the hardness of water you can compare the measure of suds that form with liquid soap. Calcium and magnesium dissolved in water determines the hardness. Water hardness (mg/L)＝Ca(mg/L)×2.497 ＋ Mg(mg/L)×4.118. Water hardness is measured in grains per gallon, in milligrams of calcium (Ca) per liter, or parts per million.
Hardness is not the same everywhere; it varies throughout the United States. Water is harder in Florida, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, Wyoming, Nebraska, South Dakota, Iowa, Wisconsin and Indiana. In other places in the United States water is softer. There is slightly hard, moderately hard, hard and very hard water. Soft water has to have less than a grain of calcium or magnesium. Hard water isn’t as useful as soft water. The importance of softening water for a domestic purpose is beneficial because of the less amount of soap is required. Hardness in
Bibliography: * http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/characteristics.html#Hardness * http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project_ideas/Chem_p094.shtml#background * http://www.water-research.net/hardness.htm * “Mechanics of the Household” by E. S. Keene