Week 2 Lab Reporting Form
Lab 2 – Water Quality and Contamination
Experiment 1: Effects of Groundwater Contamination
Table 1: Water Observations (Smell, Color, Etc.)
Beaker
Observations
1
The water is clear with no distinct smell.
2
The vegetable oil does not mix with the water. Oil on top, separated from the water. Oil has a slight yellow look to it. No odor.
3
Vinegar mixes with the water and retains clarity. Has a slight smell of vinegar to it.
4
Laundry detergent changes the water’s clarity to a blue-green color. It has a cloudy appearance. Water now has a soapy smell.
5
Water filters through the soil and has a brown color with sediment. There is no odor.
6
Filtered vegetable oil and water mixture has a brownish color and seems to have some sediment. There is no apparent odor. Some oil residue is floating on top, but much less than before.
7
Water and vinegar mixtures filters through resulting in brown color. It is cloudy with some sediment from the soil. There is a slight vinegar smell.
8
Water and laundry detergent mixtures filters out with a dark brown color. Sediment is more sludge-like in texture. Soap smell is still strong.
POST LAB QUESTIONS
1. Develop hypotheses on the ability of oil, vinegar, and laundry detergent to contaminate groundwater.
a. Oil hypothesis = If vegetable oil contaminates groundwater then soil will help to filter most of it out.
b. Vinegar hypothesis = If vinegar contaminates groundwater then soil will mix it with the water filtering most of the odor out.
c. Laundry detergent hypothesis = If laundry detergent contaminates groundwater then soil will do little to filter it out.
2. Based on the results of your experiment, would you reject or accept each hypothesis that you produced in question 1? Explain how you determined this.
a. Oil hypothesis accept/reject = Accepted.
b. Vinegar hypothesis accept/reject = Accepted.
c. Laundry detergent hypothesis accept/reject = Accepted.
I determined this by using the same water source, amount of contaminants, and
Experiment 1: Effects of Groundwater Contamination
Table 1: Water Observations (Smell, Color, Etc.)
Beaker
Observations
1
The water is clear with no distinct smell.
2
The vegetable oil does not mix with the water. Oil on top, separated from the water. Oil has a slight yellow look to it. No odor.
3
Vinegar mixes with the water and retains clarity. Has a slight smell of vinegar to it.
4
Laundry detergent changes the water’s clarity to a blue-green color. It has a cloudy appearance. Water now has a soapy smell.
5
Water filters through the soil and has a brown color with sediment. There is no odor.
6
Filtered vegetable oil and water mixture has a brownish color and seems to have some sediment. There is no apparent odor. Some oil residue is floating on top, but much less than before.
7
Water and vinegar mixtures filters through resulting in brown color. It is cloudy with some sediment from the soil. There is a slight vinegar smell.
8
Water and laundry detergent mixtures filters out with a dark brown color. Sediment is more sludge-like in texture. Soap smell is still strong.
POST LAB QUESTIONS
1. Develop hypotheses on the ability of oil, vinegar, and laundry detergent to contaminate groundwater.
a. Oil hypothesis = If vegetable oil contaminates groundwater then soil will help to filter most of it out.
b. Vinegar hypothesis = If vinegar contaminates groundwater then soil will mix it with the water filtering most of the odor out.
c. Laundry detergent hypothesis = If laundry detergent contaminates groundwater then soil will do little to filter it out.
2. Based on the results of your experiment, would you reject or accept each hypothesis that you produced in question 1? Explain how you determined this.
a. Oil hypothesis accept/reject = Accepted.
b. Vinegar hypothesis accept/reject = Accepted.
c. Laundry detergent hypothesis accept/reject = Accepted.
I determined this by using the same water source, amount of contaminants, and