|
|
(1)
A shallow pond where sunlight, bacterial
action, and oxygen work to purify wastewater;
also used to storage of wastewaters
or spent nuclear fuel rods. |
(2)
Shallow body of water, often separated
from the sea by coral reefs or sandbars. |
|
LANGELIER'S
INDEX : |
A
calculated number used to predict whether
or not a water will precipitate, be
in equilibrium with, or dissolved calcium
carbonate. It is sometimes erroneously
assumed that any water which tends to
dissolve calcium carbonate is automatically
corrosive. |
|
Leachate
Collection System : |
A
system that gathers leachate and pumps
it to the surface for treatment. |
|
Leachate
: |
A
liquid that results from water collecting
contaminants as it trickles through
wastes, agricultural pesticides or fertilizers.
Leaching may occur in fanning areas,
feedlots, and landfills, and may result
in hazardous substances entering surface
water, ground water, or soil. |
|
LIME
: |
The
common name for calcium oxide (CaO);
hydrated lime is calcium hydroxide Ca(OH)2. |
|
|
On
of the elements making up the earth's
crust, the compounds of which when dissolved
in water make the water hard. The presence
of magnesium in water is a factor contributing
to the formation of scale and insoluble
soap curds. |
|
MANGANESE
: |
An
element sometimes found dissolved in
ground water, usually with dissolved
iron but in lower concentrations; causes
black stains, and other problems similar
to iron. |
|
MANGANESE
GREENSAND : |
Greensand
which has been processed to incorporate
in its pores and on its surface the
higher oxides of manganese. The product
has a mild oxidizing power, and is often
used in the oxidation and precipitation
of iron, manganese and/or hydrogen sulfide,
and their removal from water. |
|
Mechanical
Aeration : |
Use
of mechanical energy to inject air into
water to cause a waste stream to absorb
oxygen. |
|
Mechanical
Turbulence : |
Random
irregularities of fluid motion in air
caused by buildings or mechanical, non-thermal,
processes. |
|
Mercury
: |
A
heavy metal that can accumulate in the
environment and is highly toxic if breathed
or swallowed. (See: heavy metals.) |
|
Methane
: |
A
colorless, nonpoisonous, flammable gas
created by anaerobic decomposition of
organic compounds. |
|
MICRON
: |
A
linear measure equal to one millionth
of a meter. |
|
MINERAL
: |
A
term applied to inorganic substances,
such as rocks and similar matter found
in the earth's strata, as opposed to
organic substances such as plant and
animal matter. Minerals normally have
definite chemical composition and crystal
structure. The term is also applied
to matter derived from minerals, such
as a inorganic ions found in water.
The term has been incorrectly applied
to ion exchangers, even though most
of the modern materials are organic
ion exchange resins. |
|
|
The
electrical charge on an electrode or
ion in solution, due to the presence
of and excess of electrons. |
|
Nitrate
: |
A
compound containing nitrogen which can
exist in the atmosphere or as a dissolved
gas in water and which can have harmful
effects on humans and animals. Nitrates
in water can cause severe illness in
infants and cows. |
|
NONCARBONATE
HARDNESS : |
Water
hardness due to the presence of compounds
such as calcium and magnesium chlorides
sulfates or nitrates; the excess of
fatal hardness over total alkalinity. |
|
Nutrient
: |
Any
substance assimilated by living things
that promotes growth. The term is generally
applied to nitrogen and phosphorus in
wastewater, but is also applied to other
essential and trace elements. |
|
|
1.
Activities conducted at a site after
a Super-fund site action is completed
to ensure that the action is effective
and operating properly. |
2.
Actions taken after construction to
assure that facilities constructed to
treat waste water will be properly operated,
maintained, and managed to achieve efficiency
levels and prescribed effluent limitations
in an optimum manner. |
|
OPERATION
PRESSURE : |
The
range of pressure, usually expressed
in pounds per square inch, over which
a water conditioning device or water
system is designed to function. |
|
Organic
Chemicals/Compounds : |
Animal
or plant-produced substances containing
mainly carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. |
|
Organic
Matter : |
Carbonaceous
waste contained in plant or animal matter
and originating from domestic or industrial
sources. |
|
Organic
: |
1.
Referring to or derived from living
organisms. 2. In chemistry any compound
containing carbon. |
|
Organism
: |
Any
living thing. |
|
Organophosphates
: |
Pesticide
chemicals that contain phosphorus; used
to control insects. They are short-lived,
but some can be toxic when first applied. |
|
OSMOSIS
: |
A
process of diffusion of a solvent such
as water through a semi-permeable membrane
which will transmit the solvent but
impede most dissolved substances. The
normal flow of solvent is from the dilute
solution to the concentrated solution. |
|
Overturn
: |
The
period of mixing (turnover), by top
to bottom circulation, of previously
stratified water masses. This phenomenon
may occur in spring and/or fall, or
after storms. It results in a uniformity
of chemical and physical properties
of the water at all depths. |
|
Oxidant
: |
A
substance containing oxygen that reacts
chemically in air to produce a new substance.
The primary ingredient of photochemical
smog. |
|
OXIDATION
: |
A
chemical process in which electrons
are removed from an atom, ion or compound.
The addition of oxygen is a specific
form of oxidation. Combustion is an
extremely rapid form of oxidation, while
the rusting of iron is a slow form.
|
|
Oxidation
Pond : |
A
man-made lake or body of water in which
waste is consumed by bacteria. It is
used most frequently with other waste-treatment
processes. An oxidation pond is basically
the same as a sewage lagoon. |
|
Oxidation
: |
1.
The addition of oxygen which breaks
down organic waste or chemicals such
as cyanides, phenols, and organic sulfur
compounds in sewage by bacterial and
chemical means. |
2.
Oxygen combining with other elements.
|
3.
The process in chemistry whereby electrons
are removed from a molecule. |
|
Ozonator
: |
A
device that adds ozone to water. |
|
Ozone
(03) : |
Found
in two layers of the atmosphere, the
stratosphere and the troposphere. In
the stratosphere (the atmospheric layer
beginning 7 to 10 miles above the earth’s
surface) ozone is a form of oxygen found
naturally which provides a protective
layer shielding the earth from ultraviolet
radiation’s harmful health effects
on humans and the environment. In the
troposphere (the layer extending up
7 to 10 miles from the earth’s
surface), ozone is a chemical oxidant
and major component of photochemical
smog. Ozone can seriously affect the
human respiratory system and is one
of the most prevalent and widespread
of all the criteria pollutants for which
the Clean Air Act required EPA to set
standards. Ozone in the troposphere
is produced through complex chemical
reactions of nitrogen oxides, which
are among the primary pollutants emitted
by combustion sources; hydrocarbons,
released into the atmosphere through
the combustion, handling and processing
of petroleum products; and sunlight. |
|
Ozone
Depletion : |
Destruction
of the stratospheric ozone layer which
shields the earth from ultraviolet radiation
harmful to biological life. This destruction
of ozone is caused by the breakdown
of certain chlorine and/or-bromine containing
compounds (chlorofluorocarbons or halons)
which break down when they reach the
stratosphere and catalytically destroy
ozone molecules. |
|
|
A
pollution control device that forces
dirty air through a tower packed with
crushed rock or wood chips while liquid
is sprayed over the packing material.
The pollutants in the air stream either
dissolve or chemically react with the
liquid. |
|
PARTS
PER MILLION (PPM) : |
A
common basis for reporting the results
of water and wastewater analysis, indicating
the number of parts by weight of a dissolved
or suspended constituent, per million
parts by weight of water or other solvent,
In dilute water solutions, one part
per million is practically equal to
one milligram per liter, which is the
preferred unit. |
|
Pathogens
: |
Microorganisms
that can cause disease in other organisms
or in humans, animals and plants. They
may be bacteria, viruses, or parasites
and are found in sewage, in runoff from
animal farms or rural areas populated
with domestic and/or wild animals, and
in water used for swimming. Fish and
shellfish contaminated by pathogens,
or the contaminated water itself, can
cause serious illnesses. |
|
Percolation
: |
The
movement of water downward and radially
through the sub-surface soil layers,
usually continuing downward to the ground
water. |
|
Permeability
: |
The
rate at which liquids pass through soil
or other materials in a specified direction. |
|
pH
: |
stands
for "potenz hydrogen"., German
for "potential of hydrogen".
In water chemistry, pH is expressed
as the concentraton of hydrogen ions
to hydroxl ions. The pH scale is a logrithmic
scale from 1 to 14, with 7 being neutral;
above 7, more alkaline; and below 7
more acidic. |
|
Plankton
: |
Tiny
plants and animals that live in water. |
|
Pollution
: |
Generally,
the presence of matter or energy whose
nature, location or quantity produces
undesired environmental effects. Under
the Clean Water Act, for example, the
term is defined as the man-made or man-induced
alteration of the physical, biological,
and radiological integrity of water. |
|
Polyelectrolytes
: |
Synthetic
chemicals that help solids to clump
during sewage treatment. |
|
Polymer
: |
Basic
molecular ingredients in plastic. |
|
Polyvinyl
Chloride (PVC) : |
A
tough, environmentally indestructible
plastic that releases hydrochloric acid
when burned. |
|
Potable
Water : |
Water
that is safe for drinking and cooking. |
|
PPM
: |
The
abbreviation for "part per million". |
|
PPM/
PPB : |
Parts
per million/ parts per billion, a way
of expressing tiny concentrations of
pollutants in air, water, soil, human
tissue, food, or other products. |
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PRECIPITATE
: |
To
cause a dissolved substance to form
a solid particle which can be removed
by settling or filtering, such as in
the removal of dissolved iron by oxidation,
precipitation, and filtration. The term
is also used to refer to the solid formed,
and to the condensation of water in
the atmosphere to form rain or snow. |
|
Precipitate
: |
A
solid that separates from a solution
because of some chemical or physical
change. |
|
Precipitation
: |
Removal
of solids from liquid waste so that
the hazardous solid portion can be disposed
of safely; removal of particles from
airborne emissions. |
|
Precipitators
: |
Air
pollution control devices that collect
particles from an emissions. |
|
Pretreatment
: |
Processes
used to reduce, eliminate, or alter
the nature of wastewater pollutants
from non-domestic sources before they
are discharged into publicly owned treatment
works. |
|
Primary
Waste Treatment : |
First
steps in wastewater treatment; screens
and sedimentation tanks are used to
remove most materials that floats or
will settle. Primary treatment results
in the removal of about 30 percent of
carbonaceous biochemical oxygen demand
from domestic sewage. |
|
|
Untreated
water, or any water before it reaches
a specific water treatment device or
process. |
|
Receiving
Waters : |
A
river, lake, ocean, stream or other
watercourse into which wastewater or
treated effluent is discharged. |
|
Recharge
Area : |
A
land area in which water reaches to
the zone of saturation from surface
infiltration, e.g., an area where rainwater
soaks through the earth to reach an
aquifer. |
|
Recharge
: |
The
process by which water is added to a
zone of saturation, usually by percolation
from the soil surface, e.g., the recharge
of an aquifer. |
|
REGENERANT
: |
A
solution of a chemical compound used
to restore the capacity of an ion exchange
system. Sodium chloride brine is used
as a regenerant for ion exchange water
softeners, and acids and bases are used
as regenerants for the cation and anion
resins used in demineralization. |
|
Regeneration
: |
Manipulation
of individual cells or masses of cells
to cause them to develop into whole
plants. |
|
RESIN
: |
Synthetic
organic ion exchange material, such
as the high capacity Cation exchange
resin widely used in water softeners. |
|
Resistance
: |
For
plants and animals, the ability to withstand
poor environmental conditions and/or
attacks by chemicals or disease. The
ability may be inborn or developed. |
|
Reverse
Osmosis : |
A
water treatment process used in small
water systems by adding pressure to
force water through a semi-permeable
membrane. Reverse osmosis removes most
drinking water contaminants. Also used
in wastewater treatment. Large-scale
reverse osmosis plants are now being
developed. |
|
|
Water
containing an excessive amount of dissolved
salts, usually over 10,000 mg/1. |
|
Salinity
: |
The
degree of salt in water. |
|
SALT
: |
The
common name for the specific chemical
compound sodium chloride used in the
regeneration of ion exchange water softeners.
In chemistry, the term is applied to
a class of chemical compounds which
can be formed by the neutralization
of an acid with a base. |
|
Salt
Water Intrusion : |
The
invasion of fresh surface or ground
water by salt water. If the salt water
comes from the ocean it may be called
sea water intrusion. |
|
Sand
Filters : |
Devices
that remove some suspended solids from
sewage. Air and bacteria decompose additional
wastes filtering through the sand so
that cleaner water drains from the bed. |
|
Secondary
Treatment : |
The
second step in most publicly owned waste
treatment systems in which bacteria
consume the organic parts of the waste.
It is accomplished by bringing together
waste, bacteria, and oxygen in trickling
filters or in the activated sludge process.
This treatment removes floating and
settleable solids and about 90 percent
of the oxygen-demanding substances and
suspended solids. Disinfection is the
final stage of secondary treatment.
(See: primary, tertiary treatment.) |
|
Sediments
: |
Soil,
sand, and minerals washed from land
into water usually after rain. They
pile up in reservoirs, rivers and harbors,
destroying fish-nesting areas and holes
of water animals, and clouding the water
so that needed sunlight might not reach
aquatic plants. Careless farming, mining,
and building activities will expose
sediment materials, allowing them to
be washed off the land after rainfalls. |
|
SEQUESTER
: |
A
chemical reaction in which certain ions
are bound into a stable, water soluble
compound, thus preventing undesirable
action by the ions. |
|
SEQUESTERING
AGENT : |
A
chemical compound sometimes fed into
water to tie up undesirable ions, keep
them in solution, and eliminate or reduce
the normal effects of the ions. For
example, polyphosphates can sequester
hardness and prevent reaction with soap. |
|
Silt
: |
Fine
particles of sand or rock that can be
picked up by the air or water and deposited
as sediment. |
|
Slow
Sand Filtration : |
Treatment
process involving passage of raw water
through a bed of sand at low velocity
which results in the substantial removal
of chemical and biological contaminants, |
|
Sludge
: |
A
semi-solid residue from any of a number
of air or water treatment processes.
Sludge can be a hazardous waste. |
|
SODA
ASH : |
The
common name for sodium carbonate, a
chemical compound used as an alkaline
builder in some soap and detergent formulations,
to neutralize acid water, and in the
lime-soda ash water treatment process.
|
|
SODIUM
: |
An
ion found in natural water supplies,
and introduced to water in the ion exchange
water softening process. Sodium compounds
are highly soluble, and do not react
with soaps or detergents. |
|
SODIUM
CHLORIDE : |
The
chemical name for common salt, widely
used in the regeneration of ion exchange
water softeners. |
|
Soft
Detergents : |
Cleaning
agents that break down in nature. |
|
Soft
Water : |
Any
water that is not "hard,"
i.e.. does not contain a significant
amount of dissolved minerals such as
salts containing calcium or magnesium. |
|
Soot
: |
Carbon
dust formed by incomplete combustion. |
|
Sorption
: |
The
action of soaking up or attracting substances.
A process used in many pollution control
systems. |
|
SPECIFIC
GRAVITY : |
The
ratio of the weight of a specific volume
of a substance compared to the weight
of the same volume of pure water at
40C. |
|
Sterilization
: |
1.
In pest control, the use of radiation
and chemicals to damage body cells needed
for reproduction. |
2.
The destruction of all living organisms
in water or on the surface of various
materials. In contrast, disinfection
is the destruction of most living organisms
in water or on surfaces. |
|
SULFATE-REDUCING
BACTERIA : |
A
group of bacteria which are capable
of reducing sulfates in water to hydrogen
sulfide gas, thus producing obnoxious
tastes and odors. These bacteria have
no sanitary significance, and are classed
as nuisance organisms. |
|
SULFUR
: |
A
yellowish solid element. The term is
also used as a slang expression to refer
to water containing hydrogen sulfide
gas. |
|
Sulfur
Dioxide (502) : |
A
heavy, pungent, colorless, gaseous air
pollutant formed primarily by the combustion
of fossil plants. |
|
Surfactant
: |
A
surface-active agent used in detergents
to cause lathering. |
|
Suspended
Solids : |
Small
particles of solid pollutants that float
on the surface of, or are suspended
in sewage or other liquids. They resist
removal by conventional means. (See:
Total Suspended Solids.) |
|
|
The
abbreviation for "total dissolved
solids". |
|
Tertiary
Treatment : |
Advanced
cleaning of wastewater that goes beyond
the secondary or biological stage. It
removes nutrients such as phosphorus
and nitrogen and most BOD and suspended
solids. |
The
federal regulation that guides determination
of the sites to be corrected under the
Superfund program and the program to
prevent or control spills into surface
waters or other portions of the environment. |
|
TOTAL
ACIDITY : |
The
total of all forms of acidity, including
mineral acidity, carbon dioxide, and
acid salts. Total acidity is usually
determined by titration with a standard
base solution to the phenolphthalein
endpoint (pH 8.3). |
|
TOTAL
ALKALINITY : |
The
alkalinity of a water a determined by
titration with standard acid solution
to the methyl orange endpoint (pH approximately
4.5); sometimes abbreviated as "M
alkalinity". Total alkalinity includes
many alkalinity components, such as
hydroxides, carbonates, and bicarbonates. |
|
TOTAL
DISSOLVED SOLIDS : |
The
weight of solids per unit volume of
water which are in true solution, usually
determined by the evaporation of a measured
volume of filtered water, and determination
of the residue weight. |
|
TOTAL
HARDNESS : |
The
sum of all hardness constituents in
a water, expressed as their equivalent
concentration of calcium carbonate.
Primarily due to calcium and magnesium
in solution, but may include small amounts
of metals such as iron which can act
like calcium and magnesium in certain
reactions. |
|
TOTAL
SOLIDS : |
The
weight of all solids, dissolved and
suspended organic and inorganic. per
unit volume of water, usually determined
by the evaporation of a measured volume
of water at 105 DegC. in a pre weighed
dish. |
|
Total
Suspended Solids (TSS) : |
A
measure of the suspended solids in wastewater,
effluent, or water bodies, determined
by using tests for "total suspended
non-filterable solids." (See: suspended
solids.) |
|
Trickling
Filte : |
A
coarse, biological treatment system
in which wastewater is trickled over
a bed of stones or other material covered
with bacterial growth. The bacteria
break down the |
|
TURBIDITY
: |
A
measure of the amount of finely divided
suspended mater in water, which causes
the scattering and adsorption of light
rays. |
|
