Assessment of Water Pollution through Its Electrical Conductivity and pH Measurement

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Tiwari, Ramesh Chandra

Affiliations: Department of Physics, Mizoram University, Aizawl-796009, India. ramesh_mzu@rediffmail.com

Abstract: The studies related to water pollution assessment has rarely been done for Mizoram, the remotest northeastern state of India. In this hilly state, only 60% people of the state have the access to safe drinking water, in spite of high annual rainfall. The main sources of drinking water for the people in Mizoram are through streams, tap water, rain water and river water. In the present investigation, an attempt has been made to assess the pollution of water obtained from different sources for thirty samples. The electrical conductivity and pH values of the collected samples have been measured at room temperature and analyzed. It has been found that the amount of pollution is highest in the stream water which is located in the vicinity of the drainage and garbage disposal point, while the fresh rain water has been found to be more polluted than stored rain water and the quality of tap water is even better than stored rain water. The measured pH values of various water samples also provide information about the acidic or basic character of water samples.

Keywords: Water pollution, electrical conductivity, pH value

Journal: Asian Journal of Water, Environment and Pollution, vol. 6, no. 3, pp. 99-103, 2009