Carbonate
Carbonate occurs naturally in the earths crust. Safe Home offers a couple kits that provide drinking water testing for carbonate in city water and well water supplies.
Parameter Type: Drinking Water Testing for Volatiles
Parameter Name: Carbonate
What it is and Where it Comes From:
a carbonate is an ion consisting of one carbon and three oxygen atoms or a compound that contains this species as its anion. The molecular formula for the carbonate ion is CO32- . Alternatively, the term may be used as a verb referring to the process of carbonation. In carbonation, the concentration of bicarbonate and carbonate ions in an aqueous solution is increased to yield carbonated water. Carbonation is performed by introducing pressurized carbon dioxide gas or by dissolving carbonate or bicarbonate salts. Its most common natural forms are chalk, limestone, and marble, produced by the sedimentation of the shells of small fossilized snails, shellfish, and coral over millions of years. When carbonates mix with calcium and magnesium it creates calcium carbonate or magnesium carbonate. When this mixture interacts with soil and water, it decreases relative to sodium and the SAR (Sodium Absorption Ratio) index increases. This causes an increase in the pH and makes the water unsuitable. Is sodium carbonate naturally present in drinking water? Yes, because sodium and carbonates are very common natural mineral substances, they are present in many natural soils, in many sources of surface water and groundwater, and in plants and animal tissues. Water supplies in limestone areas have high levels of sodium carbonate, and sometimes excessive amounts must be removed. Water supplies from acidic formations contain significant amounts of sodium, but much lower levels of carbonate. Drinking water testing gives you several benefits like peace of mind, identifying contaminants in your water, and insight into health concerns. Safe Home offers Laboratory drinking water testing kits for carbonate, allowing you to collect your water sample and ship it directly to our EPA-Certified Laboratory. This platform of drinking water testing for carbonate will give you an accurate level based on the lowest level of a parameter our instruments can detect (Method Detection Level). Safe Home drinking water testing for physical properties can be used for city and well water supplies. Drinking water testing should be done any time you notice a significant change in your water quality.
Health Effects:
Too much intake can lead to nausea, vomiting, or loss of appetite. Preforming drinking water testing routinely for contamination can ensure safe levels to protect yourself and your family.
Solutions to Contaminant Levels:
You have completed the drinking water testing process, what Is the next step? When the water has a high total hardness accompanied by a significant alkalinity, the water can be softened by using lime to remove the carbonate. This carbonate removal can be carried out by either, decarbonate completely only part of the throughput and mix it with the remainder that may have to be clarified if necessary; or partially decarbonate the water as it is being clarified. This is the solution that must be adopted when iron and manganese also must be removed. When the raw water contains more calcium than bicarbonate, carbonate removal using sodium hydroxide may be an option (alternative: lime plus sodium carbonate). To ensure that the water is pleasant to drink, a certain alkalinity. will have to be re-instated by mixing the water with a fraction of water from which the carbonates have not been removed. A Central water softening treatment usually involves lime (hydrated calcium oxide) or lime soda (lime plus sodium carbonate) softening and is commonly practiced. These chemicals increase the precipitation of the calcium and magnesium carbonate, reducing the calcium hardness of the treated water. Who do I need to contact to find out more information about water quality in my area? Every community water supplier must provide an annual report to its customers, known as a Consumer Confidence Report (CCR). The report provides information on your local drinking water quality, including the water’s source, contaminants found in the water, and how consumers can get involved in protecting drinking water. How often does the local public water system preform drinking water testing? Frequency of drinking water testing depends on the number of people served, the type of water source, and types of contaminants. Certain contaminants are tested more frequently than others, as established by the Safe Drinking Water Act. You can find out about levels of regulated contaminants in your treated water for the previous calendar year in your annual Consumer Confidence Report (CCR).
