Development in Analytical Chemistry Volume 1, 2014 www.seipub.org/dac
Determination of Physicochemical Parameters of Springs Water in Sebt Jahjouh Area (El Hajb, Morocco) Said Laafou1,2, Abdelaziz Abdallaoui1*, Abdellah El Abidi3 Moulay Ismail University, Faculty of Sciences, Department of Chemistry, Analytical Chemistry and Environment Team, PO Box 11201, Zitoune, Meknes, Morocco 1
Environmental Heath Service, Delegation of Health, El Hajeb, Morocco
2
National Institute of Hygiene, Department of Toxicology and Hydrology, Rabat, Morocco
3
*a.abdallaoui@gmail.com Received 23 February 2014; Accepted 17 April 2014; Published 15 December 2014 © 2014 Science and Engineering Publishing Company Abstract wastes, infiltration of irrigation water, septic tanks, and infiltration of effluent from sewage treatment Drinking Water quality is of fundamental importance to plants, pits, lagoons and ponds used for storage. human physiology and the durability of humanity Therefore, we find it useful to assess the physico‐ depends very much on its availability. The present work is chemical quality of spring water in the region Sebt aimed to assess the quality of springs water in the Sebt Jahjouh area. This has been determined by collecting Jahjouh, because these springs are used by a large groundwater samples and subjecting the samples to a population of this region as drinking water. comprehensive physicochemical analysis. The physico‐ chemical parameters like temperature, pH, total hardness, calcium, magnesium, bicarbonate, chloride, nitrate, sulphate, total alkalinity, and organic matter have been analyzed. The results obtained show that the water studied has a conductivity that varies between 319 μs/cm and 812 μs/cm. Nitrate concentrations vary between 17.18 mg/l and 67.38 mg/l. Keywords Quality; Water; Springs; Pollution; Sebt Jahjouh
Introduction The groundwater is believed to be comparatively cleaner and free from pollution compared to surface water (Agrawal, 2010). But during last decade, it has been observed that groundwater gets polluted drastically because of increased human activities (Jamal, 1998). Consequently, a number of cases of water born diseases have been seen as the causes of health hazards. Therefore monitoring the quality of water is one of the essential issues of drinking water management (Shama, 2011). Groundwater can be contaminated easily in multitude ways, including land application of agricultural chemicals and organic
Materials and Methods Presentation of the Study Area Sebt Jahjouh area is part of the province of El Hajeb. The province of El Hajeb is located in the plains of Saïs between 33° 20ʹ and 34° 0ʹ north latitude and between 5° 10ʹ and 5° 50ʹ east longitude and covers an area of 2210 km². It is bounded on the north by the prefecture of Meknes, to the south by the province of Ifrane and Khenifra, to the east by the prefecture of Fez and Sefrou and to the west by the province of Khemisset (FIG. 1). Climatology The province of El Hajeb has a continental climate, cold in winter and hot in summer, the temperature minimum (month of January) and maximum temperature (month of July) are ‐2 °C and +40 °C respectively. The wet season lasts from October to May, while the dry season is from June to September. Annual precipitation shows a very erratic climate from one year to another. They generally range between 300 mm and 900 mm.
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coordinates and elevation using a Global Positioning System (GPS) type (GARMIN GPSmap 62) TABLE 1. The samples were collected from all the stations at 11.00 am to 12.00 in the month of October 2012 for physicochemical examinations. The samples were collected in two litres capacity polythene bottles, without any air bubbles. Prior to the collection, bottles were thoroughly washed and rinsed with sample to avoid any possible contamination in bottling and every precautionary measure was taken. The samples collected were kept in refrigerator (+4°C) during transportation to hydrology laboratory at the National Institute of Hygiene (INH) in Rabat for analysis (TABLE. 1 and FIG. 2).
FIG. 1 LOCATION OF STUDIED SPRING WATER
FIG. 2 LOCATION OF STUDIED SPRINGS WATER
Physicochemical Analyzes
TABLE 1 NAME, GEOGRAPHICAL COORDINATES AND ELEVATION OF SPRINGS EXPLORED
GPS location of sampling point N W Moulay Chrif 33° 49’ 55.30” 5° 43’ 32.40” Ait 33° 50’ 03.40” 5° 43’ 03.30” Ouissaâden Ait ichou 33° 49’ 39.58” 5° 40’ 34.56” Ait Krat 33° 47’ 11.60” 5° 40’ 04.20” Ain Bazzine 33° 42’ 23.90” 5° 38’ 18.10” Ain El Hassan 33° 42’ 59.90” 5° 40’ 04.30” Belhdraoui 33° 42’ 17.60” 5° 41’ 42.90” Moulay Driss 33° 39’ 20.90” 5° 43’ 23.80” Jorf Tassafet 33° 30ʹ 55.57” 5° 42ʹ 32.59” Lhajja
Code Source Name S1 S2 S3 S4 S5 S6 S7 S8 S9
Elevation (m) 537 534 530 584 659 717 694 789 1165
Samples and Sampling Techniques The springs surveyed are located by the geographical
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The analysis of various physicochemical parameters were carried out following the method described by Rodier et al. (Rodier, 2009). The temperature, potential of hydrogen (pH) and electrical conductivity were measured at the time of sample collection. pH was measured with Portable Field pH Meter, type (WTW pH 330i/SET), conductivity with Handheld Conductivity Meter, type (WTW cond 330i/SET). The temperature was measured by a thermometer built into the Conductivity Meter and the pH Meter. Nitrate (NO3‐), nitrite (NO2‐), ammonia nitrogen (NH4+) and sulphate (SO42‐) were determined by a colorimetric method using a UV/visible spectrophotometer type (JASCO V‐530). Total Hardness (TH), calcium (Ca2+) and magnesium (Mg2+) were determined by the volumetric method with EDTA (Ethylenediaminetetraacetic‐acid). The oxidizability
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(organic matter: OM) was determined by high temperature oxidation in acidic medium. Alkalinity total (AT) and bicarbonate (HCO3‐) were analyzed by volumetric dosage with 0.1 N HCl solution. Chlorides (Cl‐) were determined by the volumetric method with dinitrate mercury Hg(NO3)2 in the presence of a pH indicator. Sodium (Na+) and potassium (K+) were determined by excitation of the atoms by flame photometer; type (AFP‐100).
dissolved in water (Abdul Jameel, 2002). TH values for the nine springs studied show major difference from one spring to the other. They vary between 13.0 °F and 40.8 °F, respectively recorded at the springs S7 and S9. Based on these results, the groundwater in Sebt Jahjouh area is generally hard. This hardness is the result of limestone terrain crossed by water. The Sebt Jehjouh area and all the El Hajeb province are known by its limestone terrains nature.
Results and Discussion
Generally, Sulphate ions above 500 mg/l produces bitter taste to water and exerts adverse effect on human. For all tested samples, the values obtained for the sulphate ions do not exceed the Moroccan standard values.
TABLE 2 represented the evaluation for different physicochemical parameters in the spring water samples of Sebt Jahjouh area. Based on the results, pH, conductivity, nitrites, ammonia, sulfates, chlorides and organic matter (OM) recorded values below the standards recommended by the Moroccan Ministry of Health (N.M., 2006) respectively (6.5 and 8.5; 2700 μs/cm, 0.5 mg/l, 0.5 mg/l, 400 mg /l, 750 mg/l and 5 mg/l). However, we found that among the nine sources analyzed, four had concentrations in nitrates above the Moroccan standards.
The water containing chloride more than 250 mg/l has detectable salty taste. The values in springs studied are found to be between 14.20 to 85.20mg/l. The permissible limit of nitrates in water is 50 mg/l. The nitrates content in water studied is within the permissible limit except spring water S1, S2, S5, and S8. The mean nitrates level value for all analyzed samples was 41.34 mg/l. Lowest level value (17.18 mg/l) was observed in spring S6 and highest value (67.38 mg/l) was observed in spring S2. We recorded that the spring water in agricultural areas are very polluted by nitrates. However, the spring water that are in non‐agricultural areas are less polluted. This shows that the origin of pollution is agricultural. It is due to the increased use of fertilizers in the soil fertilization. The same results were found by other authors on the pollution of groundwater by nitrates as (Alami, 2007).
pH range of 6.5 to 8.5 is normally accepted as per guideline suggested by (W.H.O, 1984) and Moroccan standards of drinking water. From the TABLE 2, it is found that the pH value of water sample in the study area ranges from 7.17 to 8.04 which shows that the water sample is observed to be slightly alkaline. Electrical conductivity values range from 319μs/cm to 812μs/cm. Based on these results, we can conclude that the studied water generally has a high mineralization, except the low rate of S7 of 319μs/cm because the conductivity is proportional to the amount of salts
TABLE 2 THE VARIOUS PHYSICOCHEMICAL PARAMETERS OF SPRINGS IN THE SEBT JAHJOUH AREA
Springs T (°C) pH EC (μs/cm) AT (°F) TH (°F) HCO3‐(mg/l) Ca2+ (mg/l) Mg2+ (mg/l) SO42‐ (mg/l) Cl‐ (mg/l) NO3‐ (mg/l) NO2‐ (mg/l)* NH4+ (mg/l*) Na+ (mg/l) K+ (mg/l) OM (mg/l)
S1 19.5 7.94 619 22.5 29.2 305.0 62.52 33.07 35.82 24.85 50.28 ND ND 14.6 0.6 1.47
S2 19.3 7.70 723 20.5 31.8 256.1 83.36 26.75 20.93 42.60 67.38 ND ND 22.2 1.1 0.70
S3 19.8 8.01 604 23.5 28.8 292.8 66.53 29.67 14.87 39.05 21.70 ND ND 22.4 0.8 0.25
S4 19.6 8.04 753 23.5 33.8 292.8 102.60 19.94 70.38 46.50 34.19 ND ND 20.3 1.6 0.19
S5 19.6 7.79 648 23.0 31.2 286.7 37.67 39.88 18.35 28.40 57.23 ND ND 14.8 0.1 0.96
S6 15.9 7.17 536 26.5 32.0 329.4 61.72 40.37 0.16 14.20 17.18 ND ND 15.0 1,0 0.89
S7 16.2 8.16 319 10.5 13.0 134.2 34.46 10.70 13.93 14.20 30.65 ND ND 14.5 0.4 0.25
S8 19.9 7.64 659 22.5 30.0 280.6 81.76 23.34 25.99 85.20 64.32 ND ND 17.4 0.5 0.45
S9 16.6 7.70 812 26.5 40.8 329.4 97.70 39.88 30.24 39.05 29.15 ND ND 16.9 0.9 0.51
ND : Not Detectable
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Sodium and Potassium are termed as alkali metals, sodium is abundant in water becauseits compound is readily soluble in ground water, it is generally found to be >5mg/l . Groundwater pollution by sodium salt is an unavoidable phenomenon cause from the return flow of irrigation and disposal of Industrial and Urban waste. In large concentration it may affect a person with a cardiac deficiency (Dilip, 2011). In the studied zone, values of sodium vary from 14.6 to 22.4 mg/l, while the values of potassium varied from 0.1 to 1.6 mg/l. Bicarbonate ions (HCO3‐) values are between 323.3 mg/l and 439.1 mg/l, respectively observed at the spring S5 and S3. The mean bicarbonate ions value recorded for all analyzed samples was 278.55 mg/l. The values recorded for the OM (between 0.25 and 1.47 mg/l) do not exceed the limit prescribed by the WHO. Conclusions In the present investigation, out of nine spring waters studied, we notice that 04 spring water samples (S1, S2, S5 and S8) have the nitrates value above 50 mg/l. these waters contaminated by nitrates can affect the health of consumers, because they are not potable, and they can cause methemoglobinemia or ʺblue babyʺ in infants and carcinogenic diseases in adults (Landreau, 1990). Moreover, the water of 05 springs (S3, S4, S6, S7 and S9) is suitable for drinking and other domestic purposes at the physicochemical level. Periodic assessment of microbial analysis of the water of the studied springs should be carried out, in order to fight against water borne diseases. ACKNOWLEDGMENT
The authors feel great pleasure in expressing their deep sense of gratitude and sincere thanks to all the staff of the National Institute of Health, Department of Toxicology and Hydrology in Rabat, for providing the laboratory for testing the samples and for his continued support. We thank Mr. Ousama Najim, a
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Professor at the American Language Center for his proofreading help. We also thank our friends for their help and support in completing this research. REFERENCES
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