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WATER | English meaning - Cambridge Dictionary
WATER | English meaning - Cambridge Dictionary
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English
Meaning of water in English
waternoun uk
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/ˈwɔː.tər/ us
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/ˈwɑː.t̬ɚ/
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A1 [ U ] a clear liquid, without colour or taste, that falls from the sky as rain and is necessary for animal and plant life: a bottle/drink/glass of water bottled/mineral/tap water hot/cold waterdrop of water Can I have a drop of water in my whisky, please? Is there enough hot water for a bath? The human body is about 50 percent water.
Harjono Amidjojo/EyeEm/GettyImages
A2 [ U ] an area of water, such as the sea, a lake, or a swimming pool: The water's warm - are you coming in?under water I don't like getting my head under (= in) water. Dad, I swam a whole length of the pool under water (= with the whole head and body below the surface of the water)!
[ U ] the level of an area of water: The river is difficult to cross during periods of high water.
[ U ] old-fashioned a way of referring to urine (= yellowish liquid waste from the body): pass water Is there any pain when you pass water? If your water is dark, it may mean you are dehydrated.
waters [ plural ]
the area of sea near to and belonging to a particular country: St Lucia depends on its clean coastal waters for its income.
the water contained in a particular lake, river, or part of the sea: In the shallow waters of the Gulf of Mexico, oil rigs attract fish.
UK (US water) the liquid that surrounds a baby inside the womb (= the organ in the body in which a baby develops before birth): At 3 a.m. her waters broke, and the baby was born soon after.
See more the waters [ plural ]
water from a spring, especially when used in the past for drinking or swimming in, in order to improve the health: take the waters People used to come to this city to take (= drink or swim in) the waters.
See more
More examplesFewer examplesHot water circulates through the heating system.The water in the lake is so clear that you can see the bottom.The water supply is being tested for contamination.You'll dehydrate very quickly in this heat, if you don't drink lots of water.The light reflected off the surface of the water.
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Water in general
aquatically
aqueous
bathwater
bathymetric
bathymetrically
bathymetry
brackish
briny
distilled water
grey water
hydrosphere
hypersaline
hypersalinity
non-turbulent
overwater
rainwater
salt water
soft water
storm surge
wet
See more results »
You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:
Floods, tides & currents
Animal physiology: urine & urinating
Idioms
(like) water off a duck's back
water under the bridge
murky/uncharted waters
waterverb uk
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/ˈwɔː.tər/ us
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/ˈwɑː.t̬ɚ/
water verb
(GIVE WATER)
B2 [ T ] to pour water on to plants or the soil that they are growing in: I've asked my neighbour to water the plants while I'm away.
[ T ] to give an animal water to drink: The horses had been fed and watered.
More examplesFewer examplesI've just watered the tomatoes.The cucumbers need to be watered every day.
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Gardening - general words
allotmenteer
allotmenteering
aquaponics
arborist
beanpole
bed
homegrown
horticultural
horticulturally
horticulture
horticulturist
regraft
regreen
repot
resod
resow
window box
xeriscape
xeriscaping
yardwork
See more results »
You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:
Animal food
water verb
(PRODUCE LIQUID)
C2 [ I ] If your mouth waters, it produces a lot of saliva, usually because you can see or smell some food that you would like to eat: The smell of that bread is making my mouth water!
[ I ] When your eyes water, they produce tears but not because you are unhappy: How do you stop your eyes from watering when you're cutting up onions?
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Animal physiology: bodily fluids & their production
bilirubin
bodily fluid
bogy
booger
break out in a cold sweat
bucket
gob
lather
pus
salivation
semen
serous
slag
slobber
slobbery
snotty
spit
spitter
spittle
sputum
See more results »
Phrasal verb
water something down -watersuffix uk
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/ -wɔː.tər/ us
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/ -wɑː.t̬ɚ/
used to form adjectives: freshwater fish a saltwater lagoon
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Water in general
aquatically
aqueous
bathwater
bathymetric
bathymetrically
bathymetry
brackish
briny
distilled water
grey water
hydrosphere
hypersaline
hypersalinity
non-turbulent
overwater
rainwater
salt water
soft water
storm surge
wet
See more results »
(Definition of water from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)
water | American Dictionary
waternoun [ U ] us
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/ˈwɔ·t̬ər, ˈwɑt̬·ər/
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a clear, colorless liquid that falls from the sky as rain and is necessary for animal and plant life: a drink/glass of water bottled/tap water cold/hot water I’m boiling water to make some more coffee.
The water often refers to an area of water, such as the sea or a lake: The water’s much warmer today – are you coming for a swim?
Waters is an area of natural water, such as a part of the sea: [ pl ] coastal waters
Idiom
water under the bridge
waterverb [ I/T ] us
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/ˈwɔ·t̬ər, ˈwɑt̬·ər/
to provide water to a plant or animal: [ T ] I’ve asked my neighbor to water the plants while I’m away.
When your eyes water, they produce tears but not because you are unhappy: [ I ] The icy wind made his eyes water.
If your mouth waters, it produces a lot of saliva, usually because you can see or smell food that you would like to eat: [ I ] The smell of that bread is making my mouth water.
Phrasal verb
water down something
(Definition of water from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)
Examples of water
water
It developed plans to offer medical care, hospital treatment, electricity, and water trucking.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
Besides nutrients and light, rice and weeds also competed for water.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
This testa probably reduced the rate of water loss and protected the embryo from physical injury.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
The first term represents a bare site and the next two terms refer to the interaction with water and with denaturant respectively.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
In addition, the dielectric constant in the pore region should be set to 1 where the water molecules are represented explicitly (but see discussion below).
From the Cambridge English Corpus
The food/water mixture was replaced every other day.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
In order to define a radius for the ion one needs a constant value for the radius of the water.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
The water-transporting function of aquaporins is likely responsible for these roles.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
The existence of discrete levels of critical water potential is suggestive of specific stresses that cells must accommodate during the acquisition of desiccation tolerance.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
Removing water from living tissues causes a series of dehydration stresses.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
No town could have survived without water supplies.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
This is not necessarily so, as is evidenced by the financial problems of the potable water systems in all three states.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
Then the water composition approximately oscillates at each point of the aquifer in phase with the water velocity.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
In addition to the milking, the izinceku also tended to the king's oxen and fetched water for the king in gourds.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.
Collocations with water
water
These are words often used in combination with water.Click on a collocation to see more examples of it.
boiling waterThe samples were placed in a boiling water bath for 10 min and then placed on ice.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
brackish waterThe infection process of mullets with these cercariae is discussed in relation to salinity conditions prevailing in a brackish water stream.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
clean waterShe was supplied with blotting paper which had been soaked in clean water.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.
See all collocations with water
What is the pronunciation of water, -water?
A1,A2,B2,C2
Translations of water
in Chinese (Traditional)
水, 水域, 大片的水…
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in Chinese (Simplified)
水, 水域, 大片的水…
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in Spanish
agua, marea, orina…
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in Portuguese
água, aguar, molhar…
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in more languages
in Marathi
in Japanese
in Turkish
in French
in Catalan
in Dutch
in Tamil
in Hindi
in Gujarati
in Danish
in Swedish
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in Italian
पाणी, जलाशय, पाणी घालणे…
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水, （植物）に水をまく, 水（みず）…
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su, deniz, nehir…
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eau [feminine], surface [feminine] de l’eau, arroser…
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aigua, regar…
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water, begieten, watertanden…
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ஒரு தெளிவான திரவம், வண்ணமோ சுவையோ இல்லாமல், வானத்திலிருந்து மழையாக விழுந்து விலங்கு மற்றும் தாவர வாழ்க்கைக்கு அவசியம்…
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पानी, पानी का एक इलाका, जैसे समुद्र…
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પાણી, જળવિસ્તાર, પાણી ભરેલો વિસ્તાર જેમ કે સમુદ્ર…
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vand, vand-, vande…
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vatten, vattna, vattnas…
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air, menyiram, menjirus…
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das Wasser, Wasser-…, bewässern…
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vann [neuter], vannoverflate [masculine], vanne…
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پانی, پانی کا علاقہ (مثلاً سمندر، دریا، جھیل), پانی دینا…
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вода, поливати, зрошувати…
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вода, поливать, возбуждать аппетит…
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పారదర్శకమైన ద్రవపదార్థం, రంగు, రుచి ఉండవు. ఆకాశం నుండి వర్షం రూపంలో కురుస్తుంది. వృక్షజాతి…
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ماء, يَسْقي…
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জল, জলাধার / জলাশয়, গাছে জল দেওয়া…
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voda, vodní, zalévat…
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air, mengairi, mengeluarkan liur…
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น้ำ, เกี่ยวกับน้ำ, ให้น้ำ…
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nước, tưới cây, cho uống nước…
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woda, podlewać, ślinić się…
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물, 물을 주다…
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acqua, annaffiare, innaffiare…
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watchman
watchstrap
watchtower
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water
water absorption
BETA
water ballet
water bath
BETA
water bear
More meanings of water
All
drinking water
hot water bottle
ice water
mineral water
running water
soda water
tap water
See all meanings
Phrasal Verbs
water down something
water sth down
water something down
See all phrasal verb meanings
Idioms and phrases
water under the bridge idiom
hold water idiom
pass water idiom
tread water phrase
tread water idiom
in hot water idiom
test the water(s) idiom
See all idioms and phrases
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Contents
English
Noun
water
waters
the waters
Verb
water (GIVE WATER)
water (PRODUCE LIQUID)
Suffix
American
NounVerb
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Grammar
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Water Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster
Water Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster
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Est. 1828
Dictionary
Definition
noun
verb
noun
2
noun
verb
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water
1 of 2
noun
wa·ter
ˈwȯ-tər
ˈwä-
often attributive
Synonyms of water
1
a
: the liquid that descends from the clouds as rain, forms streams, lakes, and seas, and is a major constituent of all living matter and that when pure is an odorless, tasteless, very slightly compressible liquid oxide of hydrogen H2O which appears bluish in thick layers, freezes at 0° C and boils at 100° C, has a maximum density at 4° C and a high specific heat, is feebly ionized to hydrogen and hydroxyl ions, and is a poor conductor of electricity and a good solvent
b
: a natural mineral water
—usually used in plural
2
: a particular quantity or body of water: such as
a(1)
waters
ˈwȯ-tərz
ˈwä-
plural
: the water occupying or flowing in a particular bed
(2)
chiefly British
: lake, pond
b
: a quantity or depth of water adequate for some purpose (such as navigation)
c
waters plural
(1)
: a band of seawater abutting on the land of a particular sovereignty and under the control of that sovereignty
(2)
: the sea of a particular part of the earth
d
: water supply
threatened to turn off the water
3
: travel or transportation on water
we went by water
4
: the level of water at a particular state of the tide : tide
5
: liquid containing or resembling water: such as
a(1)
: a pharmaceutical or cosmetic preparation made with water
(2)
: a watery solution of a gaseous or readily volatile substance compare ammonia water
b
archaic
: a distilled fluid (as an essence)
especially
: a distilled alcoholic liquor
c
: a watery fluid (such as tears, urine, or sap) formed or circulating in a living body
d
: amniotic fluid
also
: bag of waters
6
a
: the degree of clarity and luster of a precious stone
b
: degree of excellence
a scholar of the first water
7
: watercolor
8
a
: stock not representing assets of the issuing company and not backed by earning power
b
: fictitious or exaggerated asset entries that give a stock an unrealistic book value
water
2 of 2
verb
watered; watering; waters
transitive verb
1
: to moisten, sprinkle, or soak with water
water the lawn
2
: to supply with water for drink
water cattle
3
: to supply water to
lands watered by the river
4
: to treat with or as if with water
specifically
: to impart a lustrous appearance and wavy pattern to (cloth) by calendering
5
a
: to dilute by the addition of water
—often used with downwater down the punch
b
: to add to the aggregate par value of (securities) without a corresponding addition to the assets represented by the securities
intransitive verb
1
: to form or secrete water or watery matter (such as tears or saliva)
2
: to get or take water: such as
a
: to take on a supply of water
the boat docked to water
b
: to drink water
Phrases
above water
: out of difficulty
Synonyms
Verb
bathe
bedraggle
douse
dowse
drench
drown
soak
sodden
sop
souse
wash
water-soak
waterlog
wet
wet down
See all Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus
Examples of water in a Sentence
Noun
Would you like a glass of water?
There's water dripping from the ceiling.
The kids love playing in the water.
A stick was floating on the water.
They like to vacation near the water.
We are sailing in international waters.
They were fishing in Canadian waters.
Verb
We need to water the lawn.
They fed and watered the horses in the barn.
My eyes were watering as I chopped the onions.
See More
Recent Examples on the WebNoun
The hotel’s roof eventually collapsed under the heavy weight of water used to extinguish the fire, according to Firth.
—Jose R. Gonzalez, The Arizona Republic, 3 Mar. 2024
The snowpack’s water content Thursday was 80% of normal amounts to date, according to the state Department of Water Resources.
—Doyle Rice, USA TODAY, 2 Mar. 2024
The ship remained anchored while taking on water for nearly two weeks, reportedly awaiting towing that never came.
—James Farrell, Forbes, 2 Mar. 2024
Treatments for constipation and nausea may include options like drinking more water, sitting still, or taking medications for each condition separately.
—Colleen Stinchcombe, Health, 2 Mar. 2024
Blasts of water from the hose can eliminate spider mites and aphids.
—Rita Perwich, San Diego Union-Tribune, 2 Mar. 2024
Care navigators will work with people to address immediate needs like food, clothing, water and long-term needs like mental healthcare.
—Kendrick Calfee, Kansas City Star, 2 Mar. 2024
Almost all are drinking salty and contaminated water.
—Ishaan Tharoor, Washington Post, 1 Mar. 2024
The resort makes the most of its secluded location and calm, clear water with a half-mile stretch of sand and a 328-foot-long lagoon for swimming, sunning or just lazing.
—Forbes Travel Guide, Forbes, 20 Feb. 2024
Verb
Always water for the same number of minutes, but gradually water more often into spring, and then summer.
Apply organic fruit tree fertilizer to stone fruit, apple and pear trees.
—Nan Sterman, San Diego Union-Tribune, 2 Mar. 2024
The apple trees are minimally pruned and not watered.
—John Metcalfe, The Mercury News, 20 Feb. 2024
Keep watering dormant plants, but only about once a month when the top 2 to 3 inches of soil has dried out.
—Southern Living Editors, Southern Living, 19 Feb. 2024
Indoors, mini-roses require sun in a south-facing window and good humidity so their leaves don’t drop; water them once the soil has dried a bit.
—Karen Hugg, Washington Post, 12 Feb. 2024
During long dry spells while the tree is producing fruit, water your tree deeply.
—Southern Living Editors, Southern Living, 19 Feb. 2024
There’s also no shortage of tools and accessories that are actually attractive like moisture meters, pruning shears, and watering cans.
—Quincy Bulin, Better Homes & Gardens, 13 Feb. 2024
Droughts spell trouble for Texas ranchers who have to water their stock in order for their livelihoods to continue to be viable.
—David Montesino, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 9 Feb. 2024
Thanks to a stream of appealing food photos and linguistic hot sauce, mouths are watering.
—Michael Deeds, Idaho Statesman, 8 Feb. 2024
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'water.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Noun
Middle English, from Old English wæter; akin to Old High German wazzar water, Greek hydōr, Latin unda wave
First Known Use
Noun
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a Verb
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1
Time Traveler
The first known use of water was
before the 12th century
See more words from the same century
Phrases Containing water
ammonia water
blood is thicker than water
American water spaniel
above water
branch water
blue water
come hell or high water
coconut water
casual water
drinking water
dead in the water
dip/put/stick a toe in the water
cold water
fish out of water
first water
gray water
giant water bug
fresh water
heavy water
hell or high water
have ice water in her veins
hold water
high water
hot water
high-water mark
holy water
iced water
hot-water bottle
ice water in one's veins
ice water
in deep water
Irish water spaniel
light water
like water
Javelle water
keep one's head above water
make water
low water
(like) water off a duck's back
on the water wagon
open water
mineral water
milk-and-water
running water
rose water
red water
quinine water
pass water
Portuguese water dog
tap water
spring water
soda water
slack water
salt water taffy
salt water
still water
test the water
take to something like a duck (takes) to water
toilet water
throw cold water on
tonic water
tread water
Vichy water
water bag
water balance
water ballet
water bed
water blister
water beetle
water balloon
water bear
water bloom
water bottle
water boatman
water breaks
water boy
water buffalo
water bug
water butt
water cannon
water chestnut
water closet
water column
water clock
water cremation
water cycle
water dog
water down
water flea
water fountain
water garden
water gap
water gas
water glass
water gate
water gun
water gauge
water hammer
water hemlock
water haul
water hole
water heater
water hen
water ice
water hyacinth
water jacket
water jump
water level
water meadow
water lily
water milfoil
water main
water meter
water mill
water mold
water moccasin
water nymph
water oak
water of crystallization
water of hydration
water on the knee
water park
water ouzel
water parting
water pill
water pepper
water pipe
water polo
water plantain
water privilege
water pressure
water rat
water-resistant
water right
water-repellent
water scorpion
water ski
water shield
water snake
water-soak
water strider
water sprout
water supply
water table
water taxi
water tower
water trail
water under the bridge
water vapor
water-vascular system
water wagon
water witch
water wings
water witcher
white water
water biscuit
water-skier
water turkey
water pimpernel
water pistol
water spaniel
water sapphire
water sprite
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water
water adder
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“Water.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/water. Accessed 9 Mar. 2024.
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Kids Definition
water
1 of 2
noun
wa·ter
ˈwȯt-ər
ˈwät-
1
: the liquid that descends from the clouds as rain, forms streams, lakes, and seas, and is a major part of all living material and that is an odorless and tasteless compound having two atoms of hydrogen and one atom of oxygen per molecule
2
plural
: an area of seawater bordering on and under the control of a country
sailing Canadian waters
3
: travel or transportation on water
came by water
4
: the level of water at a particular state of the tide : tide
5
: a liquid containing or resembling water
especially
: a watery fluid (as tears, urine, or sap) formed or circulating in a living body
waterless
-ləs
adjective
water
2 of 2
verb
1
: to wet or supply with water
water horses water the lawn
2
: to weaken by or as if by the addition of water
someone watered down the punch
3
: to form or give off water or watery matter (as tears or saliva)
smog makes my eyes water
Medical Definition
water
1 of 2
noun
wa·ter
ˈwȯt-ər
ˈwät-
1
: the liquid that descends from the clouds as rain, forms streams, lakes, and seas, and is a major constituent of all living matter and that is an odorless, tasteless, very slightly compressible liquid oxide of hydrogen H2O which appears bluish in thick layers, freezes at 0°C (32°F) and boils at 100°C (212°F), has a maximum density at 4°C (39°F) and a high specific heat, is feebly ionized to hydrogen and hydroxyl ions, and is a poor conductor of electricity and a good solvent
2
: liquid containing or resembling water: as
a(1)
: a pharmaceutical or cosmetic preparation made with water
(2)
: a watery solution of a gaseous or readily volatile substance see ammonia water
b
: a watery fluid (as tears or urine) formed or circulating in a living body
c
: amniotic fluid
—often used in plural
also
: bag of waters
water
2 of 2
intransitive verb
: to form or secrete water or watery matter (as tears or saliva)
More from Merriam-Webster on water
Nglish: Translation of water for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of water for Arabic Speakers
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about water
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6 Mar 2024
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Water | Definition, Chemical Formula, Structure, Molecule, & Facts | Britannica
Water | Definition, Chemical Formula, Structure, Molecule, & Facts | Britannica
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water
Table of Contents
water
Table of Contents
Introduction & Top QuestionsStructure of waterLiquid waterStructures of iceSignificance of the structure of liquid waterBehaviour and propertiesWater at high temperatures and pressuresPhysical propertiesChemical propertiesAcid-base reactionsOxidation-reduction reactions
References & Edit History
Quick Facts & Related Topics
Images & Videos
For Students
Comprehension Quiz: Water Scarcity
water summary
Quizzes
Water and its Varying Forms
Aitch-Two-Oh?
27 True-or-False Questions from Britannica’s Most Difficult Science Quizzes
Related Questions
Where does water come from?
Why do cold water bottles and soft-drink bottles sweat?
When does water boil?
Why is water blue?
When is water the most dense?
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Chemistry LibreTexts - All About Water
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water - Children's Encyclopedia (Ages 8-11)
water - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up)
Also known as: H2O
Written by
Steven S. Zumdahl
Professor and Associate Head, Department of Chemistry, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Author of Chemical Principles and many others.
Steven S. Zumdahl
Fact-checked by
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Last Updated:
Mar 1, 2024
•
Article History
Table of Contents
water rapids, Niagara Falls, Canada
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Category:
Science & Tech
Key People:
Jacques Dubochet
Antoine Lavoisier
Henry Cavendish
Thales of Miletus
Charles-François Sturm
(Show more)
Related Topics:
ice
steam
hydrate
hard water
heavy water
(Show more)
See all related content →
Recent News
Feb. 15, 2024, 11:00 PM ET (Earth.com)
Electrons seen moving in water at "attosecond" scale for first time
Feb. 13, 2024, 2:16 AM ET (The Hindu)
Mettur water flows to tail-end areas in delta region
Top Questions
Where does water come from? Water is made up of hydrogen and oxygen, and it exists in gaseous, liquid, and solid states. Water is one of the most plentiful and essential compounds, occurring as a liquid on Earth’s surface under normal conditions, which makes it invaluable for human uses and as plant and animal habitat. Since water is readily changed to a vapour (gas), it can travel through the atmosphere from the oceans inland, where it condenses and nourishes life. Why do cold water bottles and soft-drink bottles sweat? A cold water bottle appears to sweat because it’s a cooling source for the water vapour in the layer of air that surrounds the bottle. Air that is relatively warm can hold more water vapour than cooler air. When the cold water bottle is introduced, the warm air near the bottle cools and some of the water vapour condenses into liquid water, which is then deposited on the outside of the bottle. When does water boil? Boiling occurs when bubbles form within a liquid, marking a change from a substance’s liquid or solid phase into a gas. The normal boiling point is the temperature at which the liquid’s vapour pressure equals the standard sea level atmospheric pressure (760 mm [29.92 inches] of mercury). At sea level, atmospheric pressure is high, and water boils at 100 °C (212 °F); at higher altitudes it is lower, so water boils at a lower temperature. Why is water blue? Water appears blue for two important reasons. In small quantities water appears colourless, but water actually has an intrinsic blue colour caused by the slight absorption of light at red wavelengths. For larger bodies of water—ponds, rivers, lakes, and oceans—water appears blue on clear days because it mirrors the blueness of the sky. On overcast days, larger water bodies appear gray. When is water the most dense? Water’s density is greatest at about 4 °C (39.2 °F), in the liquid phase. Ice, water’s solid phase, is more buoyant, so it forms at the surface of water bodies and freezes downward. Lakes and rivers rarely freeze completely, and the liquid water below can become a winter refuge for aquatic life. When ice melts in the spring, the slowly warming surface meltwater sinks, displacing the water below and mixing nutrients throughout the water column. Should bottled water be banned? Whether bottled water should be banned is hotly debated. Some say banning bottled water would reduce waste and protect the environment while saving money. Others say banning bottled water removes a healthy choice and leads to increased consumption of unhealthy sugary drinks. For more on the bottled water ban debate, visit ProCon.org. water, a substance composed of the chemical elements hydrogen and oxygen and existing in gaseous, liquid, and solid states. It is one of the most plentiful and essential of compounds. A tasteless and odourless liquid at room temperature, it has the important ability to dissolve many other substances. Indeed, the versatility of water as a solvent is essential to living organisms. Life is believed to have originated in the aqueous solutions of the world’s oceans, and living organisms depend on aqueous solutions, such as blood and digestive juices, for biological processes. Water also exists on other planets and moons both within and beyond the solar system. In small quantities water appears colourless, but water actually has an intrinsic blue colour caused by slight absorption of light at red wavelengths.The chemistry of waterAn overview of the chemical structure of water molecules.(more)See all videos for this articlepolar bear on ice floePolar bear on an ice floe in the Svalbard archipelago. The sight of ice floating on water is commonplace, but it shows the unusual chemical behaviour of water, which is less dense as a solid than in its liquid phase.(more)Although the molecules of water are simple in structure (H2O), the physical and chemical properties of the compound are extraordinarily complicated, and they are not typical of most substances found on Earth. For example, although the sight of ice cubes floating in a glass of ice water is commonplace, such behaviour is unusual for chemical entities. For almost every other compound, the solid state is denser than the liquid state; thus, the solid would sink to the bottom of the liquid. The fact that ice floats on water is exceedingly important in the natural world, because the ice that forms on ponds and lakes in cold areas of the world acts as an insulating barrier that protects the aquatic life below. If ice were denser than liquid water, ice forming on a pond would sink, thereby exposing more water to the cold temperature. Thus, the pond would eventually freeze throughout, killing all the life-forms present.diagram of the hydrologic cycle of waterIn the hydrologic cycle, water is transferred between the land surface, the ocean, and the atmosphere. The numbers on the arrows indicate relative water fluxes.(more)Water occurs as a liquid on the surface of Earth under normal conditions, which makes it invaluable for transportation, for recreation, and as a habitat for a myriad of plants and animals. The fact that water is readily changed to a vapour (gas) allows it to be transported through the atmosphere from the oceans to inland areas where it condenses and, as rain, nourishes plant and animal life. (See hydrosphere: The hydrologic cycle for a description of the cycle by which water is transferred over Earth.)Because of its prominence, water has long played an important religious and philosophical role in human history. In the 6th century bce, Thales of Miletus, sometimes credited for initiating Greek philosophy, regarded water as the sole fundamental building block of matter:
Britannica Quiz
Comprehension Quiz: Water Scarcity
It is water that, in taking different forms, constitutes the earth, atmosphere, sky, mountains, gods and men, beasts and birds, grass and trees, and animals down to worms, flies and ants. All these are different forms of water. Meditate on water!Two hundred years later, Aristotle considered water to be one of four fundamental elements, in addition to earth, air, and fire. The belief that water was a fundamental substance persisted for more than 2,000 years until experiments in the second half of the 18th century showed that water is a compound made up of the elements hydrogen and oxygen.
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Hoover DamThe Hoover Dam on the Colorado River at the border of Nevada and Arizona demonstrates how natural resources of water can be harnessed for a variety of purposes, including human consumption, irrigation, and industry.(more)diagram of a water treatment systemWater treatment systems are important for desalinating seawater so it can be used for human consumption and for purifying water for industrial use.(more)water harvestingResearchers invent a device that can harvest drinkable water from desert air.(more)See all videos for this articleThe water on the surface of Earth is found mainly in its oceans (97.25 percent) and polar ice caps and glaciers (2.05 percent), with the balance in freshwater lakes, rivers, and groundwater. As Earth’s population grows and the demand for fresh water increases, water purification and recycling become increasingly important. Interestingly, the purity requirements of water for industrial use often exceed those for human consumption. For example, the water used in high-pressure boilers must be at least 99.999998 percent pure. Because seawater contains large quantities of dissolved salts, it must be desalinated for most uses, including human consumption.This article describes the molecular structure of water as well as its physical and chemical properties. For other major treatments of water, see climate; environmental works; hydrosphere; ice; and pollution. Structure of water Liquid water water moleculeA water molecule is made up of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom. A single oxygen atom contains six electrons in its outer shell, which can hold a total of eight electrons. When two hydrogen atoms are bound to an oxygen atom, the outer electron shell of oxygen is filled.(more)The water molecule is composed of two hydrogen atoms, each linked by a single chemical bond to an oxygen atom. Most hydrogen atoms have a nucleus consisting solely of a proton. Two isotopic forms, deuterium and tritium, in which the atomic nuclei also contain one and two neutrons, respectively, are found to a small degree in water. Deuterium oxide (D2O), called heavy water, is important in chemical research and is also used as a neutron moderator in some nuclear reactors. Which has a lower freezing point, salt water or fresh water?Learn why fresh water and seawater have different freezing points.(more)See all videos for this articleAlthough its formula (H2O) seems simple, water exhibits very complex chemical and physical properties. For example, its melting point, 0 °C (32 °F), and boiling point, 100 °C (212 °F), are much higher than would be expected by comparison with analogous compounds, such as hydrogen sulfide and ammonia. In its solid form, ice, water is less dense than when it is liquid, another unusual property. The root of these anomalies lies in the electronic structure of the water molecule. The water molecule is not linear but bent in a special way. The two hydrogen atoms are bound to the oxygen atom at an angle of 104.5°. The O―H distance (bond length) is 95.7 picometres (9.57 × 10−11 metres, or 3.77 × 10−9 inches). Because an oxygen atom has a greater electronegativity than a hydrogen atom, the O―H bonds in the water molecule are polar, with the oxygen bearing a partial negative charge (δ−) and the hydrogens having a partial positive charge (δ+). water dropletsWater is a polar molecule and is attracted to other polar molecules. Thus, droplets, or beads, of water form on a nonpolar surface because water molecules adhere together instead of adhering to the surface.(more)Hydrogen atoms in water molecules are attracted to regions of high electron density and can form weak linkages, called hydrogen bonds, with those regions. This means that the hydrogen atoms in one water molecule are attracted to the nonbonding electron pairs of the oxygen atom on an adjacent water molecule. The structure of liquid water is believed to consist of aggregates of water molecules that form and re-form continually. This short-range order, as it is called, accounts for other unusual properties of water, such as its high viscosity and surface tension. splitting waterA catalyst that splits water into hydrogen and oxygen.(more)See all videos for this articleAn oxygen atom has six electrons in its outer (valence) shell, which can hold a total of eight electrons. When an oxygen atom forms a single chemical bond, it shares one of its own electrons with the nucleus of another atom and receives in return a share of an electron from that atom. When bonded to two hydrogen atoms, the outer electron shell of the oxygen atom is filled. The electron arrangement in the water molecule can be represented as follows. Each pair of dots represents a pair of unshared electrons (i.e., the electrons reside on only the oxygen atom). This situation can also be depicted by placing the water molecule in a cube.
Each ↑↓ symbol represents a pair of unshared electrons. This electronic structure leads to hydrogen bonding.
What is Water? | AMNH
What is Water? | AMNH
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What is Water?
- BIG IDEAS -
What is Water?
Water
is the liquid that makes life on Earth possible. As water cycles from the air to the land to the sea and back again, water shapes our planet — and nearly every aspect of our lives.
All Living Things Need Water
All living things, from tiny
cyanobacteria
to giant
blue whales
, need water to survive. Without water, life as we know it would not exist. And life exists wherever there is water.All organisms, like animals and plants, use water: salty or fresh, hot or cold, plenty of water or almost no water at all. They are adapted to all kinds of
habitats
, from sizzling deserts to the freezing, pitch-dark
ocean floor.
The first living things appeared in the ocean nearly four billion years ago. Some, like our ancestors, adapted to life on land. Humans have figured out how to survive in swamps, deserts, and all kinds of habitats in between.The ocean is still home to more kinds of life than anywhere else on the planet.
Did you know that around two thirds of your body is water?
Plants draw water and nutrients up out of the soil through their roots.
All Ecosystems Need Water
How much water is there on an island or a mountaintop? The answer determines what lives there, and how many of them.An ecosystem is a community of living things, or species. Some ecosystems are very wet and others very dry, some with fresh water and others with salty water. Some ecosystems, like
coral reefs,
support lots of species, and others, like the dry Antarctic valleys, support very few.
Many animals, like
polar bears,
caribous, whales, and people, live in the icy
Arctic.
In the dry desert, kangaroo rats get all the water they need from the food they eat.
The Amazing Water Molecule
Two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom form the water molecule. A hydrogen bond between water molecules forms side with oxygen has a negative charge; the hydrogen side, a positive one.
Water may not seem special. It's clear. It has no taste. It doesn't smell like anything. But if it couldn't do the things it does, life on
Earth
would not exist.Water is a tiny molecule. It consists of three
atoms
: two of hydrogen and one of oxygen. Water molecules cling to each other because of a force called hydrogen bonding. It's the reason why water can do amazing things.Water is a shape-shifter. It exists in three states on Earth: liquid, gas, and solid:
Liquid water is a jumbled bunch of water molecules. It comes out of our faucets, flows underground and in rivers and oceans, and forms clouds and fog in the air.
When water molecules escape from liquid water and float into the air, they turn into an invisible gas called water vapor. The spaces between the molecules are much bigger than the molecules themselves.
When water freezes into a solid, it does a strange thing: it floats! (Most other solids become denser and sink.) As ice forms, water molecules arrange themselves neatly in a crystal structure. The empty spaces between the molecules act as flotation devices — the way a life preserver holds you up.
Clouds, fog, and mist are a cluster of tiny liquid water droplets called drizzle drops.
Snowflakes are ice crystals. Temperature and humidity determine their shapes.
All Water on Earth is Linked in a Vast Cycle
Earth's water is always in motion. It moves inside the planet, across its surface, and in the atmosphere above.Water in lakes, rivers, and oceans turns into vapor and moves into the air through evaporation. Plants draw water from the soil and return it to the air.
Volcanoes
release water vapor that was locked deep inside rocks. All that water rises and falls back to Earth as rain or snow. This water cycle repeats over and over.Can you imagine how far the water in your shower has traveled? (Remember, it's been on Earth for over 4 billion years!) Where do you think it will go next?
As hot magma rises through Earth's crust, water vapor is released into the atmosphere.
Water vapor in the air condenses into droplets that fall back to Earth as rain or snow.
Water and Climate Are Connected in Many Ways
Liquid water can absorb and store huge amounts of heat without melting, freezing, or boiling. That's why water affects or controls
climate
in many ways. (Climate is the average weather in a place, over a long time.)Ocean currents move warm water around the globe. At the North and South poles,
sea ice
forms and melts with the seasons. Water vapor in the atmosphere holds in the
Sun's
heat like a blanket. Clouds and ice sheets reflect some of that heat back into space. Together, these processes keep our planet from getting too hot or too cold.
As sea ice forms and melts with the seasons, it helps regulate Earth's climate.
Water vapor traps some of the Sun's heat so it doesn't all bounce back into space.
Water Shapes Our Planet
Water runs easily through your fingers. It may not feel powerful. But lots of water, acting over time, shapes the world around us.Falling and running water erodes rocks, creating giant canyons. Rivers and streams move dirt that forms new land. Glaciers scrape across the ground, carving valleys and dragging debris. Tides and storms claw away at coastlines. And water locked in Earth's crust actually has a role in moving the giant
continents
below our feet.
Over millions of years, the Grand Canyon was sculpted by the moving Colorado River.
Long ago, massive moving glaciers scraped deep grooves into rocks in Central Park in New York City.
Too Much Water, and Not Enough
The water on Earth today is all the water we will ever have.The ocean holds most of it — over 97% of Earth's water is salty. Less than 3% is fresh — this is the water we drink, water plants with, and use to make things. Most of the fresh water is locked up in glaciers and ice caps. Only a tiny bit of what's left over is available for humans.Some places are too wet and others too dry. In fact, half of the world's fresh water can be found in only six countries! More than a billion people live without safe, clean water, and the number of thirsty people is growing.
About two thirds of the world's fresh water is locked in glaciers and ice caps.
In some areas where water is scarce, people carry water home from faraway places.
Humans Put Water to Work
You've probably had a drink of water or washed your hands today. But people use water for so many other purposes, like cleaning stuff, transportation, and generating
hydroelectric power.
Just as nothing can live without water, not much can be made without it, from cotton candy to cotton T-shirts.Because water is so useful, most people live along coastlines, rivers, and lakes. Where fresh water is limited, people have used many technologies — like wells, dams, and canals — to store and move it.Sometimes these technologies damage habitats. Other species have to compete with humans for water. This may help explain why so many creatures that live in fresh water are endangered.We need to be smarter and more careful about how we use water in order to make sure that there's enough for all life on Earth.
It takes 2,400 liters (634 gallons) of water to produce one hamburger!
Dams can supply water and generate power. But they also damage habitats.
We Need to Take Care of the Water Planet
Water is precious. We can't get more. How do we make sure there is enough clean, fresh water to share with all living things?Remember that every drop we use — or waste — continues through the water cycle. Stuff we put down the drain ends up in someone — or something — else's water. Chemicals like fertilizers and pesticides pollute lakes and oceans, harming the organisms that live in them.We need to protect swamps and riverbanks. These wetlands clean water naturally, and provide important habitat for many wild birds, fish, and other species. People are working to restore damaged or lost wetlands.We can use water more wisely. For example, it takes a lot of
energy
to produce bottled water, and not everyone
recycles
the plastic bottles. We can use less, too, in simple ways like drinking tap water and turning off the faucet while we brush our teeth.Together, we can protect fresh water now and for the future.
The water leaving a wetland is cleaner than the water entering.
Most tap water is just as safe and clean as bottled water!
Image credits
You might also like...
Be a Water Saver
Simple things that you can do to help protect fresh water and the living things that depend on it.
Test Density with a Supersaturated Solution
Do fresh water and salt water mix? Find out in this experiment.
Will Earth run out of water?
Volcanologist Jim Webster answers this question.
Image Credits:
girls playing with water: Abigail Keenan on Unsplash; tree: Digital Vision / AGE Fotostock; polar bear: NOAA; kangaroo rat: AMNH / R. Mickens; morning mist, snowflakes: J. Falk; volcano: McGimsey / USGS; snowy streets: Image 100 / AGE Fotostock; water molecule: AMNH; sea ice: NSF; clouds: V. Ryzin; Grand Canyon: NPS / M.Quinn; Central Park; rocks: AMNH / T. Gaud; iceberg: AMNH / C. Chesek; carrying water: Digital Vision / AGE Fotostock; hamburger: Amirali Mirhashemian on Unsplash; dam: BPA; wetland: USDA; girl drinking from water fountain: R. Friedman.
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5.5
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Journals
Water
Investigating Nonpoint Source and Pollutant Reduction Effects under Future Climate Scenarios: A SWAT-Based Study in a Highland Agricultural Watershed in Korea
Testing Zeolite and Palygorskite as a Potential Medium for Ammonium Recovery and Brewery Wastewater Treatment
Enhanced Groundwater Protection and Management Using Gravity and Geoelectrical Data
Journal Description
Water
Water
is a peer-reviewed, open access journal on water science and technology, including the ecology and management of water resources, and is published semimonthly online by MDPI. Water collaborates with the International Conference on Flood Management (ICFM) and Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI). In addition, the American Institute of Hydrology (AIH), The Polish Limnological Society (PLS) and Japanese Society of Physical Hydrology (JSPH) are affiliated with Water and their members receive a discount on the article processing charges.
Open Access— free for readers, with article processing charges (APC) paid by authors or their institutions.
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Journal Rank: JCR - Q2 (Water Resources) / CiteScore - Q1 (Water Science and Technology)
Rapid Publication: manuscripts are peer-reviewed and a first
decision is provided to authors approximately 16.5 days after submission; acceptance
to publication is undertaken in 2.9 days (median values for papers published in
this journal in the second half of 2023).
Recognition of Reviewers: reviewers who provide timely, thorough peer-review reports receive vouchers entitling them to a discount on the APC of their next publication in any MDPI journal, in appreciation of the work done.
Companion journals for Water include: GeoHazards and Hydrobiology.
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Open Access
ISSN: 2073-4441
Latest Articles
16 pages, 3837 KiB
Open AccessArticle
Analysis of Potential Water Inflow Rates at an Underground Coal Mine Using a WOA-CNN-SVM Approach
by
Weitao Liu, Yuying Ren, Xiangxi Meng, Bo Tian and Xianghai Lv
Water 2024, 16(6), 813; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16060813 (registering DOI) - 09 Mar 2024
Abstract
The water yield of aquifers increases the risk of water inflow, threatens the safe production of coal mines, and even causes geological disasters and construction hazards. To predict water yield quickly and accurately, multiple composite factors are used to invert unit water inflow
[...] Read more.
The water yield of aquifers increases the risk of water inflow, threatens the safe production of coal mines, and even causes geological disasters and construction hazards. To predict water yield quickly and accurately, multiple composite factors are used to invert unit water inflow rates to judge water yield grade. Taking the typical representative of north China-type coal fields as an example, six factors are selected: aquifer thickness, the radius of influence, normalized drawdown, permeability coefficient, the core rate of drilling holes, and the proportion of clay thickness to the thickness of the lower group. The whale optimization algorithm (WOA)–convolutional neural network (CNN)–support vector machine (SVM) model is established with the unit water inflow rate as the forecast target, and different models are selected for comparison. The water yield zoning map is obtained by bringing the borehole data into the model for prediction. The findings indicate that the root mean square error and average absolute error of the composite predictive model models are 0.0318 and 0.0268, respectively, and the model outperforms alternative models. The predicted water yield zoning aligns well with the actual conditions, offering a novel paradigm for water yield assessment.
Full article
►▼
Show Figures
Figure 1
20 pages, 8480 KiB
Open AccessArticle
Study on Impeller Optimization and Operation Method of Variable Speed Centrifugal Pump with Large Flow and Wide Head Variation
by
Yang Zheng, Long Meng, Guang Zhang, Peng Xue, Xin Wang, Chiye Zhang and Yajuan Tian
Water 2024, 16(6), 812; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16060812 (registering DOI) - 09 Mar 2024
Abstract
The benefits of variable speed centrifugal pumps include high stability, a broad operating range, and adjustable input power. In water distribution systems, the pump units are increasingly using variable speed technology. The energy-saving features and operational stability of the pump station are directly
[...] Read more.
The benefits of variable speed centrifugal pumps include high stability, a broad operating range, and adjustable input power. In water distribution systems, the pump units are increasingly using variable speed technology. The energy-saving features and operational stability of the pump station are directly impacted by the hydraulic performance and the operation strategy. In this study, CFD numerical analysis and model tests were adopted to design and evaluate the hydraulic performance of the variable speed centrifugal pump with large flow and wide head variation in Liyuzhou Pump Station. Under the premise of ensuring the wide head variation, the optimized centrifugal pump met the requirements of hump margin and efficiency in the high head zone and the cavitation margin in the low head zone. The test results demonstrated that the operational range of the variable speed centrifugal pump was successfully widened by reasonable hydraulic parameters selection and impeller optimization. The safe and efficient operational range of the variable speed unit was determined by means of taking the performance requirements of the pump’s maximum input shaft power, cavitation characteristics and pressure fluctuation into consideration. The scientific and reasonable operational path to meet the various operation needs was also investigated and determined for the pump station’s actual operation needs. A high efficiency, safe operation, and a simplified control logic were achieved by using the operational path, which makes it a reasonable potential guide for hydraulic design and operational optimization of variable speed centrifugal pumps with large flow and wide head range.
Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Hydrodynamics of Water Pump Station System)
21 pages, 1996 KiB
Open AccessArticle
Potential of Decentral Nature-Based Solutions for Mitigation of Pluvial Floods in Urban Areas—A Simulation Study Based on 1D/2D Coupled Modeling
by
Jonas Neumann, Christian Scheid and Ulrich Dittmer
Water 2024, 16(6), 811; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16060811 - 08 Mar 2024
Abstract
Urban drainage systems are generally designed to handle rainfall events only up to a certain intensity or volume. With climate change, extreme events that exceed the design storms and consequently result in flooding are occurring more frequently. Nature-based solutions (NBSs) have the potential
[...] Read more.
Urban drainage systems are generally designed to handle rainfall events only up to a certain intensity or volume. With climate change, extreme events that exceed the design storms and consequently result in flooding are occurring more frequently. Nature-based solutions (NBSs) have the potential to reduce the pressure on urban drainage systems and to increase their resilience. This study presents an approach to compare and evaluate the effectiveness of NBSs for flood mitigation using a coupled 1D/2D model of surface and sewer flow. The study analyzes the effect of infiltration systems (dimensioned to return periods of T = 5 and 100 years), various green roofs, and tree pits considering the different degrees of implementation. The NBSs are represented as LID elements according to SWMM. As expected, the mitigation effect of NBSs declines with increasing rainfall intensities. However, infiltration systems dimensioned to T = 100 years achieve almost three times the flood reduction compared to systems dimensioned to T = 5 years, even during extremely heavy rainfall events (100 mm), resulting in a reduced total flood volume of 15.1% to 25.8%. Overall, green roofs (excluding extensive green roofs) provide the most significant flood reduction (33.5%), while tree locations have the least effect.
Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nature-Based Solutions for Rainwater Management in the Urban Environment)
18 pages, 12059 KiB
Open AccessArticle
Hydrological Changes and Sediment Dynamics in the Inner Mongolia Section of the Yellow River: Implications for Reservoir Management
by
Jingjing Xu, Ying Zhao, Yin Chen, Pengfei Du and Liqin Qu
Water 2024, 16(6), 810; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16060810 - 08 Mar 2024
Abstract
The Inner Mongolia section of the Yellow River is a primary alluvial segment of the main channel. The variations in water and sediment not only alter the cross-sectional morphology and flow capacity of the river but also impact the scheduling of upstream cascade
[...] Read more.
The Inner Mongolia section of the Yellow River is a primary alluvial segment of the main channel. The variations in water and sediment not only alter the cross-sectional morphology and flow capacity of the river but also impact the scheduling of upstream cascade reservoirs. Based on runoff and sediment load data and topographic information from typical hydrological stations, the characteristics of runoff and sediment load variations and the evolutionary pattern of siltation in the Inner Mongolia River section were analyzed via trend analysis methods, Mann–Kendall test methods, the sediment load transport rate method, and the water level–flow relationship. The results showed that the water and sediment loads at the hydrological stations in the Inner Mongolia River section significantly changed from the 1960s to after 2000, with runoff decreasing by approximately 22% to 32% and the sediment load decreasing by approximately 65% to 73%. Sedimentation in the river section generally increased, and the average annual siltation amount reached 0.144 billion t. The joint utilization of the Longyangxia and Liujiaxia reservoirs in 1987 was the main reason for the rapid increase in siltation, and siltation in the Inner Mongolia River section was slightly reduced after 2005. In addition, the critical sediment load coefficients of the Bayangaole–Sanhuhekou and Sanhuhekou–Toudaoguai River sections were 0.0073 and 0.0051 kg·s/m6, respectively, from 1952 to 1968, and 0.0053 and 0.0037 kg·s/m6, respectively, from 1969 to 2020. This study could provide technical support for river flood control and reservoir water sediment regulation in Inner Mongolia.
Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Interrelationship between Climate Change, Human Activities and Hydrological Processes, Volume II)
►▼
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18 pages, 1471 KiB
Open AccessArticle
Analysis of the Spatial Spillover Effect and Impact Transmission Mechanism of China’s Water Network by Constructing a Water Transfer Information Weight Matrix
by
Junyan Gao, Feng Chen, Xiangtian Nie and Xuewan Du
Water 2024, 16(6), 809; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16060809 - 08 Mar 2024
Abstract
In China, the water network project plays a pivotal role in optimizing water resources allocation, enhancing regional water resources carrying capacity, and bolstering high-quality economic development. This study is grounded in the spatial interconnection of water resources, serving as the foundation for constructing
[...] Read more.
In China, the water network project plays a pivotal role in optimizing water resources allocation, enhancing regional water resources carrying capacity, and bolstering high-quality economic development. This study is grounded in the spatial interconnection of water resources, serving as the foundation for constructing a spatial measurement model. Leveraging data from 558 panel samples encompassing 31 provinces (including municipalities and districts) in China between 2003 and 2020, this research unveils the inherent correlation between the establishment of the water network and economic as well as social development. The findings indicate the following: (1) Considering inputs, outputs, and nonconsensual outputs, regional disparities in the SBM (slacks-based measure) value of the water network exist, demonstrating an overall increasing trend annually. In 2020, the nationwide average benefit level of input–output in water network construction reached 0.603. (2) Moran’s I test, predicated on the weight matrix of spatial water transfer information, reveals a spatial positive autocorrelation. All tests pass the significance threshold of 5%, affirming the presence of spatial agglomeration due to project construction, operation, and the interconnectedness of water resources. (3) SDM (spatial Durbin model) regression analysis elucidates that per capita GDP, resource endowment, technological innovation level, consumption index, and average wage significantly influence the growth of water network efficiency. Specifically, per capita GDP and the consumption index exert negative influences. Moreover, aspects such as regional resource endowment, technological innovation level, industrial and agricultural water demand, average wage, and other spatial dependencies exhibit a notable positive spatial spillover effect. (4) The SDM model suggests that per capita GDP growth fails to yield a significant spatial spillover effect on neighboring regions. Instead, it highlights a substantial indirect effect and spatial dependence of government attention among regions. These analyses are instrumental in optimizing the water resources allocation network system and enhancing investment efficacy.
Full article
(This article belongs to the Section Urban Water Management)
►▼
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20 pages, 6629 KiB
Open AccessArticle
Study of the River Discharge Alteration
by
Alina Bărbulescu and Nayeemuddin Mohammed
Water 2024, 16(6), 808; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16060808 - 08 Mar 2024
Abstract
This article aims to analyze the alteration in water discharge due to the building of one of the largest dams in Romania. Modifications in the hydrological patterns of the studied river were emphasized by a complex technique that includes decomposition models of the
[...] Read more.
This article aims to analyze the alteration in water discharge due to the building of one of the largest dams in Romania. Modifications in the hydrological patterns of the studied river were emphasized by a complex technique that includes decomposition models of the series into trends, seasonal indices, and random components, as well as into Intrinsic Mode Functions (IMFs). The Mann–Kendall trend test indicates the existence of different positive slopes for the subseries S1 and S2 (before and after the inception of the Siriu dam, respectively) built from the raw series, S. The stationarity hypothesis was rejected for all series. The multifractal analysis shows two different patterns of the data series. After decomposing the subseries S1 and S2, it resulted that the seasonality indices are not the same. Moreover, the seasonal variations decreased after building the dam. Empirical Mode Decomposition (EMD) unveils different short- and long-term patterns of the series before and after building the dam, concluding that there is a significant alteration in the river discharge after the dam’s inception.
Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Water Resource Management: Hydrological Modelling, Hydrological Cycles, and Hydrological Prediction)
►▼
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14 pages, 2202 KiB
Open AccessArticle
The Study of Various Regression Models Establishment to Identify Farmland Soil Moisture Content at Different Depths Using Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Multispectral Data: A Case in North China Plain
by
Jingui Wang, Jinxia Sha, Ruiting Liu, Shuai Ren, Xian Zhao and Guanghui Liu
Water 2024, 16(6), 807; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16060807 - 08 Mar 2024
Abstract
Soil moisture content is one of the most important soil indices for agriculture production. With the increasing food requirement and limited irrigation water sources, it is of great significance to accurately and quickly measure the soil moisture content for precision irrigation, especially in
[...] Read more.
Soil moisture content is one of the most important soil indices for agriculture production. With the increasing food requirement and limited irrigation water sources, it is of great significance to accurately and quickly measure the soil moisture content for precision irrigation, especially in deficient agricultural areas, such as North China Plain. To achieve this goal, more attention was paid to the application of unmanned aerial vehicle multispectral reflectance technology. However, it was urgent to enhance the regression models between spectral data and soil realistic moisture content, and there were limited studies about the regression research on deep soil layers. Thus, the farmland of winter wheat–summer maize double cropping at Yongnian District, Hebei, North China, was selected as the study area. A six-band multispectral camera mounted on a low-altitude unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) was used to obtain the field spectral reflectance with bands from 470~810 nm, and meanwhile, soil moisture content at different depths (10, 20, 30, 40, 50, and 60 cm) was measured after maize sowing. Unary linear regression (ULR), multivariate linear regression (MLR), ridge regression (RR), and an artificial neural network (ANN) were employed to establish regression models. The results demonstrated that the sensitive bands of spectral reflectance were 690 nm, 470 nm, and 810 nm. Those models all established significant regression at the depths of 0–20 cm and 40–60 cm, particularly at 10, 50, and 60 cm soil layers. However, for a depth of 20–40 cm, the prediction accuracy was generally lower. Among MLR, RR, and BP models, the MLR exhibited the highest identification accuracy, which was most recommended for the application. The findings of this study provide technical guidance and effective regression for the multispectral reflectance on the farmland of North China Plain, especially for deep soil layer moisture prediction.
Full article
12 pages, 1818 KiB
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Analysis on Operation and Water Quality Characteristics of Centralized Wastewater Treatment Plants of Industrial Parks in Yellow River Basin, China
by
Yanjun Wang, Yue Yuan, Hao Xue, Yin Yu, Yang Shi, Huina Wen and Min Xu
Water 2024, 16(6), 806; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16060806 - 08 Mar 2024
Abstract
The Yellow River basin serves as an important economic belt and industrial base in China, featuring numerous industrial parks. However, alongside its economic significance, the basin struggles with significant water environmental challenges. This study analyzed the operational status, influent water quality, and energy
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The Yellow River basin serves as an important economic belt and industrial base in China, featuring numerous industrial parks. However, alongside its economic significance, the basin struggles with significant water environmental challenges. This study analyzed the operational status, influent water quality, and energy consumption of 63 centralized wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) from 54 major industrial parks in the Yellow River basin. The scale of these WWTPs was primarily within the range of 1 × 104~5 × 104 m3/d, with an average hydraulic loading rate of 53.8%. Aerobic treatment processes are predominant. The influent concentrations of chemical oxygen demand (COD), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), ammonia nitrogen (NH3-N), total nitrogen (TN), and total phosphorus (TP) in the WWTPs exhibited a right-skewed distribution. The BOD/COD ratio of the WWTPs fluctuated between 0.1 and 1.6, and 75% of the WWTPs showed a COD/TN ratio lower than eight. The average BOD5/TN was 2.7, and the probability of influent BOD5/TP > 20 was 84.6%. A significant linear correlation exists between the influent BOD and COD concentrations, while moderate linear relationships are also observed among NH3-N, TN and TP, emphasizing the importance of maintaining appropriate nitrogen and phosphorus levels for efficient pollutant removal. The average electricity consumption of WWTPs in the Yellow River basin in 2023 was 1.1 kWh/m3. It is important to upgrade these WWTPs and reduce their energy consumption. Further strengthening the construction of industrial wastewater collection and treatment facilities based on regional characteristics is recommended to promote the high-quality development of industrial wastewater treatment in the Yellow River basin.
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(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Wastewater Treatment and the Circular Economy)
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18 pages, 4660 KiB
Open AccessArticle
Assessing Future Hydrological Variability in a Semi-Arid Mediterranean Basin: Soil and Water Assessment Tool Model Projections under Shared Socioeconomic Pathways Climate Scenarios
by
Marziyeh Haji Mohammadi, Vahid Shafaie, Aliakbar Nazari Samani, Arash Zare Garizi and Majid Movahedi Rad
Water 2024, 16(6), 805; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16060805 - 08 Mar 2024
Abstract
Climate is one of the main drivers of hydrological processes, and climate change has caused worldwide effects such as water scarcity, frequent floods and intense droughts. The purpose of this study was to analyze the effects of climate change on the water balance
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Climate is one of the main drivers of hydrological processes, and climate change has caused worldwide effects such as water scarcity, frequent floods and intense droughts. The purpose of this study was to analyze the effects of climate change on the water balance components, high flow and low flow stream conditions in a semi-arid basin in Iran. For this reason, the climate outputs of the CanESM5 model under Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSP) scenarios SSP126, SSP245, and SSP585 were spatially downscaled by the Statistical Downscaling Model (SDSM). The hydrological process was simulated by the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model. Key findings include a 74% increase in evapotranspiration, a reduction by up to 9.6% in surface runoff, and variations in discharge by up to 53.6%. The temporal analysis of snow melting changes revealed an increase in the volume of snow melting during winter months and a reduction in the volume during spring. The projected climate change is expected to cause notable variations in high and low flow events, particularly under the SSP585 scenario, which anticipates significant peaks in flow rates. This comprehensive analysis underscores the pressing need for adaptive strategies in water resource management to mitigate the anticipated impacts of climate variability.
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(This article belongs to the Section Hydrology)
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13 pages, 7190 KiB
Open AccessArticle
Influence of Spring Water Residence Time on the Irrigation Water Stability in the Hani Rice Terraces
by
Kun Wei, Yuanmei Jiao, Guilin Zhang, Ying Wang and Hua Zhang
Water 2024, 16(6), 804; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16060804 - 08 Mar 2024
Abstract
The stability of irrigation water is critical for the sustainability of alpine agriculture. Based on monthly precipitation and terraced field water and spring water samples obtained between 2015 and 2016, the study used the mean residence time and isotope mixing model to analyze
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The stability of irrigation water is critical for the sustainability of alpine agriculture. Based on monthly precipitation and terraced field water and spring water samples obtained between 2015 and 2016, the study used the mean residence time and isotope mixing model to analyze the influence of spring water residence time on irrigation water stability in the Hani Rice Terraces. The results indicate that: (1) The mean residence time of precipitation and terraced field water in spring water was 2.46 years and 1.55 years, respectively, implying that the terraced field’s irrigation water source could be refilled by spring water recharged 1.5–2.5 years ago. (2) The mean residence time of precipitation in ascending and descending springs was 2.73 years and 1.95 years, respectively. The mean residence time of terraced field water in ascending and descending springs was 1.54 years and 1.04 years, respectively. The ascending spring’s recharge water residence time is 0.5–0.8 years longer than that of the descending spring, indicating that the spring water exhibits intra-seasonal and inter-seasonal staggered peak recharging. At the same time, the total recharge period of the ascending–descending spring is extended to 1–3 years, which means the terraced fields have a drought resistance of three years. (3) The mean residence time of precipitation and terraced field water at higher altitudes in the ascending spring is 2.52 times and 3.73 times, respectively, while in the descending spring, it is 3.36 times and 6.49 times to the lower altitude region. This means that the mean residence time of the recharge water source in the lower terraced fields was shorter, and the elevation difference between ascending and descending springs was smaller, thereby regulating the spatial homogeneous distribution of recharge water sources in the terraced fields.
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(This article belongs to the Special Issue Diagnostic Timescale Methods for the Aquatic Environment: Current Challenges, Recent Improvements, and Applications)
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13 pages, 2192 KiB
Open AccessArticle
Factors Explaining the Distribution of Physella acuta (Draparnaud, 1805) in Freshwaters of Morocco
by
Abdelkhaleq F. Taybi, Youness Mabrouki, Peter Glöer and Christophe Piscart
Water 2024, 16(6), 803; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16060803 - 08 Mar 2024
Abstract
Invasive species are a major threat to global biodiversity. Therefore, it is crucial to monitor their presence and expansion within invaded areas and carry out studies to improve our knowledge of their biology and ecology. One of the most effective and spectacular invaders
[...] Read more.
Invasive species are a major threat to global biodiversity. Therefore, it is crucial to monitor their presence and expansion within invaded areas and carry out studies to improve our knowledge of their biology and ecology. One of the most effective and spectacular invaders among freshwater snails is the acute bladder snail (Physella acuta) (Draparnaud, 1805). This study aims to update the available data on P. acuta in Morocco and determine the main environmental factors that favor its distribution and expansion in this country. Field surveys were conducted in northern Morocco between 2014 and 2023, with a focus on protected areas such as Ramsar sites, and especially great geographical barriers such as the Middle Atlas Mountains and the Sebou and Moulouya River basins. The gastropods were collected using Surber samplers (20 × 25 cm surface area, 400 µm mesh), together with measurements of the physicochemical parameters of the water and other abiotic factors. The bladder snail is probably the most widespread freshwater snail in Morocco, where the species appears to be highly adaptable and can thrive in different habitats, including degraded ones, showing great plasticity in terms of the physicochemical parameters of the water. The main factor limiting the geographical distribution and abundance of P. acuta in the study area was water velocity and conductivity. However, further studies are required to address the future range of expansion of P. acuta in relation to climate change. Although one of the consequences of climate change is reduced water flow speed, which may promote its range of expansion in Morocco, salinization of streams may also reduce its ability to colonize new environments.
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(This article belongs to the Special Issue Exotic Species in Aquatic Environments)
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14 pages, 2161 KiB
Open AccessArticle
Improving Analytic Hierarchy Process inside the Analytic Group Decision-Making Approach Method with Two-Dimensional Cloud Model for Water Resource Pollution Risk Warning Evaluation: A Case Study in Shandong Province, China
by
Fulei Zhou, Zhijun Li, Yu Gao, Haiqing Wang, Jiantao Wei and Bo Zhou
Water 2024, 16(6), 802; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16060802 - 08 Mar 2024
Abstract
This study proposes a water resource pollution risk warning evaluation method. Firstly, an evaluation system is constructed, consisting of 15 secondary indicators in four aspects: water quality, ecology, utilization protection, and water disasters. Then, an improved AGA-AHP method and coefficient of variation method
[...] Read more.
This study proposes a water resource pollution risk warning evaluation method. Firstly, an evaluation system is constructed, consisting of 15 secondary indicators in four aspects: water quality, ecology, utilization protection, and water disasters. Then, an improved AGA-AHP method and coefficient of variation method are used to determine the weights of each indicator. Cloud models are employed to describe the characteristics of standard clouds and evaluation clouds, establishing a two-dimensional cloud model with risk probability and hazard level as variables. Taking a certain region in Shandong Province, China, as an example, the quantitative analysis results indicate that the water pollution risk level in the area is classified as Level IV, with particular attention needed for water quality and management indicators. Simultaneously, a series of measures such as source control, monitoring and early warning, emergency response, and public participation are proposed to further reduce the risk. The research findings demonstrate the following: (1) The establishment of a comprehensive indicator system for multidimensional assessment; (2) The combination of the AGA-AHP method and cloud model for quantitative analysis; (3) The practicality of the method validated through the case study; (4) Providing a basis for subsequent decision-making. This study provides new insights for water environmental risk management, but a further optimization of the model to enhance predictive capability is required when applied in practical scenarios. Nevertheless, the preliminary validation of this method’s application prospects in water resource risk monitoring has been achieved.
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21 pages, 2923 KiB
Open AccessArticle
Dynamic Response of PCCP under the Rockfall Impact Based on the Continuous–Discontinuous Method: A Case Study
by
Chunhui Ma, Ying Tu, Yonglin Zhou, Jie Yang and Lin Cheng
Water 2024, 16(6), 801; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16060801 - 07 Mar 2024
Abstract
Rockfalls are major geological hazards threatening prestressed concrete cylinder pipes (PCCPs) in water diversion projects. To accurately assess the impact of large deformation movements of rockfalls on PCCPs, this study utilized the continuous–discontinuous method to investigate the dynamic response of a PCCP under
[...] Read more.
Rockfalls are major geological hazards threatening prestressed concrete cylinder pipes (PCCPs) in water diversion projects. To accurately assess the impact of large deformation movements of rockfalls on PCCPs, this study utilized the continuous–discontinuous method to investigate the dynamic response of a PCCP under a rockfall. The impact mode of rockfalls, the mechanical characteristics of PCCP, and the nonlinear-contact characteristics between soil and PCCP were considered in this study. The advantages of continuous and discontinuous numerical simulation methods were utilized to establish a continuous and discontinuous coupling model of “tube-soil-rock” considering the interaction of soil and structure. The impact mechanism and process of PCCP under the rockfall were investigated by simulating the rockfall process and analyzing its spatiotemporal evolution. The influence of PCCP under rockfalls with different heights and radii was studied to clarify the effects of these two parameters on the PCCP. Combined with a practical application example of large-scale water transfer projects, there is a tendency of center flattening under static load and dynamic impact load, and the PCCP part directly below the impact point is the most dangerous. This investigation provided a comprehensive understanding of the impact mechanism of the PCCPs under rockfall. The findings of this study have significant implications for the design of the protection engineering of PCCPs and ensuring the safe operation of water diversion projects.
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(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Methods and Technologies of Hydraulic Engineering Safety Assessment)
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16 pages, 1781 KiB
Open AccessArticle
Integrated Application of SWAT and L-THIA Models for Nonpoint Source Pollution Assessment in Data Scarce Regions
by
Peiyao Zhang, Sophia Shuang Chen, Ying Dai, Baraka Sekadende and Ismael Aaron Kimirei
Water 2024, 16(6), 800; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16060800 - 07 Mar 2024
Abstract
Nonpoint source pollution (NPS) has become the most important reason for the deterioration of water quality, while relevant studies are often limited to African river and lake basins with insufficient data. Taking the Simiyu catchment of the Lake Victoria basin as the study
[...] Read more.
Nonpoint source pollution (NPS) has become the most important reason for the deterioration of water quality, while relevant studies are often limited to African river and lake basins with insufficient data. Taking the Simiyu catchment of the Lake Victoria basin as the study area, we set up a NPS model based on the soil and water assessment tool (SWAT). Furthermore, the rationality of this model is verified with the field-measured data. The results manifest that: (1) the temporal variation of NPS load is consistent with the variation pattern of rainfall, the average monthly output of total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP) in the rainy season was 1360.6 t and 336.2 t, respectively, while in the dry season was much lower, only 13.5 t and 3.0 t, respectively; (2) in view of spatial distribution among 32 sub-basins, TN load ranged from 2.051 to 24.288 kg/ha with an average load of 12.940 kg/ha, and TP load ranged from 0.263 to 8.103 kg/ha with an average load of 3.321 kg/ha during the 16-month study period; (3) Among the land use types, the cropland contributed the highest proportion of TN and TP pollution with 50.28% and 76.29%, respectively, while the effect of forest on NPS was minimal with 0.05% and 0.02% for TN and TP, respectively. (4) Moreover, the event mean concentration (EMC) values of different land use types have been derived based on the SWAT model, which are key parameters for the application of the long-term hydrological impact assessment (L-THIA) model. Therefore, this study facilitates applying the L-THIA model to other similar data-deficient catchments in view of its relatively lower data requirement.
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(This article belongs to the Section Water Quality and Contamination)
21 pages, 5679 KiB
Open AccessArticle
Social Drivers of Flood Vulnerability: Understanding Household Perspectives and Persistence of Living in Flood Zones of Metro Manila, Philippines
by
Judy Marie Tayaban Dulawan, Yoshiyuki Imamura, Hideo Amaguchi and Miho Ohara
Water 2024, 16(6), 799; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16060799 - 07 Mar 2024
Abstract
Urban populations, especially vulnerable communities, are facing increasing flood risks due to the rising frequency of floods caused by climate change and rapid growth. Effective mitigation requires moving beyond physical and environmental approaches to embrace social dimensions. This study examined the prevailing social
[...] Read more.
Urban populations, especially vulnerable communities, are facing increasing flood risks due to the rising frequency of floods caused by climate change and rapid growth. Effective mitigation requires moving beyond physical and environmental approaches to embrace social dimensions. This study examined the prevailing social drivers of floods in flood-prone communities in Metro Manila, Philippines using social data acquired through a door-to-door household survey. Responses were assessed using exploratory and combined qualitative and quantitative analyses. The findings of this study show that the decision to remain in flood-prone areas is influenced by attachment to homes and acclimatization to the environment, convenience of accessible amenities to fulfill basic needs, livelihood dependence, economic considerations, house ownership, and perceived safety from floods. When choosing a place to live, the complex tradeoffs of residents are reflected, wherein daily economic concerns outweigh the possible flood damage. By understanding the social drivers of residency, policymakers and community leaders can develop targeted interventions and formulate strategies to address the root causes of the problem, leading to effective interventions and enhancing the resilience of urban communities.
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(This article belongs to the Special Issue Flood Risk Management and Resilience Volume II)
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20 pages, 7073 KiB
Open AccessArticle
Flow Characteristics in Partly Vegetated Channels: An Experimental Investigation
by
Mouldi Ben Meftah, Danish Ali Bhutto, Diana De Padova and Michele Mossa
Water 2024, 16(6), 798; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16060798 - 07 Mar 2024
Abstract
In this study, we attempt to experimentally investigate the flow turbulence structure in a partly vegetated channel. To achieve the objective of this study, we conducted extensive measurements of flow velocities within and outside the vegetated area, where the flow is fully developed.
[...] Read more.
In this study, we attempt to experimentally investigate the flow turbulence structure in a partly vegetated channel. To achieve the objective of this study, we conducted extensive measurements of flow velocities within and outside the vegetated area, where the flow is fully developed. The experiments were conducted in a very large channel at the Coastal Engineering Laboratory of the Department of Civil, Environmental, Building Engineering and Chemistry at the Polytechnic University of Bari, Italy. The instantaneous three flow velocity components were accurately measured using a 3D-Acoustic Doppler Velocimeter (ADV)-Vectrino system at high frequency. Flow behaviors through the vegetated area, at the interface, and in the unobstructed area were analyzed via time-averaged velocities, turbulence intensity, correlation properties, spectral analysis, and vortex identification. Experimental results showed the development of three distinct characteristic flow zones: (i) a vegetated area of low streamwise velocity, high turbulence intensities, dominant inward interactions, and more intense power spectrum, (ii) a shear layer zone of increasing streamwise velocity, more enhanced transverse flow motion, exponential decrease in turbulence intensities, and frequent ejection and/or outward interaction events, and (iii) a free-stream zone of higher and almost constant streamwise velocity, lower turbulence intensities, frequent sweep and/or inward interaction events, and less intense streamwise power spectrum. The results brought further insights into the flow behaviors in these characteristic flow zones. The extensive and detailed measured data can provide a basis for improving and calibrating numerical simulations of partly vegetated channels.
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(This article belongs to the Special Issue Open Channel Flows: An Open Topic That Requires Further Exploration)
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11 pages, 680 KiB
Open AccessArticle
Using Bacteriophages to Treat Resilient Bacteria Found in Produced Water
by
Ramon Sanchez-Rosario, Jesus Garcia, Vivian Rodriguez, Kevin A. Schug, Zacariah L. Hildenbrand and Ricardo A. Bernal
Water 2024, 16(6), 797; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16060797 - 07 Mar 2024
Abstract
Numerous treatment modalities have been employed over the years to eradicate bacterial communities in industrial wastewater. Oxidizing agents and chemical additives, such as ozone, permanganate, glutaraldehyde, and chlorine, are effective in treating microbial contaminants that are typically found in domestic wastewater. However, the
[...] Read more.
Numerous treatment modalities have been employed over the years to eradicate bacterial communities in industrial wastewater. Oxidizing agents and chemical additives, such as ozone, permanganate, glutaraldehyde, and chlorine, are effective in treating microbial contaminants that are typically found in domestic wastewater. However, the chemical complexity of water produced from fracking requires novel approaches, because the microbes have developed mechanisms to overcome typical disinfectants. In this work, we test the effectiveness of bacteriophages for the eradication of two model bacteria from produced water: Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Bacillus megaterium. These bacteria were grown in low salinity produced water and exposed to their corresponding phage. Overall, the total inactivation of the P. aeruginosa population was achieved, as well as the inactivation of B. megaterium. These promising results provide a potentially useful tool for bacterial elimination in overall PW treatment, at an industrial scale. Particularly, since phage treatment is a rapid and cost-effective alternative. Moreover, these results fall within the objectives proposed as part of the sustainable development goals adopted worldwide.
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(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wastewater Treatment: Methods, Techniques and Processes)
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17 pages, 1275 KiB
Open AccessReview
Pharmaceutical Contaminants in Wastewater and Receiving Water Bodies of South Africa: A Review of Sources, Pathways, Occurrence, Effects, and Geographical Distribution
by
Elisa Pandelani Munzhelele, Rabelani Mudzielwana, Wasiu Babatunde Ayinde and Wilson Mugera Gitari
Water 2024, 16(6), 796; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16060796 - 07 Mar 2024
Abstract
The focus of this review article was to outline the sources, pathways, effects, occurrence, and spatial distribution of the most prescribed pharmaceuticals in wastewater and receiving waters of South Africa. Google Scholar, Web of Science, and Scopus were used to gather data from
[...] Read more.
The focus of this review article was to outline the sources, pathways, effects, occurrence, and spatial distribution of the most prescribed pharmaceuticals in wastewater and receiving waters of South Africa. Google Scholar, Web of Science, and Scopus were used to gather data from different regions. A zone-wise classification method was used to determine the spatial distribution and data deficiencies in different regions of South Africa. This review revealed that over 100 pharmaceutical compounds have been reported in South Africa’s various water sources and wastewater, with most studies and highest concentrations being documented in Gauteng and Kwa-Zulu Natal. The pharmaceutical concentration in water samples ranged from ng/L to µg/L. Aspirin, ketoprofen, diclofenac, ibuprofen, naproxen, erythromycin, tetracycline, sulfamethoxazole, acetaminophen, streptomycin, ciprofloxacin, ampicillin, carbamazepine, atenolol, pindolol, efavirenz, and zidovudine residues were among the frequently detected pharmaceutical residues in water bodies and wastewaters of South Africa. Based on the spatial distribution data, Gauteng has the highest number of pharmaceuticals (108) detected in waste and surface water, with the Northern Cape having no monitoring evidence. Therefore, to precisely ascertain the geographical distribution of pharmaceutical contaminants in South Africa, this review recommends that further research be carried out to track their occurrence in aquatic environments and WWTP, especially in isolated regions like Limpopo.
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(This article belongs to the Section Wastewater Treatment and Reuse)
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14 pages, 5088 KiB
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Geometry, Extent, and Chemistry of Fermentative Hot Spots in Municipal Waste Souk Sebt Landfill, Ouled Nemma, Beni Mellal, Morocco
by
Yousra El Mouine, Amal El Hamdi, Abderrahim Bousouis, Youssouf El Jarjini, Meryem Touzani, Vincent Valles, Laurent Barbiero and Moad Morarech
Water 2024, 16(6), 795; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16060795 - 07 Mar 2024
Abstract
The presence of fermentative hotspots in municipal waste dumps has been reported for several decades, but no study has focused on their size and shape. The uncontrolled landfill of Soub Sekt, covering an area of about 8 hectares in the Tadla plain in
[...] Read more.
The presence of fermentative hotspots in municipal waste dumps has been reported for several decades, but no study has focused on their size and shape. The uncontrolled landfill of Soub Sekt, covering an area of about 8 hectares in the Tadla plain in Morocco, is the source of a permanent pollution plume in the groundwater, detected by self-potential (SP) measurements. The study aims to detect and characterize these hotspots as well as the leachates that form within them. These hotspots are typically circular and smaller than 3 m in size, and they are concentrated within recent waste deposits. Intense electron transfer activities, particularly during redox reactions leading to metal solubilization, result in very low SP values (down to −60 mV), facilitating their detection. Several successive field campaigns suggest that they are active for 2–3 weeks. Due to the low permeability of the soils, highly mineralized leachates (average Electrical Conductivity 45 mS cm−1) rich in organic ions accumulate on the soil surface at the base of the waste windrows. There, they evolve by concentration due to evaporation and oxidation due to slow diffusion of atmospheric O2. Despite the small size of the hotspots generating the leachates, the accumulation of leachates in ponds and the low soil permeability limits the percolation rate, resulting in moderate but permanent groundwater pollution.
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(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Geophysical Methods for Hydrogeology)
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19 pages, 8204 KiB
Open AccessArticle
Performance Study on Brackish Water Desalination Efficiency Based on a Novel Coupled Electrodialysis–Reverse Osmosis (EDRO) System
by
Caixia Fu, Fujun Li, Hui Li and Xuenong Yi
Water 2024, 16(6), 794; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16060794 - 07 Mar 2024
Abstract
Reverse osmosis (RO) is a commonly used desalination technology, but due to high requirements concerning the quality of the feed water, there still exists permeate flux related to the operating conditions, and the solute removal rate is low. Electric fields have a facilitating
[...] Read more.
Reverse osmosis (RO) is a commonly used desalination technology, but due to high requirements concerning the quality of the feed water, there still exists permeate flux related to the operating conditions, and the solute removal rate is low. Electric fields have a facilitating effect on RO desalination performance. Previous studies have focused on investigating the combination of RO and electrodialysis (ED) processes separately, without directly exploiting their interactions. To address this issue, this study proposes a novel coupling device that combines both RO and ED technologies in a single unit and investigates their mutual enhancement effects on brackish water desalination. The results show that the coupled EDRO system can mutually enhance the performance of RO and ED processes. The permeate flux ratio of the RO membrane increased with increasing voltage, reaching a maximum value of 23.7% at a feed concentration of 10,000 mg/L. The solute rejection by the ion-exchange membrane also increased with increasing pressure, reaching a maximum value of 14.95% at the same feed concentration. In addition, the specific energy consumption of the coupled system was also reduced compared to a standalone operation, with maximum reductions of 9.5% and 19.2% for RO and 2.5% and 3.4% for ED at 5000 and 10,000 mg/L feed concentrations, respectively.
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(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Membrane-Based Technology in Water Treatment)
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Water - Properties, Structure, Chemistry | Britannica
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water
Table of Contents
water
Table of Contents
Introduction & Top QuestionsStructure of waterLiquid waterStructures of iceSignificance of the structure of liquid waterBehaviour and propertiesWater at high temperatures and pressuresPhysical propertiesChemical propertiesAcid-base reactionsOxidation-reduction reactions
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Chemistry
Physical properties Water has several important physical properties. Although these properties are familiar because of the omnipresence of water, most of the physical properties of water are quite atypical. Given the low molar mass of its constituent molecules, water has unusually large values of viscosity, surface tension, heat of vaporization, and entropy of vaporization, all of which can be ascribed to the extensive hydrogen bonding interactions present in liquid water. The open structure of ice that allows for maximum hydrogen bonding explains why solid water is less dense than liquid water—a highly unusual situation among common substances.
Selected physical properties of water
molar mass
18.0151 grams per mole
melting point
0.00 °C
boiling point
100.00 °C
maximum density (at 3.98 °C)
1.0000 grams per cubic centimetre
density (25 °C)
0.99701 grams per cubic centimetre
vapour pressure (25 °C)
23.75 torr
heat of fusion (0 °C)
6.010 kilojoules per mole
heat of vaporization (100 °C)
40.65 kilojoules per mole
heat of formation (25 °C)
−285.85 kilojoules per mole
entropy of vaporization (25 °C)
118.8 joules per °C mole
viscosity
0.8903 centipoise
surface tension (25 °C)
71.97 dynes per centimeter
Chemical properties Acid-base reactions Water undergoes various types of chemical reactions. One of the most important chemical properties of water is its ability to behave as both an acid (a proton donor) and a base (a proton acceptor), the characteristic property of amphoteric substances. This behaviour is most clearly seen in the autoionization of water: H2O(l) + H2O(l) ⇌ H3O+(aq) + OH−(aq), where the (l) represents the liquid state, the (aq) indicates that the species are dissolved in water, and the double arrows indicate that the reaction can occur in either direction and an equilibrium condition exists. At 25 °C (77 °F) the concentration of hydrated H+ (i.e., H3O+, known as the hydronium ion) in water is 1.0 × 10−7 M, where M represents moles per litre. Since one OH− ion is produced for each H3O+ ion, the concentration of OH− at 25 °C is also 1.0 × 10−7 M. In water at 25 °C the H3O+ concentration and the OH− concentration must always be 1.0 × 10−14: [H+][OH−] = 1.0 × 10−14, where [H+] represents the concentration of hydrated H+ ions in moles per litre and [OH−] represents the concentration of OH− ions in moles per litre. When an acid (a substance that can produce H+ ions) is dissolved in water, both the acid and the water contribute H+ ions to the solution. This leads to a situation in which the H+ concentration is greater than 1.0 × 10−7 M. Since it must always be true that [H+][OH−] = 1.0 × 10−14 at 25 °C, the [OH−] must be lowered to some value below 1.0 × 10−7. The mechanism for reducing the concentration of OH− involves the reaction H+ + OH− → H2O, which occurs to the extent needed to restore the product of [H+] and [OH−] to 1.0 × 10−14 M. Thus, when an acid is added to water, the resulting solution contains more H+ than OH−; that is, [H+] > [OH−]. Such a solution (in which [H+] > [OH−]) is said to be acidic. The most common method for specifying the acidity of a solution is its pH, which is defined in terms of the hydrogen ion concentration: pH = −log [H+], where the symbol log stands for a base-10 logarithm. In pure water, in which [H+] = 1.0 × 10−7 M, the pH = 7.0. For an acidic solution, the pH is less than 7. When a base (a substance that behaves as a proton acceptor) is dissolved in water, the H+ concentration is decreased so that [OH−] > [H+]. A basic solution is characterized by having a pH > 7. In summary, in aqueous solutions at 25 °C:
Britannica Quiz
Comprehension Quiz: Water Scarcity
neutral solution [H+] = [OH−] pH = 7 acidic solution [H+] > [OH−] pH < 7 basic solution [OH−] > [H+] pH > 7 Oxidation-reduction reactions When an active metal such as sodium is placed in contact with liquid water, a violent exothermic (heat-producing) reaction occurs that releases flaming hydrogen gas. 2Na(s) + 2H2O(l) → 2Na+(aq) + 2OH−(aq) + H2(g) This is an example of an oxidation-reduction reaction, which is a reaction in which electrons are transferred from one atom to another. In this case, electrons are transferred from sodium atoms (forming Na+ ions) to water molecules to produce hydrogen gas and OH− ions. The other alkali metals give similar reactions with water. Less-active metals react slowly with water. For example, iron reacts at a negligible rate with liquid water but reacts much more rapidly with superheated steam to form iron oxide and hydrogen gas. Noble metals, such as gold and silver, do not react with water at all.Steven S. Zumdahl The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Facts About Water | U.S. Geological Survey
Facts About Water | U.S. Geological Survey
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Water Science School
Science
Facts About Water
Completed
By Water Science School
June 8, 2018
Facts About Water
Overview
Science
Yes, of course the most obvious fact about water is that it is wet, at least in the liquid state. But, there are many more facts about water that make it a most fascinating substance, one that all life on and in the Earth depends on.
Earth's Water
Earth's Water
Water Basics by Topic
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Related Science Topics
Water properties
How Much Water is There on Earth?
Where is Earth's Water?
Water properties true/false quiz
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Definitions of water terms
• Water Science School HOME • Water Basics topics • Water Properties topics •
Water numbers
Some of water's physical properties:
Weight: 62.416 pounds/cubic foot at 32°F; 1,000 kilograms/cubic meter
Weight: 61.998 pounds/cubic foot at 100°F; 993 kilograms/cubic meter
Weight: 8.33 pounds/gallon; 1 kilogram/liter
Density: 1 gram/cubic centimeter (cc) at 39.2°F, 0.95865 gram/cc at 212°F
Some water volume comparisons:
1 gallon = 4 quarts = 8 pints = 128 fluid ounces = 3.7854 liters
1 liter = 0.2642 gallons = 1.0568 quart
1 million gallons = 3.069 acre-feet = 133,685.64 cubic feet
Flow rates:
1 cubic foot/second (cfs) = 449 gallons/minute = 0.646 million gallons/day = 1.98 acre-feet/day
Water facts
Sources/Usage: Public Domain. View Media Details
Water is called the "universal solvent" because it dissolves more substances than any other liquid. This means that wherever water goes, either through the ground or through our bodies, it takes along valuable chemicals, minerals, and nutrients.
Pure water has a neutral pH of 7, which is neither acidic (less than 7) nor basic (greater than 7).
The water molecule is highly cohesive — it is very sticky, meaning water molecules stick to each other. Water is the most cohesive among the non-metallic liquids.
Water molecules are also adhesive in that they stick to other surfaces. Both cohesion and adhesion make water molecules very sticky!
Pure water, which you won't ever find in the natural environment, does not conduct electricity. Water becomes a conductor once it starts dissolving substances around it.
Water has a high heat index—it absorbs a lot of heat before it begins to get hot. This is why water is valuable to industries and in your car's radiator as a coolant. The high heat index of water also helps regulate the rate at which air changes temperature, which is why the temperature change between seasons is gradual rather than sudden, especially near the oceans.
Water has a very high surface tension. In other words, water is sticky and elastic, and tends to clump together in drops rather than spread out in a thin film, like rubbing alcohol. Surface tension is responsible for capillary action, which allows water (and its dissolved substances) to move through the roots of plants and through the tiny blood vessels in our bodies.
Air pressure affects the boiling point of water, which is why it takes longer to boil an egg at Denver, Colorado than at the beach. The higher the altitude, the lower the air pressure, the lower the boiling point of water, and thus, the longer time to hard-boil an egg. At sea level water boils at 212°F (100°C), while at 5,000 feet, water boils at 202.9°F (94.9 °C).
Other science topics related to water properties.
link
October 22, 2019
Water Properties Information by Topic
Looking at water, you might think that it's the most simple thing around. Pure water is practically colorless, odorless, and tasteless. But it's not at all simple and plain and it is vital for all life on Earth. Where there is water there is life, and where water is scarce, life has to struggle or just "throw in the towel." Continue on to learn about dozens of water properties.
link
October 22, 2019
Water Properties Information by Topic
Looking at water, you might think that it's the most simple thing around. Pure water is practically colorless, odorless, and tasteless. But it's not at all simple and plain and it is vital for all life on Earth. Where there is water there is life, and where water is scarce, life has to struggle or just "throw in the towel." Continue on to learn about dozens of water properties.
Learn More
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link
October 22, 2019
pH and Water
pH is a measure of how acidic/basic water is. The range goes from 0 to 14, with 7 being neutral. pHs of less than 7 indicate acidity, whereas a pH of greater than 7 indicates a base. The pH of water is a very important measurement concerning water quality.
link
October 22, 2019
pH and Water
pH is a measure of how acidic/basic water is. The range goes from 0 to 14, with 7 being neutral. pHs of less than 7 indicate acidity, whereas a pH of greater than 7 indicates a base. The pH of water is a very important measurement concerning water quality.
Learn More
link
August 1, 2019
Water Properties Questions & Answers
Water is everywhere, from huge oceans to invisible water molecules making up water vapor in the air. Of course you can see and feel the physical properties of water, but there are also many chemical, electrical, and atomic-scale properties of water that affect all life and substances on Earth.
link
August 1, 2019
Water Properties Questions & Answers
Water is everywhere, from huge oceans to invisible water molecules making up water vapor in the air. Of course you can see and feel the physical properties of water, but there are also many chemical, electrical, and atomic-scale properties of water that affect all life and substances on Earth.
Learn More
link
June 6, 2019
Surface Tension and Water
Surface tension in water might be good at performing tricks, such as being able to float a paper clip on its surface, but surface tension performs many more duties that are vitally important to the environment and people. Find out all about surface tension and water here.
link
June 6, 2019
Surface Tension and Water
Surface tension in water might be good at performing tricks, such as being able to float a paper clip on its surface, but surface tension performs many more duties that are vitally important to the environment and people. Find out all about surface tension and water here.
Learn More
link
Teacher's Resources for Water Education
The USGS Water Science School offers many resources to help teach students all about water.
link
Teacher's Resources for Water Education
The USGS Water Science School offers many resources to help teach students all about water.
Learn More
link
August 1, 2018
Water Properties Photo Gallery
Learn about water's properties using pictures.
link
August 1, 2018
Water Properties Photo Gallery
Learn about water's properties using pictures.
Learn More
link
June 9, 2018
Water, the Universal Solvent
We need to take the statement "Water is the universal solvent" with a grain of salt (pun intended). Of course it cannot dissolve everything, but it does dissolve more substances than any other liquid, so the term fits pretty well. Water's solvent properties affect all life on Earth, so water is universally important to all of us.
link
June 9, 2018
Water, the Universal Solvent
We need to take the statement "Water is the universal solvent" with a grain of salt (pun intended). Of course it cannot dissolve everything, but it does dissolve more substances than any other liquid, so the term fits pretty well. Water's solvent properties affect all life on Earth, so water is universally important to all of us.
Learn More
link
June 6, 2018
Conductivity (Electrical Conductance) and Water
Water and electricity don't mix, right? Well actually, pure water is an excellent insulator and does not conduct electricity. The thing is, you won't find any pure water in nature, so don't mix electricity and water. Our Water Science School page will give you all the details.
link
June 6, 2018
Conductivity (Electrical Conductance) and Water
Water and electricity don't mix, right? Well actually, pure water is an excellent insulator and does not conduct electricity. The thing is, you won't find any pure water in nature, so don't mix electricity and water. Our Water Science School page will give you all the details.
Learn More
link
June 6, 2018
Specific Heat Capacity and Water
Water has a high specific heat capacity—it absorbs a lot of heat before it begins to get hot. You may not know how that affects you, but the specific heat of water has a huge role to play in the Earth's climate and helps determine the habitability of many places around the globe.
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Water Science School
link
June 6, 2018
Specific Heat Capacity and Water
Water has a high specific heat capacity—it absorbs a lot of heat before it begins to get hot. You may not know how that affects you, but the specific heat of water has a huge role to play in the Earth's climate and helps determine the habitability of many places around the globe.
Learn More
link
June 5, 2018
Water Density
In practical terms, density is the weight of a substance for a specific volume. The density of water is roughly 1 gram per milliliter but, this changes with temperature or if there are substances dissolved in it. Ice is less dense than liquid water which is why your ice cubes float in your glass. As you might expect, water density is an important water measurement.
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Water Science School
link
June 5, 2018
Water Density
In practical terms, density is the weight of a substance for a specific volume. The density of water is roughly 1 gram per milliliter but, this changes with temperature or if there are substances dissolved in it. Ice is less dense than liquid water which is why your ice cubes float in your glass. As you might expect, water density is an important water measurement.
Learn More
link
June 5, 2018
Capillary Action and Water
Plants and trees couldn't thrive without capillary action. Capillary action helps bring water up into the roots. With the help of adhesion and cohesion, water can work its way all the way up to the branches and leaves. Read on to learn more about how this movement of water takes place.
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Water Science School
link
June 5, 2018
Capillary Action and Water
Plants and trees couldn't thrive without capillary action. Capillary action helps bring water up into the roots. With the help of adhesion and cohesion, water can work its way all the way up to the branches and leaves. Read on to learn more about how this movement of water takes place.
Learn More
link
June 5, 2018
Adhesion and Cohesion of Water
Adhesion and cohesion are important water properties that affects how water works everywhere, from plant leaves to your own body. Just remember... Cohesion : Water is attracted to water, and Adhesion : Water is attracted to other substances.
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Water Science School
link
June 5, 2018
Adhesion and Cohesion of Water
Adhesion and cohesion are important water properties that affects how water works everywhere, from plant leaves to your own body. Just remember... Cohesion : Water is attracted to water, and Adhesion : Water is attracted to other substances.
Learn More
Overview
Yes, of course the most obvious fact about water is that it is wet, at least in the liquid state. But, there are many more facts about water that make it a most fascinating substance, one that all life on and in the Earth depends on.
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• Water Science School HOME • Water Basics topics • Water Properties topics •
Water numbers
Some of water's physical properties:
Weight: 62.416 pounds/cubic foot at 32°F; 1,000 kilograms/cubic meter
Weight: 61.998 pounds/cubic foot at 100°F; 993 kilograms/cubic meter
Weight: 8.33 pounds/gallon; 1 kilogram/liter
Density: 1 gram/cubic centimeter (cc) at 39.2°F, 0.95865 gram/cc at 212°F
Some water volume comparisons:
1 gallon = 4 quarts = 8 pints = 128 fluid ounces = 3.7854 liters
1 liter = 0.2642 gallons = 1.0568 quart
1 million gallons = 3.069 acre-feet = 133,685.64 cubic feet
Flow rates:
1 cubic foot/second (cfs) = 449 gallons/minute = 0.646 million gallons/day = 1.98 acre-feet/day
Water facts
Sources/Usage: Public Domain. View Media Details
Water is called the "universal solvent" because it dissolves more substances than any other liquid. This means that wherever water goes, either through the ground or through our bodies, it takes along valuable chemicals, minerals, and nutrients.
Pure water has a neutral pH of 7, which is neither acidic (less than 7) nor basic (greater than 7).
The water molecule is highly cohesive — it is very sticky, meaning water molecules stick to each other. Water is the most cohesive among the non-metallic liquids.
Water molecules are also adhesive in that they stick to other surfaces. Both cohesion and adhesion make water molecules very sticky!
Pure water, which you won't ever find in the natural environment, does not conduct electricity. Water becomes a conductor once it starts dissolving substances around it.
Water has a high heat index—it absorbs a lot of heat before it begins to get hot. This is why water is valuable to industries and in your car's radiator as a coolant. The high heat index of water also helps regulate the rate at which air changes temperature, which is why the temperature change between seasons is gradual rather than sudden, especially near the oceans.
Water has a very high surface tension. In other words, water is sticky and elastic, and tends to clump together in drops rather than spread out in a thin film, like rubbing alcohol. Surface tension is responsible for capillary action, which allows water (and its dissolved substances) to move through the roots of plants and through the tiny blood vessels in our bodies.
Air pressure affects the boiling point of water, which is why it takes longer to boil an egg at Denver, Colorado than at the beach. The higher the altitude, the lower the air pressure, the lower the boiling point of water, and thus, the longer time to hard-boil an egg. At sea level water boils at 212°F (100°C), while at 5,000 feet, water boils at 202.9°F (94.9 °C).
Science
Other science topics related to water properties.
link
October 22, 2019
Water Properties Information by Topic
Looking at water, you might think that it's the most simple thing around. Pure water is practically colorless, odorless, and tasteless. But it's not at all simple and plain and it is vital for all life on Earth. Where there is water there is life, and where water is scarce, life has to struggle or just "throw in the towel." Continue on to learn about dozens of water properties.
link
October 22, 2019
Water Properties Information by Topic
Looking at water, you might think that it's the most simple thing around. Pure water is practically colorless, odorless, and tasteless. But it's not at all simple and plain and it is vital for all life on Earth. Where there is water there is life, and where water is scarce, life has to struggle or just "throw in the towel." Continue on to learn about dozens of water properties.
Learn More
Label
link
October 22, 2019
pH and Water
pH is a measure of how acidic/basic water is. The range goes from 0 to 14, with 7 being neutral. pHs of less than 7 indicate acidity, whereas a pH of greater than 7 indicates a base. The pH of water is a very important measurement concerning water quality.
link
October 22, 2019
pH and Water
pH is a measure of how acidic/basic water is. The range goes from 0 to 14, with 7 being neutral. pHs of less than 7 indicate acidity, whereas a pH of greater than 7 indicates a base. The pH of water is a very important measurement concerning water quality.
Learn More
link
August 1, 2019
Water Properties Questions & Answers
Water is everywhere, from huge oceans to invisible water molecules making up water vapor in the air. Of course you can see and feel the physical properties of water, but there are also many chemical, electrical, and atomic-scale properties of water that affect all life and substances on Earth.
link
August 1, 2019
Water Properties Questions & Answers
Water is everywhere, from huge oceans to invisible water molecules making up water vapor in the air. Of course you can see and feel the physical properties of water, but there are also many chemical, electrical, and atomic-scale properties of water that affect all life and substances on Earth.
Learn More
link
June 6, 2019
Surface Tension and Water
Surface tension in water might be good at performing tricks, such as being able to float a paper clip on its surface, but surface tension performs many more duties that are vitally important to the environment and people. Find out all about surface tension and water here.
link
June 6, 2019
Surface Tension and Water
Surface tension in water might be good at performing tricks, such as being able to float a paper clip on its surface, but surface tension performs many more duties that are vitally important to the environment and people. Find out all about surface tension and water here.
Learn More
link
Teacher's Resources for Water Education
The USGS Water Science School offers many resources to help teach students all about water.
link
Teacher's Resources for Water Education
The USGS Water Science School offers many resources to help teach students all about water.
Learn More
link
August 1, 2018
Water Properties Photo Gallery
Learn about water's properties using pictures.
link
August 1, 2018
Water Properties Photo Gallery
Learn about water's properties using pictures.
Learn More
link
June 9, 2018
Water, the Universal Solvent
We need to take the statement "Water is the universal solvent" with a grain of salt (pun intended). Of course it cannot dissolve everything, but it does dissolve more substances than any other liquid, so the term fits pretty well. Water's solvent properties affect all life on Earth, so water is universally important to all of us.
link
June 9, 2018
Water, the Universal Solvent
We need to take the statement "Water is the universal solvent" with a grain of salt (pun intended). Of course it cannot dissolve everything, but it does dissolve more substances than any other liquid, so the term fits pretty well. Water's solvent properties affect all life on Earth, so water is universally important to all of us.
Learn More
link
June 6, 2018
Conductivity (Electrical Conductance) and Water
Water and electricity don't mix, right? Well actually, pure water is an excellent insulator and does not conduct electricity. The thing is, you won't find any pure water in nature, so don't mix electricity and water. Our Water Science School page will give you all the details.
link
June 6, 2018
Conductivity (Electrical Conductance) and Water
Water and electricity don't mix, right? Well actually, pure water is an excellent insulator and does not conduct electricity. The thing is, you won't find any pure water in nature, so don't mix electricity and water. Our Water Science School page will give you all the details.
Learn More
link
June 6, 2018
Specific Heat Capacity and Water
Water has a high specific heat capacity—it absorbs a lot of heat before it begins to get hot. You may not know how that affects you, but the specific heat of water has a huge role to play in the Earth's climate and helps determine the habitability of many places around the globe.
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Water Science School
link
June 6, 2018
Specific Heat Capacity and Water
Water has a high specific heat capacity—it absorbs a lot of heat before it begins to get hot. You may not know how that affects you, but the specific heat of water has a huge role to play in the Earth's climate and helps determine the habitability of many places around the globe.
Learn More
link
June 5, 2018
Water Density
In practical terms, density is the weight of a substance for a specific volume. The density of water is roughly 1 gram per milliliter but, this changes with temperature or if there are substances dissolved in it. Ice is less dense than liquid water which is why your ice cubes float in your glass. As you might expect, water density is an important water measurement.
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Water Science School
link
June 5, 2018
Water Density
In practical terms, density is the weight of a substance for a specific volume. The density of water is roughly 1 gram per milliliter but, this changes with temperature or if there are substances dissolved in it. Ice is less dense than liquid water which is why your ice cubes float in your glass. As you might expect, water density is an important water measurement.
Learn More
link
June 5, 2018
Capillary Action and Water
Plants and trees couldn't thrive without capillary action. Capillary action helps bring water up into the roots. With the help of adhesion and cohesion, water can work its way all the way up to the branches and leaves. Read on to learn more about how this movement of water takes place.
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Water Science School
link
June 5, 2018
Capillary Action and Water
Plants and trees couldn't thrive without capillary action. Capillary action helps bring water up into the roots. With the help of adhesion and cohesion, water can work its way all the way up to the branches and leaves. Read on to learn more about how this movement of water takes place.
Learn More
link
June 5, 2018
Adhesion and Cohesion of Water
Adhesion and cohesion are important water properties that affects how water works everywhere, from plant leaves to your own body. Just remember... Cohesion : Water is attracted to water, and Adhesion : Water is attracted to other substances.
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Water Science School
link
June 5, 2018
Adhesion and Cohesion of Water
Adhesion and cohesion are important water properties that affects how water works everywhere, from plant leaves to your own body. Just remember... Cohesion : Water is attracted to water, and Adhesion : Water is attracted to other substances.
Learn More
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Kate Holt/Africa Practice
A girl collects water from a stand pipe in Costa del Sol near Maputo, Mozambique in April 2009
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Credits
Drinking-water
13 September 2023
Key facts
In 2021, over 2 billion people live in water-stressed countries, which is expected to be exacerbated in some regions as result of climate change and population growth (1).
In 2022, globally, at least 1.7 billion people use a drinking water source contaminated with faeces. Microbial contamination of drinking-water as a result of contamination with faeces poses the greatest risk to drinking-water safety.
Safe and sufficient water facilitates the practice of hygiene, which is a key measure to prevent not only diarrhoeal diseases, but acute respiratory infections and numerous neglected tropical diseases.
Microbiologically contaminated drinking water can transmit diseases such as diarrhoea, cholera, dysentery, typhoid and polio and is estimated to cause approximately 505 000 diarrhoeal deaths each year.
In 2022, 73% of the global population (6 billion people) used a safely managed drinking-water service – that is, one located on premises, available when needed, and free from contamination.
OverviewSafe and readily available water is important for public health, whether it is used for drinking, domestic use, food production or recreational purposes. Improved water supply and sanitation, and better management of water resources, can boost countries’ economic growth and can contribute greatly to poverty reduction.In 2010, the UN General Assembly explicitly recognized the human right to water and sanitation. Everyone has the right to sufficient, continuous, safe, acceptable, physically accessible and affordable water for personal and domestic use.Drinking-water servicesSustainable Development Goal target 6.1 calls for universal and equitable access to safe and affordable drinking water. The target is tracked with the indicator of “safely managed drinking water services” – drinking water from an improved water source that is located on premises, available when needed, and free from faecal and priority chemical contamination.In 2022, 6 billion people used safely managed drinking-water services – that is, they used improved water sources located on premises, available when needed, and free from contamination. The remaining 2.2 billion people without safely managed services in 2022 included:1.5 billion people with basic services, meaning an improved water source located within a round trip of 30 minutes;292 million people with limited services, or an improved water source requiring more than 30 minutes to collect water;296 million people taking water from unprotected wells and springs; and115 million people collecting untreated surface water from lakes, ponds, rivers and streams.Sharp geographic, sociocultural and economic inequalities persist, not only between rural and urban areas but also in towns and cities where people living in low-income, informal or illegal settlements usually have less access to improved sources of drinking-water than other residents.Water and health Contaminated water and poor sanitation are linked to transmission of diseases such as cholera, diarrhoea, dysentery, hepatitis A, typhoid and polio. Absent, inadequate, or inappropriately managed water and sanitation services expose individuals to preventable health risks. This is particularly the case in health care facilities where both patients and staff are placed at additional risk of infection and disease when water, sanitation and hygiene services are lacking. Out of every 100 patients in acute-care hospitals, 7 patients in high-income countries (HICs) and 15 patients in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) will acquire at least one health care-associated infection during their hospital stay.Inadequate management of urban, industrial and agricultural wastewater means the drinking-water of hundreds of millions of people is dangerously contaminated or chemically polluted. Natural presence of chemicals, particularly in groundwater, can also be of health significance, including arsenic and fluoride, while other chemicals, such as lead, may be elevated in drinking-water as a result of leaching from water supply components in contact with drinking-water.Some 1 million people are estimated to die each year from diarrhoea as a result of unsafe drinking-water, sanitation and hand hygiene. Yet diarrhoea is largely preventable, and the deaths of 395 000 children aged under 5 years could be avoided each year if these risk factors were addressed. Where water is not readily available, people may decide handwashing is not a priority, thereby adding to the likelihood of diarrhoea and other diseases.Diarrhoea is the most widely known disease linked to contaminated food and water but there are other hazards. In 2021, over 251.4 million people required preventative treatment for schistosomiasis – an acute and chronic disease caused by parasitic worms contracted through exposure to infested water.In many parts of the world, insects that live or breed in water carry and transmit diseases such as dengue fever. Some of these insects, known as vectors, breed in clean, rather than dirty water, and household drinking water containers can serve as breeding grounds. The simple intervention of covering water storage containers can reduce vector breeding and may also reduce faecal contamination of water at the household level.Economic and social effectsWhen water comes from improved and more accessible sources, people spend less time and effort physically collecting it, meaning they can be productive in other ways. This can also result in greater personal safety and reducing musculoskeletal disorders by reducing the need to make long or risky journeys to collect and carry water. Better water sources also mean less expenditure on health, as people are less likely to fall ill and incur medical costs and are better able to remain economically productive.With children particularly at risk from water-related diseases, access to improved sources of water can result in better health, and therefore better school attendance, with positive longer-term consequences for their lives.ChallengesHistorical rates of progress would need to double for the world to achieve universal coverage with basic drinking water services by 2030. To achieve universal safely managed services will require a 6-fold increase. Climate change, increasing water scarcity, population growth, demographic changes and urbanization already pose challenges for water supply systems. Over 2 billion people live in water-stressed countries, which is expected to be exacerbated in some regions as result of climate change and population growth. Re-use of wastewater to recover water, nutrients or energy is becoming an important strategy. Use of wastewater and sludge is widespread globally; however, much is used informally and/or without sufficient treatment and other controls to ensure that human and environmental health is protected. If done appropriately safe use of wastewater and sludge can yield multiple benefits, including increased food production, increased resilience to water and nutrient scarcity and greater circularity in the economy.Options for water sources used for drinking-water and irrigation will continue to evolve, with an increasing reliance on groundwater and alternative sources, including wastewater. Climate change will lead to greater fluctuations in harvested rainwater. Management of all water resources will need to be improved to ensure provision and quality.WHO's responseAs the international authority on public health and water quality, WHO leads global efforts to prevent water-related disease, advising governments on the development of health-based targets and regulations.WHO produces a series of water quality guidelines, including on drinking-water, safe use of wastewater, and recreational water quality. The water quality guidelines are based on managing risks, and since 2004 the Guidelines for drinking-water quality promote the Framework for safe drinking-water. The Framework recommends establishment of health-based targets, the development and implementation of water safety plans by water suppliers to most effectively identify and manage risks from catchment to consumer, and independent surveillance to ensure that water safety plans are effective and health-based targets are being met.The drinking-water guidelines are supported by background publications that provide the technical basis for the Guidelines recommendations. WHO also supports countries to implement the drinking-water quality guidelines through the development of practical guidance materials and provision of direct country support. This includes the development of locally relevant drinking-water quality regulations aligned to the principles in the Guidelines, the development, implementation and auditing of water safety plans and strengthening of surveillance practices.Guidelines for drinking-water qualityWater Safety Plan resourcesDeveloping drinking-water quality regulations and standardsSupporting publications to the Guidelines for drinking-water qualitySince 2014, WHO has been testing household water treatment products against WHO health-based performance criteria through the WHO International Scheme to Evaluate Household Water Treatment Technologies. The aim of the scheme is to ensure that products protect users from the pathogens that cause diarrhoeal disease and to strengthen policy, regulatory and monitoring mechanisms at the national level to support appropriate targeting and consistent and correct use of such products.WHO works closely with UNICEF in a number of areas concerning water and health, including on water, sanitation, and hygiene in health care facilities. In 2015 the two agencies jointly developed WASH FIT (Water and Sanitation for Health Facility Improvement Tool), an adaptation of the water safety plan approach. WASH FIT aims to guide small, primary health care facilities in low- and middle-income settings through a continuous cycle of improvement through assessments, prioritization of risk, and definition of specific, targeted actions. A 2023 report describes practical steps that countries can take to improve water, sanitation and hygiene in health care facilities. ReferencesUN-Water. Summary progress update 2021: SDG 6 – water and sanitation for all. https://www.unwater.org/sites/default/files/app/uploads/2021/12/SDG-6-Summary-Progress-Update-2021_Version-July-2021a.pdf
Related
Guidelines for drinking-water qualityUN-Water Global Analysis and Assessment of Sanitation and Drinking-Water (GLAAS)Progress on household drinking-water, sanitation and hygiene 2000-2022Report: State of the world's drinking-waterTechnical brief: Lead in drinking-waterWater, sanitation, hygiene, waste and electricity services in health care facilities Water safety and quality
News
Women and girls bear brunt of water and sanitation crisis – new UNICEF-WHO report
6 July 2023
Improving access to water, sanitation and hygiene can save 1.4 million lives per year, says new WHO report
28 June 2023
Accelerated action needed to ensure safe drinking-water, sanitation and hygiene for all
14 December 2022
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Below is the article summary. For the full article, see water.
water, Inorganic compound composed of hydrogen and oxygen (H2O), existing in liquid, gas (steam, water vapour), and solid (ice) states. At room temperature, water is a colourless, odourless, tasteless liquid. One of the most abundant compounds, water covers about 75% of Earth’s surface. Life depends on water for virtually every process, its ability to dissolve many other substances being perhaps its most essential quality. Life is believed to have originated in water (the world’s oceans or smaller bodies), and living organisms use aqueous solutions (including blood and digestive juices) as mediums for carrying out biological processes. Because water molecules are asymmetric and therefore electric dipoles, hydrogen bonding between molecules in liquid water and in ice is important in holding them together. Many of water’s complex and anomalous physical and chemical properties (high melting and boiling points, viscosity, surface tension, greater density in liquid than in solid form) arise from this extensive hydrogen bonding. Water undergoes dissociation to the ions H+ (or H3O+) and OH−, particularly in the presence of salts and other solutes; it may act as an acid or as a base. Water occurs bound (as water of hydration) in many salts and minerals. It has myriad industrial uses, including as a suspending agent (papermaking, coal slurrying), solvent, diluting agent, coolant, and source of hydrogen; it is used in filtration, washing, steam generation, hydration of lime and cement, textile processing, sulfur mining, hydrolysis, and hydraulics, as well as in beverages and foods. See also hard water; heavy water.
Thales of Miletus Summary
Thales of Miletus philosopher renowned as one of the legendary Seven Wise Men, or Sophoi, of antiquity. He is remembered primarily for his cosmology based on water as the essence of all matter, with Earth a flat disk floating on a vast sea. The Greek historian Diogenes Laërtius (flourished 3rd
Henry Cavendish Summary
Henry Cavendish was a natural philosopher, the greatest experimental and theoretical English chemist and physicist of his age. Cavendish was distinguished for great accuracy and precision in research into the composition of atmospheric air, the properties of different gases, the synthesis of water,
Antoine Lavoisier Summary
Antoine Lavoisier prominent French chemist and leading figure in the 18th-century chemical revolution who developed an experimentally based theory of the chemical reactivity of oxygen and coauthored the modern system for naming chemical substances. Having also served as a leading financier and
steam Summary
Steam, odourless, invisible gas consisting of vaporized water. It is usually interspersed with minute droplets of water, which gives it a white, cloudy appearance. In nature, steam is produced by the heating of underground water by volcanic processes and is emitted from hot springs, geysers,
water noun - Definition, pictures, pronunciation and usage notes | Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary at OxfordLearnersDictionaries.com
water noun - Definition, pictures, pronunciation and usage notes | Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary at OxfordLearnersDictionaries.com
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Definition of water noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary
water noun /ˈwɔːtə(r)/ /ˈwɔːtər/Idioms
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[uncountable] a liquid without colour, smell or taste that falls as rain, is in lakes, rivers and seas, and is used for drinking, washing, etc. Water is the name given to the chemical compound of oxygen and hydrogen with the chemical symbol H₂O. a glass of waterdrinking waterThere is hot and cold running water (= water supplied by pipes) in all the bedrooms.The refugees are desperate for food, clean water and medical supplies.All chickens need a continuous supply of fresh water to drink.water pollutionwater shortagesconcerns about water qualityThe water (= the supply of water) was turned off for several hours each day during the drought. see also bathwater, holy water, ice water, iced water, lime water, rose water, salt water, seawater, soda water, tap waterExtra ExamplesAlexis filled the sink with soapy water.As the weather heats up, water evaporates.Avoid drinking the tap water when you first arrive in the country.Brown water gushed out of the rusty old tap.Cook the pasta in plenty of boiling salted water.Don't slosh too much water on the floor when you're having a bath.He twisted it to drain the excess water.How do you pump the water up here?I could feel the icy water entering my lungs.She dried off the excess water from her hair.Some fields have areas with standing water.That causes the moss to absorb water.The burst pipe was spurting water everywhere.The farmers draw their irrigation water from the Colorado.The surface water made the road treacherous for drivers.There was water dripping from a hole in the ceiling.They turned the water off for a few hours to do some work on the pipes.Water got into the boat and was sloshing around under our feet.a woman fetching waterareas which are dependent on ground waterhousehold water heatersthe fast-flowing water of the riverthe purest well waterthe region's most important fresh water sourceThey climbed a tree to escape the rising water.The water is now receding after the floods.The water was rising fast.A pesticide that dissolves in water can move with water in the soil.Wash the skin thoroughly with soap and warm water.The site had no electricity or water.They survived for two days without food or water.a water treatment plantThe children were all told to bring a bottle of water.a water bottleA water molecule can be split into hydrogen and oxygen atoms.water vapourthe impact of agriculture on the region's water resources Any excess water is left in the water tank.Trout cannot survive in ponds where water temperatures exceed 75 degrees.She took the teacup and poured the water onto the floor.Topics Drinksa1Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjectiveboilingchilledcold…… of waterdropdrinksip…verb + waterdrinksipgulp…water + verbflowpourrun…water + nounvapour/vaportemperaturepressure…See full entry
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[uncountable] an area of water, especially a lake, river, sea or oceanWe walked down to the water's edge.shallow/deep water in the water It was lovely and cool in the water. She fell into the water.In the lagoon the water was calm. see also backwater, breakwater, deep-water, low water, high water, standing waterExtra ExamplesShe crouched at the water's edge to wash her hands.The boat cut effortlessly through the water.large expanses of open waterSwans glided across the water.Topics Transport by watera1Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjectivedeepshallowclear…water + verbriserecedewater + nounsportsprepositionby waterin the wateron the water…phrasesthe water’s edgeSee full entry
[uncountable] the surface of a mass of water on the water The leaves floated on the water. in the water I could see my reflection in the water. under the water She dived under the water.He disappeared under the water. see also underwaterExtra ExamplesI saw something large floating in the water.An abandoned town lies under the water of the reservoir.The swan landed gracefully on the water.Try to keep your head above the water.Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjectivedeepshallowclear…water + verbriserecedewater + nounsportsprepositionby waterin the wateron the water…phrasesthe water’s edgeSee full entry waters [plural] the water in a particular lake, river, sea or oceanthe grey waters of the River ClydeThis species is found in coastal waters around the Indian Ocean.Extra ExamplesAt last the boat reached safer waters.inland navigable watersthe calm waters of Lake Comothe freezing waters of the Irish Seathe icy waters of the North Atlanticthe shark-infested waters off the coast of FloridaThe ship had drifted into uncharted waters.Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjectivedeepshallowclear…water + verbriserecedewater + nounsportsprepositionby waterin the wateron the water…phrasesthe water’s edgeSee full entry waters [plural] an area of sea or ocean belonging to a particular country in… waters We were still in British waters.fishing in international watersThe submarine had strayed into Russian waters. see also territorial watersOxford Collocations Dictionaryadjectiveterritorialcoastaltropical…prepositionin… waterinto… waterSee full entry waters [plural] murky, uncharted, stormy, dangerous, etc. waters used to describe a situation, usually one that is difficult, dangerous or not familiarThe conversation got into the murky waters of jealousy and relationships.The government has warned of stormy waters ahead.I was going into uncharted waters. Word OriginOld English wæter (noun), wæterian (verb), of Germanic origin; related to Dutch water, German Wasser, from an Indo-European root shared by Russian voda (compare with vodka), also by Latin unda ‘wave’ and Greek hudōr ‘water’.Idioms be in/get into hot water (informal) to be in or get into trouble
blood is thicker than water (saying) family relationships are stronger than any others blow somebody/something out of the water (informal)to destroy somebody/something completely to show that somebody/something is not good by being very much better than it/themI like my old phone, but this new model blows it out of the water. by water (formal) using a boat or shipThey reached Naples by water.Goods were often transported by water in the 19th century. clear blue water (between A and B) a complete difference or division between two people or groupsVoters want to see clear blue water between the main parties.They failed to put clear blue water between themselves and their competitors.
dead in the water a person or plan that is dead in the water has failed and has little hope of succeeding in the futureHis leadership campaign is dead in the water.Topics Difficulty and failurec2 dip a toe in/into something | dip a toe in/into the water (informal) to start doing something very carefully to see if it will be successful or notWe decided to dip a toe in the computer games market.Topics Successc2 a fish out of water a person who feels uncomfortable because they are in an environment that is not familiar (come) hell or high water despite any difficultiesI was determined to go, come hell or high water. in deep water(s) (informal) in trouble or difficultyTopics Difficulty and failurec2
it’s (all) water under the bridge used to say that something happened in the past and is now forgotten or no longer important keep your head above water to deal with a difficult situation, especially one in which you have financial problems, and just manage to surviveI’m not sure how much longer we’ll be able to keep our heads above water. (take to something) like a duck to water (to become used to something) very easily, without any problems or fearsShe has taken to teaching like a duck to water. like water (informal) in large quantitiesHe spends money like water. not hold water (informal) if an argument, an excuse, a theory, etc. does not hold water, you cannot believe itTopics Opinion and argumentc2
pass water (formal) to urinate pour/throw cold water on something to give reasons for not being in favour of something; to criticize somethingShe immediately poured cold water on his plans to expand the business. pour oil on troubled water(s) to try to settle an argumentTopics Discussion and agreementc2 still waters run deep (saying) a person who seems to be quiet or shy may surprise you by knowing a lot or having deep feelings test the waters to find out what the situation is before doing something or making a decision
tread water to keep yourself in the same place in deep water by moving your arms and legs to make no progress while you are waiting for something to happenI decided to tread water until a better job came along. (like) water off a duck’s back (informal) used to say that something, especially criticism, has no effect on somebody/somethingI can't tell my son what to do; it's water off a duck's back with him. somebody’s waters break when a pregnant woman’s waters break, the liquid in her womb passes out of her body just before the baby is bornTopics Life stagesc2 you can lead/take a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink (saying) you can give somebody the opportunity to do something, but you cannot force them to do it if they do not want to See water in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee water in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic EnglishCheck pronunciation:
water
Other results
All matches
water verb
ice water noun
low water noun
tap water noun
water bug noun
water gun noun
water ice noun
water rat noun
deep-water adjective
heavy water noun
high water noun
holy water noun
iced water noun
light water noun
lime water noun
rose water noun
salt water noun
soda water noun
storm water noun
water butt noun
See more
Phrasal verbs
water something down
Idioms
pass water
tread water
dead in the water
in deep water(s)
a fish out of water
blood is thicker than water
keep your head above water
(come) hell or high water
be in/get into hot water
dip a toe in/into the water
pour oil on troubled water(s)
(like) water off a duck’s back
clear blue water (between A and B)
it’s (all) water under the bridge
pour/throw cold water on something
blow somebody/something out of the water
(take to something) like a duck to water
you can lead/take a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink
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Nearby words
The Watchtower
watchword noun
water noun
water verb
The Water-Babies
justification
noun
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