Water Filtration Project

For this action project I had to create a water filtration system similar to a groundwater filtration system. I learned that creating a filter is difficult but this is a similar way of how we get our everyday drinking water. I am proud of how great my water came out after the whole process of filtering it. The picture shows the water filters layers and what materials need to go inside in order for the water to get filtered.

AK (2013)

                                                      

For this project, we had to build water filters to clean dirty water. The water source I used was rain water mixed with mud. The materials I used were cotton balls,grass., sand, and soil .The process I did for this project was , I  cut a empty 1 liter bottle in toward the rim at the bottom for the objects to go inside, then  I added five cotton balls so it would secure the dirt debris from entering the potential clean water. Next I added two handfuls of grass, then another two handfuls of sand and two handfuls of soil. And finally, a layer of grass and then two handfuls of cotton balls..  (Please see my photo for reference.)   Next I Pour a cup of dirty water over the top of the filter layers.  Using gravity, filter the water through the open cap end.  Finally, test the water using a piece of pH paper.  In this case, I measured pH to be 3. This means that the water is acidic because it is below 7.

It took about 5 minutes for the unfiltered water to pour through the bottle. After the majority of the water went into the empty bottle it was clear and had no debris floating around.  When I added carbon to my filtered water, my water came out even clearer! After completing those steps, I then put my water on the stove to boil. After boiling and cooling the water, I then tested the pH level of my water again, which came out as a 7.1.  A pH of around 7 means that the water is neutral. I then found the range of my pH by subtracting the lower pH from the higher pH, giving me a difference of 4.  The difference means that my pH became 10^4 times (100,000) more basic.  It also means that my pH increased in alkalinity or hydroxyl ions.  Although I did not drink the water, my brother did and said it tasted “normal”

In conclusion, my water filter came out to be a success! I never would have thought that a filter involving grass,sand, soil, and cotton would turn out to purify non-drinkable water. This action project wanted us to test our ability to build a water purifier that is similar to groundwater filters.It is similar to groundwater filters because the actual project we did to creat this filter is similar to how ground water is filltered. It is also different because groundwater is a cleaner/easier process than actually building a filter I enjoyed this experiment, because it challenged me to think about pH in a different way.