Outcomes
At the completion of this course, the student will be able to:
1) Realize the origins of water contaminants
2) Understand the relationship between the atomic structure of a water 
contaminant and its behavior
3) Apply common methods of measurement for characterizing a water source
4) Use the Periodic Table to predict contaminant behavior
5) Understand the unique characteristics of water as they relate to 
contaminant behavior
6) Correctly use and convert concentrations commonly used in water treatment
7) Recognize how pH and alkalinity affect the characteristics of a water 
source
8) Understand how chemical oxidation and reduction apply to water treatment
9) Identify operational variables that affect reverse osmosis (RO) membrane 
performance
10) Recognize the relative advantages of the common RO membrane types

Topics
Origin of Water Contaminants, Suspended Solids/Particles, Coagulation, The 
Atom, Electron Stability, Periodic Table, Atomic Number and Atomic 
Weight/Mass, The Water Molecule, When Salts Dissolve Into Ions, The Mole, 
Concentrations, Total Suspended Solids and Total Dissolved Solids, pH and 
Water Dissociation, Alkalinity, Chlorine and Chloramine, Filtration, 
RO/Nanofiltration (NF) Pore Theory and Ion Hydration, RO/NF Diffusion, 
Crossflow, Boundary Layer, Filter Fouling & Pressure Drop, Semipermeable 
Membrane, Reverse Osmosis & Net Driving Pressure, Cellulose Acetate & 
Polyamide Thin-Film Membrane