Identication of Contaminants In Water

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The discussion focuses on identifying contaminants in water samples, specifically ammonium at a concentration of approximately 430 mg/L, and potentially phosphate or sulfate as additional contaminants. The user has ruled out calcium, chloride, and nitrate as contaminants and is seeking a method to test for sulfate ions, given the limitations of high school testing equipment. A suggested method is the precipitation of barium sulfate, which can indicate the presence of sulfate and also allow for quantitative analysis through gravimetric methods. The user is looking for practical procedures to implement this testing effectively. Overall, the conversation highlights the challenges of contaminant identification in water with limited resources.
Grove1996
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The purpose:
Basically I've been given a pre-contaminated sample of water, as well as a post-contaminated sample of water. I have to determine what the water is contaminated with, and the concentration of the contaminants present in the water.

My Problem:
I have determined one contaminant that is present in the water, and this is ammonium with a reading of approximately 430 mg/L. However, it's not just ammonium by itself, there are other contaminants present. I've tested for a few things (calcium/chloride/nitrate) and all is fine. I'm limiting it down to phosphate or sulfate. The pH of the water is 8, and I know that ammonium in water creates a more basic solution. So whatever the other contaminant is, I'm assuming there is not much of it. Since I'm in high school the testing equipment I can use is very limited. I can test for phosphate but I am yet to find a procedure I can use to test for sulfate ions.

Does anyone know a procedure I could use to determine the amount of sulfate ions present in a given sample of water. I've searched long and hard and unable to find anything I can do with the equipment I have at school.

Thankyou
 
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The most obvious approach is the precipitation of barium sulfate.
 
Borek said:
The most obvious approach is the precipitation of barium sulfate.

I've research this a little bit. From my understanding it only can determine whether there is sulfate present in the water sample, but not the concentration.
 
No, it can be used for quantitative analysis as well, this is one of the most basic gravimetric methods.
 

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