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Deionized Water Requirements for Environmental Laboratories

Deionized water is a common solvent in many biological, physical and environmental laboratories throughout universities and government organizations. Deionized water is favored over regular tap water by its purity level. When conducting environmental experiments, certain water requirements must be met before an experiment can be carried out.

  1. Electrical Conductivity

    • Water is a natural electrical conductor of electricity. This trait can lead to potentially harmful effects if not addressed in the laboratory. One example of the harmful effect that water can cause is electrocution Deionized water in environmental laboratories is required to undergo processes that change the water's conductivity to the lowest it can possibly go.

    Organisms and Microbes

    • Many organisms and microbes live in drinking water. These tiny organisms can offset the chemical results obtained when conducting tests on organisms present in soil concentration or conducting environmental tests. One of the main requirements of environmental laboratory water solvents is to test for these organisms and get rid of them. The deionized water would go through many filtration processes to ensure that the water being used in experiments is free from organisms and microbes.

    Chemicals

    • Fluoride, carbon dioxide and calcium are just a few of the chemicals found in water. Tap water goes through a process to become clean and safe for drinking. This is fine for household use; however, when water is being used in environmental laboratories settings, it must processed to get rid of chemicals that can react with other compounds and chemicals used for experiments. Deionized water in environmental laboratories is required to undergo tests to make sure that no compounds or ions are present in the water. By testing the deionized water and making sure it's free from ions and chemicals, it ensures that the solvent can be used for accuracy and precision in the experiments.

    Acidity

    • In environmental laboratories, the acidity of compound can greatly affect the experiment being conducted. The acidity of the water in these laboratories must be neutral to not react with the compound and other solutes. Usually the acidity of water is neutral, however other ions and minerals present in the natural tap water can decrease or increase its acidity. One testing requirement carried out by environmental laboratories is to test the pH of the deionized water. A pH of 7, also known as neutral pH, is required of water being used in environmental laboratories.

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