What is fluoride? Fluoride (F-) is the anion, the reduced form of fluorine, one of the halogens (as chlorine) on the periodic table. Inorganic compounds, such as sodium fluoride (NaF) containing fluorine are referred to as fluorides. Where is fluoride found? Fluoride is a natural mineral occurring in most water sources and is also one [...]
Category Archives: Publications
Many of our rivers and dams in South Africa have become eutrophic. While travelling through the countryside we often see dams with an unnatural green colour. According to a well-known water scientist, Prof Anthony Turton, South Africa’s water quality is the biggest challenge and not our water quantity, although the water shortage is a serious [...]
Acid mine drainage has become a serious problem and a major water and environmental contaminator in South Africa and, in fact, the world. What is acid mine drainage (AMD)? Acid rock drainage may occur naturally in certain areas due to rock weathering but is exacerbated by large-scale earth disturbances associated with mining activities. Acid mine drainage [...]
To understand the process of reverse osmosis it is important to know what osmosis is. The process of osmosis was first described by the French physiologist Rene Dutrochet (1776-1847). Osmosis is the net movement of water molecules across a selectively permeable membrane driven by a difference in solute concentrations on the two sides of a [...]
What is hard water? Water is hard if soap does not want to foam or froth when used. Hardness is mainly caused by the divalent cations of calcium (Ca2+) and magnesium (Mg2+) present in water. Iron also contributes to water hardness. All water sources contain calcium and magnesium in various concentrations and hard water usually [...]
Why must chlorine be removed from drinking water? What is chlorine? Chlorine is a chemical element with symbol Cl. It is a pale-green poisonous gas and is one of the halogens found in group seven of the Periodic Table. The Swedish chemist Carl Wilhelm Scheele discovered chlorine in 1774, but it was Sir Humphrey Davy [...]
Minerals 1. Misleading claims There are many misconceptions regarding water with a low mineral content. Certain companies bottling mineral water or selling filter systems are exploiting this lack of knowledge for their own benefit. Uninformed people are easily bluffed by reading the mineral content on a bottled water label. People often think that minerals in [...]
In the last century over 70 000 new manmade chemicals were synthesised and released into our environment without proper and adequate testing. Recent studies and laboratory experiments within the science of endocrine disruption have revealed the frightening extent of the impact that many of these chemicals have on our health and environment when they disrupt […]