The objective of diluting the copper waste is to examine the process of dilution as a method for disposal of toxic wase and to develop a sensitive test for the presence of copper ions.
Procedure
Successive dilution involves diluting 50,000 ppm CuCl2 to 5 ppm. This is done by first mixing 1 liter of 50,000 ppm CuCl2 with 9 liters of water. This results in10 liters of 5,000 ppm CuCl2. The ten liters is then mixed with 90 liters of water. This mixture results in a CuCl2 solution of 100 liters at 500 ppm. The 100 liters of 500 ppm is added to 900 liters of water, resulting in 1,000 liters of 50 ppm. Finally, 9,000 liters of water are added to the 1,000 liters of 50 ppm. This mixture produces the government-required value of 5 ppm CuCl2. At this level, the 10,000 liters of water and 5 ppm Copper (II) Chloride can be dumped into the river.
Conclusions
While diluting is a successful means of ridding ourselves of the toxic waste, it would be unwise to put so much effort into diluting 400 liters per month when this labor could be spent producing a better computer chip. For this reason, and because dumping even a 5 ppm solution of CuCl2 could be viewed as pollution, this method was rejected by the engineers of Magnified Plaid, Inc. in order to provide a more environmentally friendly and cost effective means of disposing of our waste.
Approximate Cost Per Month
The approximate cost per month is $5,282.91 for 3,999,600 liters with water priced at .5 cents per gallon. An initial cost of $73,160 is required to purchase 6 �2,000 liter tanks,� 1 �400 gallon tank,� 1 �ten gallon tank,� 9 �three way valves,� 8 �mixing apparatuses,� and 3 �pipe (1,000 ft).�
Advantages and Disadvantages
The advantages of diluting the Copper (II) Chloride are that it safely lowers concentration from 50,000 ppm to 5 ppm. Another advantage is that little manpower is required to carry out the dilution procedure. The mixing apparatuses do all the work. Disadvantages include a large initial cost of $73,160 for holding tanks, piping, valves, and mixing apparatuses. Only one liter of waste can be diluted at a time. With 20 liters being produced per day, it takes ten hours with 2 liters every hour to dilute all the waste. It also costs $5,282.91 per month to import city water, or a government permit, to obtain water for dilution. On top of all the costs, if we dumped the diluted waste into the river, even though it is at a safe amount, uniformed citizens of Jackdaw Falls may think we are polluting their river.