Chemistry of Swimming

PoolsNatalie Miller

http://athaudaseneviratne.com/future-plans/swimming-pool-development-project/

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq0wilHW11s

http://www.poolservicemi.com/maintenance/water-chemistry/

Health and Safety

• Chemical balances are critical to the sanitation of swimming pools.

– Dangerous to swimmers

– Cause damage to pool equipment

Health and Safety

• Monitoring the chemicals is very important.

– Chlorine and pH levels

• Hypochlorous acid (HClO) is the “active chemical” used in pool water (Baxter 1).

http://www.spectralightuv.com/pool-sanitation.html

Chemical Balances

HClO <=====> H+ + ClO–.

• pH range is 7.2-7.8 (Reiff 1).

• Low pH level:

– HClO concentration is too high

• High pH level:

– HClO concentration is too low

Chemical Balances

HClO <=====> H+ + ClO–.

• pH level is low:

– Too much HClO leads to compoundsthat are harmful to swimmers.

– Can cause damage to the equipment used for swimming pools.

(Baxter 1)

Chemical Balances

HClO <=====> H+ + ClO–.

• pH level is high:

– Low concentration of HClO means the chemical isn’t affective.

– HClO no longer kills the microbes.

(Baxter 1)

Works Cited:

Baxter, Roberta. "Swimming Pools." ChemMatters: 10-12. Print.

http://www.acs.org/content/dam/acsorg/education/resources/highschool/chemmatters/gc-swimming-pools.pdf

Reiff, Fred. "Understanding Swimming Pool Chemistry." Healthy Pools Mean Healthy Swimming. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2014.

<http://www.healthypools.org/ 2011/understanding-swimming-pool-chemistry>.

EPA. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2014.

http://www.epa.gov/kidshometour/products/