Grains per Gallon
Encyclopedia
Grain per gallon is a unit of water hardness defined as 1 grain (64.8 milligrams) of calcium carbonate
Calcium carbonate
Calcium carbonate is a chemical compound with the formula CaCO3. It is a common substance found in rocks in all parts of the world, and is the main component of shells of marine organisms, snails, coal balls, pearls, and eggshells. Calcium carbonate is the active ingredient in agricultural lime,...

 dissolved in 1 US gallon of water (3.785412 L
Litre
pic|200px|right|thumb|One litre is equivalent to this cubeEach side is 10 cm1 litre water = 1 kilogram water The litre is a metric system unit of volume equal to 1 cubic decimetre , to 1,000 cubic centimetres , and to 1/1,000 cubic metre...

). It translates into 1 part in about 58,000 parts of water or 17.1 parts per million (ppm). Also called Clark degree (in terms of an imperial gallon
Gallon
The gallon is a measure of volume. Historically it has had many different definitions, but there are three definitions in current use: the imperial gallon which is used in the United Kingdom and semi-officially within Canada, the United States liquid gallon and the lesser used United States dry...

).

Usage

Calcium
Calcium
Calcium is the chemical element with the symbol Ca and atomic number 20. It has an atomic mass of 40.078 amu. Calcium is a soft gray alkaline earth metal, and is the fifth-most-abundant element by mass in the Earth's crust...

 and magnesium
Magnesium
Magnesium is a chemical element with the symbol Mg, atomic number 12, and common oxidation number +2. It is an alkaline earth metal and the eighth most abundant element in the Earth's crust and ninth in the known universe as a whole...

 ions present as sulfates, chlorides, carbonates and bicarbonates cause water to be hard. Water chemists measure water impurities in parts per million (ppm). For understandability, hardness ordinarily is expressed in grains of hardness per gallon of water (gpg). The two systems can be converted mathematically.

Measurement of water hardness

  • Very soft: 0–4.08 gpg
  • Soft: 4.08–8.18 gpg
  • Slightly hard: 8.18–12.27 gpg
  • Moderately hard: 12.27–18.69 gpg
  • Hard
    Hard water
    Hard water is water that has high mineral content . Hard water has high concentrations of Ca2+ and Mg2+ ions. Hard water is generally not harmful to one's health but can pose serious problems in industrial settings, where water hardness is monitored to avoid costly breakdowns in boilers, cooling...

    : 18.69–30.96 gpg
  • Very hard: over 30.96 gpg

Converisons

  • 1 gpg = 0.017118061 kg/m3
  • 142.86 gpg = 1 pounds per million gallons
  • 1 gpg = 0.01714 grams per litre
  • 1 Clark degree = 1.2009 gpg
  • 1 dGH = 1.042645169
The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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