Total solids are referred to as all solid matter either suspended or dissolved in water. Drinking water should have no more than .5 grams of total solids per liter and less than 50% Q-value. Drinking water with high concentrations tends to have an unpleasant taste and may induce health problems. High levels may also affect aquatic plants and animals, depending on what the solids are.

Procedures:

1. Obtain a 100-mL sample of water from the river.

2. Obtain three 250-mL beakers.

3. Measure the mass of the three beakers before pouring the water into the beaker.

4. Pour the water sample from the bottle into all three 250-mL beakers

5. Place the beakers with the water sample on a hot plate.

6. Make sure all the water has evaporated before taking the beaker off the hot plates.

7. Measure the mass of the beakers, with the residue still in it, once all water has been evaporated.

8. Once you have the masses recorded, take the mass of the beakers and subtract it from the mass of the beakers containing the residue.

9. Record the mass of the total solids in each beaker.