1.

Introduction
Total Suspended Solids (TSS) are solids that can be filtered. It may be silt, decaying materials, animal
matters, and so on. High concentration of suspended solids block light from penetrating into the water thus
inhibiting photosynthesis. This leads to decrease in dissolved oxygen and then suffocation of organisms. It
also promotes increase in temperature because of the higher heat absorbance of solids. Lastly, fishes may
ingest toxic amounts of these solids leading to their death. Total Dissolved Solids (TDS), on the other hand,
are solids that can pass through filters. These include products of ions such as carbonates, chlorides, and
nitrates. Excessive amounts also reduce water quality and increase in water temperature.
2. Materials and method
The following materials and equipment were used for this the measurement of total suspended solids
and other solids.
 Imhoff cone
 Stirrer
 Analytical balance
 Beaker or other container for residues
 Filter paper
 Büchner funnel
 Filtering apparatus
 Dessicator
Thoroughly mix the sample and take a 1-liter volume for analysis. Place a clean filter paper in an oven
and dry at 103 – 105 °C for 5 minutes. Cool then weigh the empty filter paper. Place on a Büchner funnel
and arrange in the filtering apparatus. Pour the sample slowly in the funnel and turn on the filter pump.
Slowly add the sample until filtration is complete. Dry for an hour in the oven, remove, cool in a dessicator
and weigh. The increase in weight represents the TSS in the sample.
If large floating particles or floating agglomerates are present, remove these materials before filtering.
If the amount of residue is estimated to be more that 200 mg, adjust the amount of sample for filtration.
Excessive residue may form a water-entrapping crust. You can wash the filter with deionized water or tap
water to ensure that no water or air are trapped between the solids.

3. Results and discussion

a. Total suspended solids

Total suspended solid (TSS) test on samples’ water quality taken from navigable rivers at Eramen
Minerals Inc. could be measured using the dry-weight suspended particles which includes all dissolved and
non-dissolved organic and inorganic solids. For class C water quality, the standard TSS value is 100 ppm
pursuant to DENR Administrative Order 2016-08.
A high TSS value is often an indication of unhealthy water which poses threat to river health and aquatic
life. This happens for the fact that fine particulate matter blocks sunlight from reaching submerged
vegetation which then slows down photosynthesis.
 Results of TSS parameter test are shown in Fig. 1. TSS values of 132 to 237 ppm in all sampling stations
do not meet the standard TSS values for class C water quality. It is undesirable because this means that all
sampling stations have high concentration of bacteria, nutrients, and even metal accumulations in the water.
Different aspects are viewed to explain why the samples are turbid. The main reason for this could be
due to road constructed in the area where the land surface gets disturbed. The eroded soil particles might
have been brought to the river during rain and storm. Further, the decay of plants and animals can add to
the suspended organic particles.

250

200
TSS, ppm

150

237
100 191 184 186 177
162
132
50

0
A B C D E F G
Sampling Stations

Fig. 1. Total suspended solid concentration results in different sampling stations