Application of Dynamic Light Scattering for Assessing the Content of Large Colloidal and Suspended Particles in River Waters
摘要
The scattering intensity value determined by the dynamic light scattering (DLS) method is proportional to the mass concentration of polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) particles in deionized water suspensions containing 1–100 mg/L of particles with a size of 0.08–2.0 μm. This study result provides grounds for using the DLS intensity to assess the content of large colloids and submicron particles in river waters. A direct relationship between the DLS intensity and the content of suspended matter in rivers of up to 100 mg/L determined by gravity analysis confirms this possibility. A significant correlation between the DLS intensity in filtrates and the concentration of Fe, Al, Ti, Th, and REEs in them, prone to migration in the coarse colloidal forms, is one more proof of the dependence of the filtrate DLS intensity on the content of large colloids. Hence, it is possible to characterize the initial concentration of large colloids and their losses during filter clogging, as well as to assess the role of large colloids in the balance of chemical elements in river waters from the DLS intensity.