OPERATOR MATH

Areas and Volumes

Flows
Dosage Formula

1
 Area Calculation
• Area measurements defines the size or
surface of an object. Sometimes an
area is described as the X-section
(cross section) of an object.
• U.S. units of area:
1. Square inches = in²
2. Square feet = ft²
3. Square yards = yd²
4. Square mile = mi.²
2
 Area Formulas
• Circle:
Area = (0.7854) x (diameter²)

Area = π or (3.1416) x (radius²)

3
 Problem # 1
Question: Calculate the area of a circle
shown.

5 ft. diameter

4
 Problem # 2
• Question: A circular clarifier has a
diameter of 40 ft. What is the surface area
of the clarifier?

40 ft.

5
 Problem # 3
• The bottom inside of a cylindrical storage
tank needs to be painted. The diameter of
the tank is 30 ft. If 1 gallon will cover 250
square feet, how many gallon of paint will
be needed to paint the bottom of the tank?

30 ft. 6
 Volume Calculation
• Volume measurements define the amount
of space that an object occupies.
• Some U.S. units of Volume:
1. Cubic inches = in³
2. Cubic feet = ft³
3. Cubic yards = yds³
4. Gallons per cu.ft. = 7.48 gals.
5. Cylinder = 0.7854 x (d²) x (3rd dimension)
6. Cylinder = 3.14 x (r²) x (3rd dimension)
7
 Problem # 4
• What is the volume of a tank which has a
diameter of 10 ft. and a height of 12 ft.?
• Hint: (the 3rd dimension is the height of the
tank) 10 ft.

12 ft.

8
 Problem # 5
• What is the volume of a 1 mile long 12
inch diameter pipe?

1 mile

12 in.

9
 Solution to # 5
• Volume = .7854 x (d²) x (3rd dimension)
• Volume = .7854 x 1ft. x 1ft. x 5280ft.
• Volume = 4146.9 ft.³ or 4146.9 cu.ft.
(Problem # 6)
• How many gallons can the pipe describe
in problem # 5 hold if both ends were
sealed?
• Hint: 1 cu.ft. = 7.48 gals.

10
 Problem # 7
• How many gallons of water will a storage
tank hold if it has a 27ft. Diameter and
40ft. Depth? 27 ft.

40 ft.

11
 Problem # 8
• How many gallons water will be required
to fill a 950 ft. long pipe and 18 in.
diameter?

950 ft.

18 in.

12
 CONE

• Calculate the volume of a cone with the dimensions shown on the diagram.
• = Volume of a cone = ⅓ (volume of a cylinder)
• or
• = (0.7854) (D²) (Third dimension)
3
• = (0.7854) (2 ft.) (2 ft.) (3 ft.)
3
• = 3.14 cu. ft.

3 ft.

2 ft. 13
 Problem # 9
• If a spherical tank is 30ft. in diameter, how
many gallons of water are required to fill
it?
• Formula: (3.14) x Diameter³ x 7.48gls/cuft
(6) 30 ft.

14
 Problem # 10
• How many gallons of water can this reservoir
hold if filled?
10ft.

30ft.
35ft.

15
 Solution to # 10
• As you can see you have three distinct shapes.
Cone, cylinder, & hemisphere. In this case the
volumes can be calculated separately, then
added together to the total volume.
• Cone= 0.7854 x D² x H x 7.48 gls/cuft
3
• Cylinder= 0.7854 x D² x H x 7.48 gls/cuft

• Hemisphere= 3.14 6 x D³ x 7.48 gls/cuft

2
16
• Rectangle:

Area = Width x Length

Length

Width

17
 Rectangular Area
• Problem # 11 A
• There is a room which needs carpeting. If
the room measures 25 ft. by 19 ft. how
much carpet is needed to cover the floor?

18
 # 11 B
• If one roll of carpet covers 80 ft.², how
many rolls of carpet are needed?

475 sq. ft.

19
 Problem # 12
• A sedimentation tank is 75 ft. long and 35
ft. wide. What is the surface area of the
water tank?

20
 Rectangular Volume
• Problem # 13
• Calculate the volume of a tank that is 35 ft.
long, 22 ft. wide and 11 ft. deep.
• Volume = L x W x H

21
 Problem # 14
• How many cubic yards of backfill would be required fill a
3,500 ft. trench, which is 4.5 ft. wide and 6 ft. deep?
• (Hint) 27ft.³ per 1cu.yd.

Trench

22
 Problem # 15 A
• How many cubic yards of backfill would be
required to fill a 5,500 ft. trench that is 6 ft. wide
and 8 ft. in depth, after a 36 inch diameter water
main pipe has been laid in the trench at the
same distance?

23
 Circumference of a Circle
• The circumference of a circle is the length
or distance around the edge of the circle.
• Circumference = π or (3.14) x (diameter)
diameter

radius

circumference

24
Circumference of a Circle
Shortcut Calculation

C
π D
25
 Problem # 16
• A circular tank has a diameter of 55 ft.,
what is the circumference of the tank?
• Circ. = 3.14 x diameter
• Circ. =

55ft

26
 Problem # 17
• The circumference of a tank is 325 ft.,
what is the diameter of the tank?
?

325 ft.

27
 Problem # 18
• How many gallons of paint are required to paint the
outside top and the outside of the tank? The tank
circumference is 155 ft. and has a sidewall depth of 25 ft.
• 1 gallon of paint will cover 225 ft.²
• Area of tank top =

• Area of tank side =

• Total area =

• Amount of paint =

28
 Solution to # 18
• Draw it out
? ft.

25 ft

155ft.

29
 Calculating Detention Time (DT)
• Use – detention time is the amount of time that
a fluid stays in a container.
• Units – detention time is expressed in units of
time. The most common are; seconds, minutes,
hours and days.
• Calculations – detention time is to divide the
volume of the container by the flow rate.
• Volume units – are gallons or sometimes cubic
feet.
• Time units – will be whatever units are used to
express the flow; GPM=DT(min),
GPD=DT(days) 30
 Detention Time (DT)
• DT = volume of tank
flow , gals/time
• A chlorine contact chamber holds 5,000 gals. It is desired to
have a contact time (CT) of 30 minutes in the chamber. What is
the maximum flow rate that can pass through this chamber at
this DT?
• DT = Vol. (place the known values in the equation)
flow
• 30 min = 5000 gals. Flow out
gal/min

5000
• Rearrange the equation Flow in gals
• GPM = 5000 gals. or 166.66 gpm
31
30 min
 Detention Time (DT)
• DT = volume of tank
flow , gals/time
• A water storage tank holds 15,000 gals. It is desired to have a
contact time (CT) of 20 minutes in the chamber. What is the
maximum flow rate that can pass through this tank at this DT?
• DT = Vol. (place the known values in the equation)
flow
• 20 min = 15,000 gals.
gal/min Flow out
Rearrange the equation
• GPM = 15,000 gals. or 750 gpm
Flow in
20 min
32
 Detention Time (DT)
• DT = volume of tank
flow rate, gals/time
• Fine the detention time in a 50,000 gal.
reservoir if the flow rate is 100 gpm.
• Convert minute to hours
• DT= 50,000gals. Flow in

100 gal/min Flow out

• DT = 500 min. (convert to hours)

• GPM= 500 min = 8.33 hours
60min/hour 33
 DT # 19

• A water reservoir that is 20ft. Diameter

and a depth of 16ft. needs to be filled up. If
the well is pumping at 200 gpm, how long
will it take to fill in minutes? And convert to
hours.

34
 Chemical Dosage
• One of the more common uses of mathematics
in water treatment practice is chemical dosage
calculation. As a basic or intermediate level
operator, there are generally the following types
of dosage formulas you might need to know:
• Milligrams-per-litre to pounds-per-day
• Milligrams-per-litre to percent
• Feed rate
• Chlorine dosage / demand / residual
• Solution dilution
35
 Milligrams-per-litre to Pounds-per-day
• Continuous feed for water supply
#/day = Q, MGD x dose, mg/L x 8.34 lb/gal
• One-time feed for tank, pipe, well
# = Vol, Mgal x dose, mg/L x 8.34 lb/gal

• Problem # 20:
• The Cl2 dosage rate at a water treatment plant
is 1.5 mg/L. The flow rate is 1.5 MGD. How
many pounds per day of Cl2 are required?
36
 Concentration to Mass
Shortcut Calculations

#/day #
Q Conc 8.34 Vol Conc 8.34

37
 Solution to # 20
• mg/L x MGD x 8.34 lbs./gal. = lbs/day

• Problem # 21:
• A water supply has a flow of 750,000 gal/day. If
sodium hypochlorite with 12% available Cl2 is
used, how many pounds of sodium hypochlorite
is required to maintain a dosage of 3 mg/L?
38
 Problem # 21
• How many pounds of Cl2 are required to
disinfect 3600 ft. long by 10inch diameter C900
pipe if 50 mg/L is required?
• (Hint) Must find the volume of the pipe and then
do the dosage formula.

39
 Problem # 22
• A pump discharges 400gpm. What
chlorine feed rate (pounds-per-day) is
required to provide a dosage of 2.5 mg/L?
• Hint: there’s 1440 min/day

40
 Problem # 23

• How many lbs/day of hypochlorite (70%

available Cl2) are required for disinfection
in a plant where the flow rate is 1.25mgd
and the chlorine dosage is 2.5mg/L?
• Hint: convert % to decimal; always move
two places to the left.

41
 LMI Calculating Required Output
• Set-up & Installation
Desired (mg/L) X GPM (Max Flow of Well Pump)
X .006 (Constance Convert to GPH)
% Concentration of Chemical (Use % Whole Number)

= Required Pump Output in GPH

• Calculating output %
Required Pump Output
Maximum Output of Pump
= % Output Required from Pump

• Calculating % Speed & % Stoke

(Square Root)
% Output Required from Pump

= % Speed & % Stroke 42

 Diaphragm Chemical Pump Calculation
• Well submersible pump is pumping at 100
gpm (max flow) and is using 10% sodium
hypochlorite for disinfection. The desired Cl2
residual dosage is 0.5 mg/L, the max output
is 0.42 GPH. What is the pump stoke and
speed setting?

43
 Diaphragm Chem. Pump Calculation
• Well submersible pump is pumping at 225
gpm (max flow) and is using 12% sodium
hypochlorite for disinfection. The desire Cl2
residual dosage is 0.5 mg/L, the max output
is 1.0 GPH. What is the pump stoke and
speed setting?

44
 Mg/L to Percent
• A concentration or dosage expressed as mg/L
can also be expressed as %(decimal). Mg/L are
approximately equal to ppm, and % means
parts per hundred.
• Mg/L = ppm = parts 1,000,000
• % = parts per hundred = parts 100
• Because 1,000,000 100 = 10,000, converting
from ppm (or mg/L) to % (decimal) is
accomplished by dividing by 10,000.
10,000
percent ppm or mg/L
45
 Problem # 24, 25 & 26
• A chemical is to be dosed at 25mg/L. Express
the dosage as %.

• Express 120 ppm as %.

• HTH used for disinfection has concentration of

65%. Express the concentration as mg/L. Be
careful with this one!

46
 Percent Strength
1. The percent strength of a solution can be expressed as percent-by
weight.
2. % strength (by Wt.) = Wt. of Solute X 100%
Wt. of Solution
 Solute = Wt. of Chemical
 Solution = the combined Wt. of Solute and Solvent

• If 25 lbs. of chemical is added to 400 lbs. of water, what is the

percent strength of the solution by weight?
• Wt. of Solution = Wt. of Solute + Wt. of Solvent
• = 25 lbs. + 400 lbs.
• = 425 lbs.

47
 Percent Strength
• % Strength (by Wt.) = Wt. of Solute X 100%
Wt. of Solution

= 25 lbs. X 100%
425 lbs.

= 0.059 X 100%

= 5.9 %

48
48
 Percent Strength
• If 40 lbs. chemical is added to 120 gals. of water, what is the percent
strength of the solution by weight?
1. % strength (by Wt.) = Wt. of Solute X 100%
Wt. of Solution
 Solute = Wt. of Chemical
 Solution = the combined Wt. of Solute and Solvent
 Convert 120 gals. of water to pounds of water.
 (120 lbs.) (8.334lbs/gal) = 1001 lbs.

 Wt. of Solution = Wt. of Solute + Wt. of Solvent

 = 40 lbs. + 1001lbs.
 = 1041 lbs.

49
 Percent Strength
• % Strength (by Wt.) = Wt. of Solute X 100%
Wt. of Solution

= 40 lbs. X 100%
1001 lbs.

= 0.038 X 100%

= 3.8 %

50
 Feed Rate Conversion
• gal/hr to gal/day
• gal/hr to lbs/day
• lbs/hr to lbs/day
• lbs/hr to lbs/day
24
Gal/hr Gal/day

Density of
Density of chemical
chemical in lbs/gal
in lbs/day
24

Lbs/hr Lbs/day
51
 Problems # 27, 28
• #27- The feed rate for a chemical is 230
lbs/day. What is the feed rate expressed in
lbs/hr?

• #28- A chemical has a density of 11.58

lbs/gal. The desired feed rate for the
chemical is 0.6 gal/hr. How many lbs/day is
this?

52
 Solution to #27 & 28
• #27- multiply #/day by day/24 hr

• #28- converting from gal/hr to lbs/day, you are

moving from a smaller box to a larger box and
then to a still larger box. Therefore,
multiplication by the density of the chemical and
24 is indicated.
• 0.6gal/hr x (density of chemical, lbs/gal) x 24 = lb/day

53
Chlorine Dosage/Demand/Residual
• The Cl2 requirement or Cl2 dosage is the sum of
the Cl2 demand and the desired Cl2 residual.

• dosage (mg/L) = demand (mg/L) + residual (mg/L)

• Problem # 29
• A sample of water is tested and found to have a Cl2
demand of 6mg/L.The desired Cl2 residual is 0.2mg/L.
How many pounds of Cl2 will be required daily to
chlorinate a flow of 2.5mgd?
54
 Problem # 30
• The Cl2 demand of a water sample is
5.5mg/L. A Cl2 residual of 0.3mg/L is
desired. How many pounds of Cl2 will be
required daily for a flow of 3.5mgd?

55
 Flow Rates
• Flow is express in;
• Gallons per minute (gpm)
• Cubic feet per second (cfs)
• Gallons per day (gpd)
• Million gallons per day (mgd)
• Conversion;
• 1 cfs = 448 gpm
• 1 gpm = 1440 gpd
• mgd = gpd 1,000,000
56
 Flow Rates
• Flow in a pipeline, channel or stream at a
particular moment depends on the cross-
sectional area and the velocity of water moving
through it & is found using the equation:
• Q=AxV
• Q = flow rate, cu.ft. per time; sec, min, hour
• A = area, in square feet
• V = velocity, feet per time; sec, min, hours
• If a circular pipe is flowing full (most situations)
the resulting flow rate is expressed as
• cuft/time = 0.7854 x D²(ft²) x ft/time 57
 Problem # 31
• Find the flow in cfs in a 6 inch pipe, if the
velocity is 2 feet per second.
• Don’t forget to convert inches to feet
• Also find the cross sectional area of the pipe

6in.
58
 Problem # 32
• A channel is 3 ft. deep with water flowing at a
depth of 2 ft. The velocity in the channel is
found to be 1.8 fps. What is the cubic feet per
second flow rate in the channel?

1.8 fps

2 ft

3 ft 59
 Problem # 33
• A 15 in. diameter pipe is flowing full. What is the
gallons per minute flow rate in the pipe if the
velocity is 110 fps?

15in
60
 Problem # 34
• What is the MGD flow rate through a channel
that is 3 ft. wide with the water flowing at a
depth of 16 in. at a velocity of 2 fps?

16 in

2 fps 3 ft

61
 Problem # 35
• a.) change 212 F to C
• b.) change 70 F to C
• c.) change 140 F to C
• d.) change 20 C to F
• e.) change 85 C to F
• f.) change 4 C to F

62
 Pressure & Head Calculation
• Pressure is the weight per unit area
• Pounds per square inch, lbs/in²
• Pounds per square foot, lbs/ft²
• Pressure on the bottom of a container is not
related to the volume of the container, nor the
size of the bottom.
• Pressure is dependant on the height of the fluid
in the container.
• The height of the fluid in a container is referred
to as Head. Head is a direct measurement in
feet & directly related to pressure. 63
Relationship between Feet & Head
• Weight of Water is 62.4 pounds per cu.ft.
• 7.48 gal/cuft x 8.34 lbs/gal = 62.4 lbs/cuft

1 ft 1cuft

1 ft 1 ft.

64
 Pressure & Head
• Imagine a cube of water 1ft x 1ft x 1ft. Then, the
surface area of any one side of the cube will contain
144 in.² (12in x 12in = 144 in²). The cube will also
contain 144 columns of water one foot tall & one inch
square.
1in
Weight = 62.4lbs/144in² 1in
= 0.433lbs/in² or
= 0.433 psi

Therefore, 1 Feet of head 12in

= 1ft 0.433psi
= 2.31 ft/psi

So, 1ft = 0.433 psi, and

65
1psi = 2.31 feet
 Problem # 36
• Convert 40 psi to feet of head
• 40 psi 0.433 psi/ft = 92.37 feet of head
• 40 psi x 2.31 feet/psi = 92.4 feet

66
 Problem # 37, a, b & c
• Convert a pressure of 45 psi to feet of head

• Convert 12 psi to feet

• Convert 85 psi to feet

67
 Problem # 38
• It is 112 feet in elevation between the top
of the reservoir and the watering point.
What will the static pressure (psi) be at the
watering point?

68
 Problem # 39
• A reservoir is 20 feet deep. What will the
pressure be at the bottom of the reservoir?

69
 Static Head
• In a system where the reservoir feeding the pump is
higher than the pump, the difference in elevation
between the pump centerline and the free water
surface of the reservoir feeding the pump is called?
Static discharge head

Reservoir
2

Total static
head

Reservoir
1 (Static suction head)

Pump CL
70
 Static head
• Static Discharge Head is defined as the
difference in height between the pump
centerline and the level of the free water
surface on the discharge side of the pump.
• Total Static Head is the total height that
the pump must lift the water when moving
it from reservoir #1 to reservoir #2.

71
 Static Head
• In a system where the reservoir feeding the pump is
lower than the pump, the difference in elevation
between the centerline and the free water surface of
the reservoir feeding the pump is called?

Total static head #2

Static discharge head
Static suction
lift

Pump CL

#1 72
 Problem # 40
• Locate, label and calculate (in feet):
• Static suction head
• Static discharge head
• Total static head
( )

927 ft. Reservoir

2

( )

742 ft.
Reservoir
1 ( )

722 ft. Pump CL

73