The expression "1 ppm" means a given solute exists at a concentration of one part per million parts of

the solution. These are two common ways to think about what the concentration "1 ppm" means:

a) it is one-millionth of a gram per gram of sample solution.

b) it is one gram of solute per million grams of sample solution.

Notice that the more general word 'part' is used above, but 'gram' is used in (a) and (b) just above. This is
because 'gram' is used almost exclusively when parts per million is used.

The best way to explain this is by doing some examples:

Problem #1: Sea water contains 3.90 x 10¯6 ppm of dissolved gold. What volume of this sea water would
contain 1.00 g of gold?

Solution:

1) 3.90 x 10¯6 ppm means this:

3.90 x 10¯6 g of Au per 1.00 gram of seawater

2) We use a ratio and proportion:

(3.90 x 10¯6 g of Au ÷ 1.00 gram of seawater) = (1.00 g of Au ÷ x)

3) Cross multiply and divide yields our answer:

2.56 x 105 g of sea water contains 1.00 g of gold

Problem #2: Pollutants in air and water are frequently measured in parts per million (ppm) or parts per
billion (ppb). One part per million would mean that there is one gram of the pollutant in every one
million grams of air. At ordinary temperature and pressure, air has a density of 0.00012 gram per cubic
centimeter. What volume of air would contain one gram of sulfur dioxide, a pollutant that causes acid
rain, if the sulfur dioxide concentration is 2 ppm.

Solution:

1) How many grams of air contain one gram of SO2?

2 ppm means 2 grams SO2 per million grams of air

therefore,

one gram of SO2 will be found in 500,000 g of air

2) What volume of air weighs 500,000 g? We use the density (notice I set it up in a ratio and proportion
style:

0.00012 g over 1 cm3 = 500,000 g over x

Problem #3: A sample of oil (density = 0.89 g/mL) was found to have dioxin contamination of 2 ppm.
How many mL of the oil would contain 0.01 gram of dioxin?

Solution:

1) Determine grams of oil holding 0.01 g of dioxin. Use a ratio and proportion:

(2 g dioxin over 1,000,000 g solution) = (0.01 g over x)

x = 5000 g

2) Determine the volume of oil:

0.89 g/mL = 5000 g divided by x

x = 5618 mL

Problem #4: Fish need about 5 ppm O2 dissolved in water to survive. Will water with 7 mg O2 per liter
sustain fish?

Solution:

We need to convert 7 mg/L into ppm:

(0.007 g / 1000 g) = (x / 1,000,00 g)

x = 7 ppm

The answer is yes.

Notice the conversion of one liter of water (with 7 mg dissolved oxygen) into 1000 g. I used the density
of 1.00 g/mL for the conversion. This is acceptable because solutions in the ppm range are so dilute that
the solute (in this case, the O2, has no effect on the solution density.

Look again at the mg/L value. Another way to explain getting from mg/L to ppm is to multiply both
numerator and denominator by 1000:

(0.007 g / 1000 g) x (1000 / 1000) = 7 g / 1,000,000 g = 7 ppm

You may very well face problems where you get the data in mg/L format and are then asked something
about ppm. Remember!

Problem #5: Show why a mass of 0.145 g of KMnO4 in a 500 mL volumetric flask corresponds to 100 ppm
in Mn.
Solution:

1) Using a gravimetric factor, determine grams of Mn in 0.145 g of KMnO4:

0.145 g times (54.938 g/mol over 158.032 g/mol) = 0.0504076 g

2) Calculate ppm of Mn. Use a ratio and proportion:

(0.050 g over 500 g) = (x over 1,000,000)

x = 100 ppm

Problem #6: Symptoms of lead poisoning become apparent after a person has accumulated more than
20 mg in the body. Express this amount as parts per million for an 80 kg person.

Solution:

1) Convert mg and kg to grams:

20 mg = 20 x 10-3 g

80 kg = 80 x 103 g

2) Determine grams Pb per g of bodyweight:

20 x 10-3 g / 80 x 103 g = 0.25 x 10-6 per g of bodyweight

3) Refer to first description of ppm given at beginning of file:

one ppm "is one-millionth of a gram per gram of sample solution."

In this case, the "solution" is the bodyweight.

answer = 0.25 ppm

Problem #7: If you eat a 6 oz. can (180g) of tuna with 0.20 ppm Hg, how much mercury do you ingest?

Solution:

1) The meaning of 0.20 ppm Hg:

Remember, one ppm "is one-millionth of a gram per gram of sample solution."

Therefore the tuna contains 0.20 x 10-6 g of Hg per gram of tuna.

2) Calculate Hg in 180 g of tuna:

0.20 x 10-6 g of Hg per g of tuna times 180 g of tuna = 3.6 x 10-5 g of Hg

Solution:

1) Set up a ratio and proportion:

You are adding 3 x 105 parts per 4.5 x 1015 parts.

How many parts per 1 x 106 is this?

2) Solve it:

3 x 105 parts is to 4.5 x 1015 parts as x is to 1 x 106 parts

x = 0.000067 ppm

Problem #9: A solution used to chlorinate a home swimming pool contains 7% chlorine by mass. An ideal
chlorine level for the pool is one part per million chlorine. If you assume densities of 1.10 g/mL for the
chlorine solution and 1.00 g/mL for the swimming pool water, what volume of the chlorine solution in
liters, is required to produce a chlorine level of 1.00 ppm in an 18,000 gallon swimming pool?

Solution:

1) Convert 18,000 gallons to liters:

The conversion factor we will use is 1 gallon = 3.7854 L

18,000 gal x 3.7854 L/gal = 6.81372 x 104 L

2) Determine how many grams of pool water this is:

6.81372 x 107 mL x 1.00 g/mL = 6.81372 x 107 g

Note change from L to mL.

3) At 1 ppm, how much chlorine is required? Use a ratio and proportion:

(1 g chlorine ÷ 106 g pool water) = (x ÷ 6.81372 x 107 g of pool water)

x = 68.1372 g chlorine required

4) What amount of 7% (by mass) chlorine solution is required to deliver 68.1372 g of chlorine?

(68.1372 g ÷ 0.07) = (x/1)

x = 973.3886 g of chlorine solution required

973.3886 g ÷ 1.10 g/mL = 884.8987 mL

Conversation of ppm from molarity

The definition of parts per million:

1 g solute per 1,000,000 g solution

Now, divide both values by 1000 to get a new definition for ppm:

ppm = 0.001 g per 1,000 g solution

or:

ppm = 1 mg solute per 1 kg solution

Then, for an aqueous solution:

ppm = 1 mg solute per liter of solution

This last one works because the solution concentration is so low that we can assume the solution density
to be 1.00 g/mL.

Also, it's this last modification of ppm (the mg/L one) that allows us to go to molarity (which has units of
mol/L).

The best way to explain this is by doing some examples:

Problem #1: Convert 78 ppm of Ca2+ ions to mol/L

Solution:

1) By the last definition of ppm just above:

78 ppm = 78 mg Ca2+ / L of solution = 0.078 g/L

2) Divide by the atomic weight for calcium ion:

0.078 g/L divided by 40.08 g/mol = 00019 mol/L

Problem #2: Calculate the molarity of a dye concentration given the molar mass is of the dye 327 g/mol
and a dye concentration of 2 ppm.

Solution:

1) Convert ppm to a gram-based concentration:

2a) Using 0.002 g/L, caculate the molarity:

0.002 g/L divided by 327 g/mol = 6.1 x 10-6 M

2b) Using 2 mg/L, calculate the molarity

2 mg/L divided by 327,000 mg/mol = 6.1 x 10-6 M

You might want to go back to problem #1 and try out 78 mg/L with the atomic weight of calcium ion
expressed as mg/mol instead of g/mol.

Problem #3: A solution is labeled 2.89 ppm and is made with a solute that has molar mass equal to 522
g/mol. What is the molarity of the solution?

Solution (straight from Yahoo Answers):

1) Unless specified otherwise, ppm usually refers to ppm by weight:

2.89 ppm = 2.89 g per 1,000,000 g (or any other weight unit, I have just chosen g for convenience)

2) Now you need to know the density of the solvent to convert the volume to mass. If the solvent is
water, we can assume the density at standard temperature and pressure is 1.0 g/mL. Therefore 1 litre (L)
of water is 1,000 g. Therefore:

2.89 ppm = 2.89 g per 1,000 L = 0.00289 g per 1 L

(If you work out the mass per litre it makes working out the next steps a little easier, because the final
units for molarity will be mol/L)

3) Now using the molar mass to work out the molarity (moles per litre):

Moles in one litre = mass/molar mass = 0.00289/522 = 5.5 x 10-6 mol

Therefore the molarity is 5.5 x 10-6 M

Problem #4: What is the ppm concentration of calcium ion in 0.010 M CaCO3?

Solution:

1) Convert mol/L to to g/1000 g of solution:

0.010 mol/L times 40.08 g/mol = 0.4008 g/L

0.4008 g/L = 0.4008 g / 1000 g of solution

Note that the solution density is assumed to be 1.00 g/mL. This is the common practice in ppm
calculations.
2) Convert to ppm by multiplying numerator and denominator by 1000:

0.4008 g / 1000 g of solution times 1000/1000 = 400 g / 1,000,000 g of solution

The answer is 400 ppm

Notice how the weight for calcium ion only is used. The weight of the carbonate, based on the wording
of the question, is immaterial to the solving of the problem.

This focus on an ion (and not the entire formula of the substance) in ppm concentrations is common. Be
aware!

Problem #5: Make a 20.0 ppm solution of HCl from a stock solution that is 0.500-molar.

Solution:

1) Let us assume we will make 1.00 L of solution. Since ppm = 1 mg solute per liter of solution:

we need 20.0 mg solute per liter of solution

2) Calculate the volume of 0.500 M solution that contains 20.0 mg HCl:

MV = g/molar mass

(0.500 mol/L) (x) = 0.020 g / 36.46 g/mol

x = 0.001097 L

We need 1.10 mL of the stock solution diluted to 1.00 L to make a 20.0 ppm solution of HCl.

3) A slightly different form of the above question was answered thusly on Yahoo Answers:

The unit "ppm" is equivalent to "mg/L."

Concentrated HCl is 12.3 moles/L or, since the molar mass of HCl is 36.5 g/L, 449 g HCl / L.

449 g/L = 449,000 mg/L. If you want 20 ppm, you need to make a 20/449,000 volume dilution, or
1/22,500.

The best way to do that is a serial dilution: first make a 1/100 dilution (1 mL conc. HCl / 100 mL)

The best way to do that is a serial dilution: first make a 1/100 dilution (1 mL conc. HCl / 100 mL) and then
dilute THAT solution by 1/225. The result: 1/100 x 1/225 = 1/22,500.

You can cut the dilution process to one step if a lower concentration of HCl is available (e.g. 0.1 M).

Problem #6: In a geographical area at sea level measuring 56 km by 24 km by 1 km, the ozone
concentration is 0.145 ppm. How many moles of ozone must be removed from the atmosphere to reach
a concentration of 0.080 ppm, assuming a constant pressure of 1 atm and a constant temperature of 30
degrees Celsius.

Solution:

1) Calculate the liters (use cubic decimeters) in our volume:

(56 x 105 dm) (24 x 105 dm) (1 x 105 dm) = 1.344 x 1018 dm3

2) Calculate the ppm that must be removed:

0.145 - 0.080 = 0.065

3) Determine milligrams (then grams, then moles) of ozone to be removed from our volume:

1 ppm = 1 mg/L

Therefore:

0.065 mg/L times 1.344 x 1018 L = 8.736 x 1016 mg

8.736 x 1016 mg = 8.736 x 1013 g

8.736 x 1013 g divided by 47.997 g/mol = 1.82 x 1012 mol

Problem #7: 3100 mL of a river water sample took 9.30 mL of 0.01005 M Ag+ to titrate. Calculate the
concentration of Cl¯ in ppm for the river water.

Solution:

1) Calculate moles of Ag+:

(0.01005 mol/L) (0.00930 L) = 9.3465 x 10-5 mol of Ag+

2) Since Ag+ and Cl¯ react in a 1:1 molar ratio:

9.3465 x 10-5 mol of Cl¯

3) How many mg of Cl¯ is this?

9.3465 x 10-5 mol x 35.453 g/mol = 3.31 x 10-3 g

3.31 x 10-3 g x (1000 mg/g) = 3.31 mg

4) ppm = mg/L

3.31 mg / 3.100 L = 1.07 ppm (to three sf)

Problem #8: A solution contains 6.0 x 10-6 mol Na2SO4 in 250.0 mL. What is the concentration of
sodium ion in ppm? Of sulfate ion?
Solution:

1) Convert to molarity:

6.0 x 10-6 mol / 0.250 L = 2.40 x 10-5 mol/L

2) Convert mol/L to grams of sodium ion per 1000 g of solution:

2.40 x 10-5 mol/L times 23.00 g/mol x 2 = 0.001104 g/L

0.001104 g/L = 0.001104 g/1000 g of solution

The two is used because there are two sodium ions per formula unit of sodium sulfate.

For sulfate, the two would not be used and, instead of 23.00 g/mol, use the "formula weight" of the
sulfate ion.

3) Convert to ppm by multiplying numerator and denominator by 1000:

0.001104 g/1000 g of solution times 1000/1000 = 1.104 g / 1,000,000 g of solution

The answer (for sodium ion) is 1.1 ppm (to two sig figs).

The solution for sulfate is left to the reader.

Problem #9: The maximum concentration of O2 in seawater is 2.2 x 10-4 M at 25.0 °C. What is this
concentration in ppm?

Solution:

1) Convert mol/L to grams of sodium ion per 1000 g of solution:

2.2 x 10-4 mol/L times 32.0 g/mol = 0.00704 g/L

0.00704 g/L = 0.00704 g/1000 g of solution

2) Convert to ppm by multiplying numerator and denominator by 1000:

0.00704 g/1000 g of solution times 1000/1000 = 7.04 g / 1,000,000 g of solution