Question

A sample of seawater contains 1.3g of calcium ions in 3,100kg of solution. what is the calcium ion concentration of this solution in units of ppm?

Answer 1

unit ppm stands for parts per million. in terms of mass, ppm is equivalent to mg/kg.
since 1 kg is 10⁻⁶ mg, 1 kg is equivalent to million mg.
therefore mg/kg is also ppm.
there are 1.3 g of Ca ions in 3100 kg
if 3100 kg contains - 1.3 g of Ca
then 1 kg contains - 1.3 g / 3100 kg
then Ca ions - 0.42 x 10⁻³ g/kg
Ca ion concentration - 0.42 mg/kg
therefore Ca ion concentration is 0.42 ppm