Answers to these questions appear online at www.WaterTechOnline.com/certification-action-line.
Certification Action Line features questions and answers typical of those appearing in Water Quality Association (WQA) certification examinations. Some answers may not satisfy everyone or every condition.
1. Successful completion of the cation-exchange reaction in a water softener is most often dependent on:
a) pH of the water supply
b) water temperature
c) adequate contact of the water with the exchanger resin
2. Adequate contact of the water with cation-exchange resin in a water softener can be adversely affected by turbid water.
a) True
b) False
3. Dissolved ionic forms of iron, manganese and aluminum are attracted to cation-exchange softening resin so strongly that even after a resin unit is exhausted for softening it may continue to remove these troublesome ions from the water.
a) True
b) False
4. During regeneration with salt brine iron, manganese and aluminum are usually completely removed from the exchanger.
a) True
b) False
5. Modern water softener valves add brine for regeneration to the resin bed via:
a) an eductor
b) a brine pump
c) a siphon
6. Brine contact time with the resin during water softener regeneration is provided by:
a) shut down of the softener unit during brine soak
b) timed brine eduction
c) slow rinse rate
d) fast rinse rate
7. The first one-third of spent brine that comes from resin bed regeneration is the portion most commonly reused in brine reclamation or brine reuse.
a) True
b) False
8. Highest softening capacities per cubic foot of resin and greatest hardness removal efficiencies per pound of salt used are obtained with the same dosages of salt (salt settings).
a) True
b) False
9. Water softeners may operate erratically at very low salt dosages.
a) True
b) False
10. Operating capacity of cation-exchange water softeners is significantly reduced under high flow rates.
a) True
b) False
