Physical properties, correlation and regression analyses of potable water in Ilorin, Nigeria

Abstract

Water is said to be wholesome if it is fit to use for drinking, cooking, food preparation or washing without any potential danger to human health. This research aimed to determine the potability of water from borehole, sachet and river in Ilorin, Nigeria using physical parameters, assess the correlation between the parameters and carry out regression analysis of the parameters. Water samples were randomly collected from the three Local Government Areas (LGA) in Ilorin to assess physical properties and carry out correlation and regression analyses. Temperature of water samples were between 29 ⁰C – 31.4 ⁰C while pH ranged between 6.42 and 7.90. Correlation coefficient was +0.989 while regression analysis estimated optimal temperature of 30 ⁰C for pH of 7.03. The physical parameters of water in the study area fell within recommended range. There was strong direct relationship between the physical parameters studied. Further studies could consider investigating other physical and chemical parameters involving larger number of samples.

Keywords: Potable water, physical parameters, correlation, regression, Ilorin