摘要：The samples of six (06) bottled mineral water were collected from the local market of Peshawar in 2016. These samples were assessed for their rnir1er- al contents, alkalinity, heavy metals, conduetivity_. pl-I, Total Dissolved Salts, total hardness_. Ca hard- ness, Mg hardness, Ca ions, Mg ions and HCO3 ions to confirrn their quality assurance and suitabil- ity for human consumption. The results were corn- pared with the labeled values and WHO standards. Almost all samples contained minerals within the recommended range of WHO, although varied from the level shown on the label. Among the different minerals present in water samples. the amount. of sulfur was highest (81,950 mg mL'‘) followed by C1‘ (43,392 mg mL"). Na (l4.552 mg mL“). K (2.000 mg mL“)_. and F (0.315 mg mL“). Total hardness was i11 the range of 64 to 440 mg mL", Ca and Mg hardness was 16-100 mg mL" and 36-400 mg 1111;‘ respectively. Average value of pH i11 dif- ferent samples was found 7.54 while conductivity and total alkalinity were 458.286 us em" and 181.440 mg mL" respectively. Nitrate was absent in all samples, while the TDS value of some sam- ples was more than 400 mg mL". Among heavy metals Pb and Cd were found i11 the range of 0.001 to 0.040 mg mL'‘. Ca”, Mg*" and HCO3’ ions were in the range of O to 40, 8.64 to 96 and 9.5648 to 251.076 mg mL'' respectively. Despite the fact that variation was observed in results and labeled val- ues, the physicoehemical findings are encouraging and showed that the samples collected in the form of bottled mineral water were fit for drinking pur- poses. However a workable monitoring system should be established in the country to evaluate the quality of drinking water routinely to reduce the consequences of water borne diseases and protect the cor1surner’s health and welfare.
关键词：drinking water;mineral water;bottled water;suitability of drinking water
