Parts Per Conversion Guide
Master parts per conversions with practical examples for environmental monitoring, chemistry, and industrial applications.
💧Water Quality Testing
Drinking Water Standards
EPA maximum contaminant levels: Lead (15 PPB), Arsenic (10 PPB), Mercury (2 PPB)
Total Dissolved Solids
TDS measurements in PPM for water hardness and mineral content assessment
Chlorine Residual
Municipal water treatment: 0.2-4.0 PPM free chlorine for disinfection
🌬️Air Quality Monitoring
Occupational Exposure
OSHA permissible exposure limits: CO (50 PPM), H₂S (20 PPM), SO₂ (5 PPM)
Ambient Air Quality
EPA National Ambient Air Quality Standards for various pollutants in PPM/PPB
Indoor Air Quality
VOC monitoring in buildings: formaldehyde, benzene, toluene in PPB levels
🏭Industrial Applications
Chemical Manufacturing
Process control and quality assurance using PPM measurements for impurities
Semiconductor Industry
Ultra-pure water requirements: <1 PPB total organic carbon, <0.1 PPB metals
Food Processing
Additive concentrations, preservative levels, and contaminant monitoring
🌍Environmental Monitoring
Soil Contamination
Heavy metals in soil: lead, cadmium, mercury measured in PPM for remediation
Marine Pollution
Oil spill monitoring, microplastics (PPB-PPT levels), ocean acidification
Atmospheric Monitoring
Greenhouse gases: CO₂ (400+ PPM), CH₄ (1.8+ PPM), N₂O (0.3+ PPM)
🧪Laboratory Techniques
Analytical Methods
- • ICP-MS (PPB-PPT detection)
- • GC-MS (organic compounds)
- • LC-MS/MS (pharmaceuticals)
- • Atomic absorption spectroscopy
Sample Preparation
- • Serial dilutions
- • Matrix matching
- • Internal standards
- • Contamination prevention
Quality Control
- • Blank analysis
- • Spike recovery tests
- • Duplicate measurements
- • Reference materials
⚡Practical Guidelines
When to Use Each Unit
Percentage (%): Major components, concentrations > 1%
PPM: Minor components, water quality, air pollutants
PPB: Trace contaminants, drinking water limits
PPT: Ultra-trace analysis, advanced research
Common Conversions
1% = 10,000 PPM = 10⁷ PPB = 10¹⁰ PPT
1 PPM = 1,000 PPB = 10⁶ PPT
1 PPB = 1,000 PPT
1 mg/L ≈ 1 PPM (for water solutions)
📋Industry Standards & Regulations
EPA Standards
- • Maximum Contaminant Levels
- • Air Quality Standards
- • Soil Screening Levels
- • Discharge Permits
OSHA Requirements
- • Permissible Exposure Limits
- • Action Levels
- • Short-term Exposure Limits
- • Ceiling Limits
FDA Guidelines
- • Food Additive Limits
- • Pesticide Residue Tolerances
- • Drug Impurity Limits
- • Packaging Migration Limits