Environmental Science and Engineering

Materials and Energy Balances

NTRODUCTION

Materials and energy balances are key tools in achieving a quantitative understanding of the
behavior of environmental systems. They serve as a method of accounting for the flow of energy and
materials into and out of environmental systems. Mass balances provide us with a tool for modeling the
production, transport, and fate of pollutants in the environment. Energy balances likewise provide us with
a tool for modeling the production, transport, and fate of energy in the environment.

Applications

Examples of the application of mass balances include prediction of rainwater runoff , oxygen
balance in streams and audits of hazardous waste production . Energy balances predict the temperature
rise in a stream from the discharge of cooling water from a power plant, and the temperature rise due to
global warming.

UNIFYING THEORIES

Conservation of Matter

The law of conservation of matter states that (without nuclear reaction) matter can neither be
created nor destroyed. This is a powerful theory. It means that if we observe an environmental process
carefully, we should be able to account for the “matter” at any point in time. It does not mean that the
form of the matter does not change nor, for that matter, the properties of the matter. Thus, if we measure
the volume of a fresh glass of water on the counter on Monday and measure it again a week later and find
the volume to be less, we do not presume magic has occurred but rather that matter has changed in form.
The law of conservation of matter says we ought to be able to account for all the mass of the water that
was originally present, that is, the mass of water remaining in the glass plus the mass of water vapor that
has evaporated equals the mass of water originally present. The mathematical representation of this
accounting system is called a materials balance or mass balance

Conservation of Energy

The law of conservation of energy states that energy cannot be created or destroyed. Like the law
of conservation of matter, this theory means that we should be able to account for the “energy” at any
point in time. It also does not mean that the form of the energy does not change. Thus, we should be able
to trace the energy of food through a series of organisms from green plants through animals. The
mathematical representation of the accounting system we use to trace energy is called an energy balance.

Conservation of Matter and Energy

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At the turn of the 20th century, Albert Einstein hypothesized that matter could be transformed to
energy and vice versa. The birth of the nuclear age proved his hypothesis correct, so today we have a
combined law of conservation of matter and energy that states that the total amount of energy and matter
is constant. A nuclear change produces new materials by changing the identity of the atoms themselves.
Significant amounts of matter are converted to energy in nuclear explosions. Exchange between mass and
energy is not an issue in environmental applications. Thus, there are generally two separate balances for
mass and energy.

Materials Balances

The Control Volume. Using the mass balance approach, we begin solving the problem by drawing a
flowchart of the process or a conceptual diagram of the environmental subsystem. All of the known
inputs, outputs, and accumulation are converted to the same mass units and placed on the diagram.
Unknown inputs, outputs, and accumulation are also marked on the diagram. This helps us define the
problem. System boundaries (imaginary blocks around the process or part of the process) are drawn in
such a way that calculations are made as simple as possible. The system within the boundaries is called
the control volume.

We then write a materials balance equation to solve for unknown inputs, outputs, or accumulations or to
demonstrate that we have accounted for all of the components by demonstrating that the materials balance
“closes,” that is, the accounting balances. Alternatively, when we do not have data for all inputs or
outputs, we can assume that the mass balance closes and solve for the unknown quantity. The following
example illustrates the technique.

Example. Mr. and Mrs. Green have no children. In an average week they purchase and bring into their
house approximately 50 kg of consumer goods (food, magazines, newspapers, appliances, furniture, and
associated packaging). Of this amount, 50 percent is consumed as food. Half of the food is used for
biological maintenance and ultimately released as CO2; the remainder is discharged to the sewer system.
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The Greens recycle approximately 25 percent of the solid waste that is generated. Approximately 1 kg
accumulates in the house. Estimate the amount of solid waste they place at the curb each week.
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Example:

Truly Clearwater is filling her bathtub but she forgot to put the plug in. If the volume of water for
a bath is 0.350 m3 and the tap is flowing at 1.32 L/min and the drain is running at 0.32 L/min, how long
will it take to fill the tub to bath level? Assuming Truly shuts off the water when the tub is full and does
not flood the house, how much water will be wasted? Assume the density of water is 1,000 kg/m 3.
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PR

TRY this!!!

1. A city Generates 102 tonnes/day of refuse, all of which goes to a transfer station. At the transfer
station the refuse is split into four flow streams headed for three incinerators and on landfill. If the
capacity of the incinerators is 20, 50, and 22 tonnes/d. how much refuse must go to the landfill?
Ans. 10 tonnes/day
2. A trunk sewer has a flow capacity of 4.0 m3/s. If the flow to the sewer is exceeded, it will not be
able to transmit all the sewage through the pipe, and backups will occur. Currently, three
neighborhoods contribute to the sewer, and the maximum peak flows are 1.0, 0.5 and 2.7 m 3/s. A
builder wants to construct a development that will contribute a maximum flow of 0.7 m 3/s to the
trunk. Would this cause the sewer to exceed its capacity? Ans: Xe = 4.9 m3/s and this will cause
the sewer to exceed its capacity.
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MORE COMPLEX SYSTEMS

A key step in the solution of mass balance problems for systems that are more complex than the
previous examples is the selection of an appropriate control volume. In some instances, it may
be necessary to select multiple control volumes and then solve the problem sequentially using
the solution from one control volume as the input to another control volume. For some complex
processes, the appropriate control volume may treat all of the steps in the process as a “black
box” in which the internal process steps are not required and therefore are hidden in a black
box.

Example:
The Allegheny and Monongahela Rivers meet at Pittsburgh to form the mighty Ohio. The
Allegheny, flowing south through forest and small towns, runs at an average flow of 10 m3/s
(cubic meter per second) and has a silt load , 250 mg/L. The Mononghela on the otherhand,
flows north at a flow of 13 m3/s country rough old steel towns and poor farm country, carrying
a silt load of 1500 mg/L.
A. What is the average flow in the Ohio River?
B. What is the silt concentration in the Ohio?

Solution:

Figure: Confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela to form Ohio river

Step 1: Draw the System

Step 2: All the available information is added to the sketch, including the known and unknown
variables
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Step 3: The confluence of the River is the black box, as shown by the dashed lline

Step 4: Water flow is to be balanced first

Step 5: Write the Balance Equation

Since the system is in steady state, the first term is zero. Two rivers in and one out, so the
equation reads

0 = (10+13) – QO, where Qo = Flow in Ohio.

Step 6: Solve for the Unknown

QO = 23 m3/s

The Solution process must now be repeated for the silt. Recall that mass flow is calculated
as concentration times volume, or
mg L mg
Qmass = C x Qvolume = 𝑥 =
𝐿 𝑆 𝑆

Starting with Step 5, the Mass Balance is

Silt Silt Silt

Again, the firt term is zero, so the equation becomes

0 = (CAQA + CMQM) - COQO

Where C = Concentration of Silt,

A,M,O = the three rivers

Substituting the known information yields