Books/References

• Introduction to Environmental Engineering Third

Edition by Davis & Cornwell, McGraw Hill
• Introduction to Environmental Engineering Second
Edition by Davis & Cornwell, McGraw Hill
• Environmental Engineering Laboratory, by Dr.
Khurshid Ahmad
• Wastewater Engineering Treatment and Reuse by
Metcalf & Eddy
• Environmental Assessment in Practice by D. Owen
Harrop & J. Ashley Nixon
• Integrated Solid Waste Management by George
Techobanoglous, Hilary Theisen & Samuel A. Vigil
Environmental Systems
 Environmental Systems
System
A regularly interacting or independent
group of items forming a unified whole as:
a. a group of interacting bodies under the influence
of related forces
b. a group of body functions that together perform
one or more vital functions
c. a group of related natural objects or forces
d. a group of devices or artificial objects or an
organization forming a network
 Characteristics of Systems
• All systems have some structure or
organization
• They are all to some extent generalizations
or idealizations of the real world
• They all function in some way
• There are, therefore, functional as well as
structural relationships between the units
 Characteristics of Systems
• Function implies the flow and transfer of
something
• Function requires the presence of some
driving force, or source of energy
• All systems show some degree of
integration
 Defining Systems
• Systems are defined by boundaries that
distinguish between the elements of interest
and the surroundings
• Each element has a set of attributes, states
or properties
• Relationships define how the properties of
two or more elements relate to each other,
the surroundings, or motivation
Types of Environmental Systems

• Isolated systems – no interaction with

surroundings across the system boundary.
Only approximated under laboratory
conditions.
• Closed systems – energy can be transferred
across system boundaries, but matter can
not. These are rare.
• Open systems – both matter and energy can
be transferred across boundary.
 Systems can be of any scale
• Global water cycle
• Continental watersheds
• Regional aquifer
• Lake
• Vadose zone of an irrigated plot
• Beaker in a titration experiment
• Raindrop
• Bacterial cell
• Monolayer of water on a particle surface
Soil Vapor Extraction
Systems
 Take-home message
• Systems are abstractions that provide
simple descriptions of a complex real world
• As such, their usefulness depends on how
they are defined relative to how the
abstraction will be used
• Unfortunately, there are no rules
• Fortunately, trial-and-error works pretty
well
 Units (Solid)
• Concentrations most commonly expressed
as mass of substance per mass of solid
mixture, e.g. mg/kg, g/g
• 1 mg/kg = 1 mg-substance per kg solid
= 1 part per million by weight
= 1 ppm
 Common Prefixes
Quant. Prefix Symbol Quant. Prefix Symbol
10-15 femto f 101 deka da
10-12 pico p 102 hecto h
10-9 nano n 103 kilo k
10-6 micro  106 mega M
10-3 milli m 109 giga G
10-2 centi c 1012 tera T
10-1 deci d 1015 peta P
 LIQUIDS
• Concentrations most commonly expressed
as mass of substance per unit volume of
mixture, e.g. mg/L, g/L, g/m3
• Alternatively, mass of substance per mass
of mixture, e.g. parts per million (ppm) or
parts per billion
• Occasionally, molar concentrations, e.g.
moles/liter (M) or equivalents/liter (N)
 Perspectives on
Concentration
• 1 ppm is one drop in 15 gallons
• 1 ppb is one drop in a large swimming pool
• 1 ppb is 5 people out of the Earth’s
population
 Conversion of Liquid
Concentrations
• For solutions and mixtures that are mostly
water, 1kg of mixture = 1 liter (specific
gravity = 1):
– 1 mg/L = 1 g/m3 = 1 ppm (by weight)
– 1 g/L = 1 mg/m3 = 1 ppb (by weight)
• For high concentrations, 1 kg  1 liter:
– mg/L = ppm (by weight) × specific
gravity of mixture
 GASES

1 volume of gaseous pollutant

106 volumes of air
1 ppm (by volume) 1 ppmv

• Volume:volume ratio is used because

concentrations are independent of pressure
and temperature changes
 Volume of an Ideal Gas
• Ideal gas law: PV = nRT
P = absolute pressure (atm)
V = volume (m3)
n = mass (moles)
R = gas constant = 0.082056 L·atm·K-1
·mol-1
T = absolute temperature (K)

K = °C + 273.15
 Volume of an Ideal Gas
(cont.)
Example: Determine the number of moles of gas found in 1
liter at 25 °C and 1 atm.

Solution:

n  PV/RT
 (1 atm)(1 L)
(0.082 L·atm·K-1·mol-1)(298 K)

 0.0409 mol  0.04 mol

Converting ppm to mg/m 3

mg ppm  mol wt 273.15K P (atm)

3
  
m 22.414 T (K) 1 atm
 Converting ppm to mg/m3
(cont.)
Example: 1000 L of air in a bar is analyzed
and found to contain 0.078 g of carbon
monoxide. Is this a problem?

Solution: Look up standard for workplace air

in standard Pocket Guide to Chemical
Hazards -- 8 hour time-weight exposure
limit = 50 ppm
 Converting ppm to mg/m3
(cont.)
mg 22.414 T (K) 1 atm
ppm  3   
m mol wt 273.15K P (atm)
(78)(22.414)(304.15)(1)

(1)(28)(273.15)(1)
 69.52 ppm  70 ppm

Standard is exceeded -- clear

problem
 Biological Agents

• Bacteria
• Viruses
• Biotoxins
• Additional Agents of Concern
• Model Microorganisms
 Possible Contamination Scenarios

• Complete System Contamination

– Raw Water Source
– Treatment Plant
– Storage Facility
• Localized Contamination
 Environmental Ethics
• Ethics are discussed by Philosophers,
Lawyers, Conservationists etc.
• “Sustainable Development” - growth that
meets the needs of the present generation
without compromising the ability of future
generations to meet their needs
 Environmental Ethics
• Can Economic Growth and Environmental
Protection occur simultaneously?
– A Business is in business to make a profit,
not usually to protect the environment.
Environmental Regulations force them to
care!
• Environmental Impact Statements (EIS) are
required by legislature
• Prior to design stage
• Impact on water quality, wetlands, and
endangered species
• Long term ecological damage
 Environmental Ethics
• Engineers are not traditionally trained to
think in terms of ethics
– Traditionally Engineers don’t deal with policy
but perform duties to society
– Design, Build, and Economic Feasibility of
Public and Private Projects
• Anthropocentric
– nature is here for us to command
 Environmental Ethics

• Quote from Aristotle, “Plants exist to give food to

animals, and animals to give food to men. Since
nature makes nothing purposeless or in vain, all
animals must have been made by nature for the
sake of men.”
 Environmental Ethics
• The Engineer has to • Long term effects
have their belief vs. Short term
system established economic gains
clearly and on an
individual level • For every action
determine how
there will be
much tampering
consequences for
with the someone or
Environment is something.
acceptable.
What is Environmental Engineering-
A Global Perspective
The Major Environmental Problems
 Environmental Groundwater Hydrology
Ground Water Resources - Quantity

• Aquifer system parameters

• Rate and direction of GW flow
• Darcy’s Law - governing flow relation
• Recharge and discharge zones
• Well mechanics- pumping for water supply,
hydraulic control, or injection of wastes
 Ground Water Resources -
Quality
• Contamination sources
• Contaminant transport mechanism
• Rate and direction of GW migration
• Fate processes-chemical, biological
• Remediation Systems for cleanup
Trends in Ground Water Use
 Ground Water: A Valuable
Resource

• Ground water supplies 95% of the drinking

water needs in rural areas.
• 75% of public water systems rely on
groundwater.
• In the United States, ground water provides
drinking water to approximately 140
million people.
 Aquifer Characteristics

Ø Porosity (n)
Ø Confined or unconfined
Ø Vertical distribution
Ø Hydraulic conductivity (K)
Ø Intrinsic permeability (k)
Ø Transmissivity (T)
Ø Storage coefficient or Storativity (S)
Vertical Distribution of Ground
Water
 Vertical Zones of Subsurface
Water
• Soil water zone: extends from the ground surface
down through the major root zone, varies with soil
type and vegetation but is usually a few feet in
thickness
• Vadose zone (unsaturated zone): extends from the
surface to the water table through the root zone,
intermediate zone, and the capillary zone
• Capillary zone: extends from the water table up to
the limit of capillary rise, which varies inversely
with the pore size of the soil and directly with the
surface tension
Typical Soil-Moisture
Relationship
 Soil-Moisture Relationship

• The amount of moisture in the vadose zone

generally decreases with vertical distance
above the water table
• Soil moisture curves vary with soil type
and with the wetting cycle
 Vertical Zones of Subsurface Water
Continued

• Water table: the level to which water will rise

in a well drilled into the saturated zone
• Saturated zone: occurs beneath the water table
where porosity is a direct measure of the water
contained per unit volume
 Porosity
– Porosity averages about 25% to 35%
for most aquifer systems
– Expressed as the ratio of the volume of
voids Vv to the total volume V:
n = Vv/V = 1- b/m
where:
b is the bulk density, and
m is the density of grains
 Porosity

Water
 Arrangement of Particles in a
Subsurface Matrix
Porosity depends on:
• particle size
• particle packing
• Cubic packing of spheres with a theoretical
porosity of 47.65%
Soil Classification Based on Particle
Size

Material Particle Size, mm

Clay <0.004
Silt 0.004 - 0.062
Very fine sand 0.062 - 0.125
Fine sand 0.125 - 0.25
Medium sand 0.25 - 0.5
Coarse sand 0.5 - 1.0
 Soil Classification…cont.

Material Particle Size, mm

Very coarse sand 1.0 - 2.0
Very fine gravel 2.0 - 4.0
Fine gravel 4.0 - 8.0
Medium gravel 8.0 - 16.0
Coarse gravel 16.0 - 32.0
Very coarse gravel 32.0 - 64.0
 Particle Size Distribution and
Uniformity
• The uniformity
coefficient U indicates
the relative sorting of the
material and is defined as
D60/D10
U is a low value
for fine sand
compared to
alluvium which is
made up of a
range of particle
sizes
Cross Section of Unconfined and
Confined Aquifers
 Unconfined Aquifer Systems

• Unconfined aquifer: an aquifer where the

water table exists under atmospheric
pressure as defined by levels in shallow
wells

• Water table: the level to which water will

rise in a well drilled into the saturated
zone
 Confined Aquifer Systems

• Confined aquifer: an aquifer that is overlain

by a relatively impermeable unit such that
the aquifer is under pressure and the water
level rises above the confined unit

• Potentiometric surface: in a confined

aquifer, the hydrostatic pressure level of
water in the aquifer, defined by the water
level that occurs in a lined penetrating well
 Special Aquifer Systems

• Leaky confined aquifer: represents a stratum that

allows water to flow from above through a leaky
confining zone into the underlying aquifer
• Perched aquifer: occurs when an unconfined
water zone sits on top of a clay lens, separated
from the main aquifer below
 Darcy’s Law

• Darcy investigated the flow of water through beds of

permeable sand and found that the flow rate through
porous media is proportional to the head loss and
inversely proportional to the length of the flow path
• Darcy derived equation of governing ground water
flow and defined hydraulic conductivity K:
V = Q/A
where:
A is the cross-sectional area
V  -∆h, and
V  1/∆L
 V= - K dh/dl
Darcy’s Law Q = - KA dh/dl
 Ground Water Hydraulics

• Hydraulic conductivity, K, is an indication

of an aquifer’s ability to transmit water

– Typical values:
10-2 to 10-3 cm/sec for Sands
10-4 to 10-5 cm/sec for Silts
10-7 to 10-9 cm/sec for Clays
 Ground Water Hydraulics

Transmissivity (T) of Confined Aquifer

-The product of K and the saturated
thickness of the aquifer T = Kb
- Expressed in m2/day or ft2/day
- Major parameter of concern
- Measured through a number of
tests - pump, slug, tracer
 Ground Water Hydraulics

Intrinsic permeability (k)

Property of the medium only, independent of fluid
properties

Can be related to K by:

K = k(g/µ)
where: µ = dynamic viscosity
 = fluid density
g = gravitational constant