Pradeep Kumar

Department of Civil Engineering

IIT Roorkee
2013-14

CE-105: Introduction to Environmental Studies; L: 3; Credits: 3

S. No.

Contents

Contact Hours

1.

Overview: Environment and Natural Processes; Development

(Resource Utilization & Waste Generation); Environmental issues;
Concept of Sustainable Development; Issues affecting future
development (population, urbanization, health, water scarcity,
energy, climate, toxic chemicals, finite resources etc.);
Environmental units

2.

Air Water interaction: (Liquid phase-gas phase equilibrium) Henrys

Law Constant with units, Dimensionless Henrys Law Constant

3.

Water Soil Interaction: Carbonate System (Alkalinity and buffering

capacity); Major ions in water; Natural Organic Matter (NOMs);
Water quality parameters; Physical processes (Mass Balance):
Spatio-temporal variation in quality of river water, lake water,
ground water; Water quality standards

4.

Water treatment and wastewater treatment

.

-----Cont.
S.No. Content

Contact Hours

5.

Air resources: Atmosphere; Air pollutants; Emissions and control of air

pollutants; Transport of air (global, regional, local); Air stability;
Plume shape; Air Pollution: Meteorology and dispersion modeling; Air
quality standards

6.

Land pollution and solid waste management, Wetlands,

7.

Ecosystem: Structure and function; Energy flow in ecosystem;

Material flow in ecosystem; Biodiversity and ecosystem health; Bioamplification and bio-magnification

8.

Hazardous Waste: Definition; Classification; Storage and

management; Site remediation; Environmental Risk: perception,
assessment, and management

3+2

Evaluation
Two Term Evaluations (TEs)
No MTE
TE 1; at the time of MTE, i.e. Sept. 22-25; after nine weeks
Course Content: Topics 1 4
Marks: 40 (theory/ TE-1) + 10 (CW)

TE 2; at the time of ETE, Nov. 14 22

Course Content: Topics 5 8
Marks: 40 (theory/ TE-2) + 10 (CW)

CE-105, Introduction to Environmental Studies;

L: 3;
Credits: 3;
Objective: To introduce fundamentals of environmental pollution and its control
S. No.

Name of Books / Authors/ Publishers

Year of
Publication/
2008

Davis M. L. and Cornwell D. A., Introduction to

Environmental Engineering, McGraw Hill, New York 4/e

Masters G. M., Introduction to Environmental Engineering

and Science, Prentice Hall of India, New Delhi. 2/e

2007

Masters G. M., Joseph K. and Nagendran R. Introduction to

Environmental Engineering and Science, Pearson
Education, Inc, 2/e

2007

Peavy H. S., Rowe D.R. and Tchobanoglous G.,

Environmental Engineering, McGraw Hill, New York

1986

4.

Mines R.O. and Lackey L.W. Introduction to Environmental

Engineering, Prentice Hall, New York

2009

5.

Miheicic J. R. and Zimmerman J.B. Environmental

Engineering; Fundamentals, Sustainability, Design John
Wiley and Sons, Inc

2010

Why Study the Environment??

What is the scope of work of an engineer ?: Channelize
Nature
Civil Engineer & Architects: Built Environment,
Buildings, Bridges, Roads, Water Supply, Sewerage.
Electrical, Electronics & Computer Engineers :
Hydropower, Thermal Power, Power Distribution,
Appliances, Devices, Communication, Software, Control
Systems etc.,
Mechanical, Chemical, Industrial, metallurgical:
Equipments, Refineries, Plants, vehicles etc.,

How it is related to you

Civil Engineers:
Disturbed natural ground conditions: cutting of
trees, erosion, disturbance to wildlife etc., liquid &
solid wastes
Electrical Engineers:
Hydropower: submergence,
Thermal power: emissions,
Industries: hazardous emissions, wastes
Mechanical Engineers:
Industries: air and water emissions, hazardous
wastes, chemicals in the environment

Impacts
Air, Water, Land, Noise Pollution
Climate Change, Global Warming,
Ozone Depletion
Effects on Ecosystem & Biodiversity
Prevention & Restoration of Resources:
Environmental Engineering & Science

More than 20 million computers are thrown out every year

world wide, very few are recycled
More than 200 million computers shall be obsolete world
wide within a next few years
Same is true for many other electronic goods.

Problems with Electronic Industry

Designers are not responsible for end of life design

Product manufacturing does not consider the entire life

time of the product

Result is waste economically inefficient, environmentally

harmful, socially irresponsible

UNSUSTAINABLE
What to do with such a huge amount of e-waste?

Each time a Google search is generated at the users

computer, the carbon dioxide footprint is 0.2 g of CO2
per search.

xx

About 1.2% of total fossil-fuel based carbon

emission
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/aug/12/carbon-footprintinternet

xx

Environmental Studies
Awareness
Survival: Give & Take
Raw Material or Resource(s)
Resource mobilization, utilization, protection
Extraction of Mineral Deposits: Mining Engineering
Petroleum Products: Petroleum & Chemical Engineering
Infrastructure Development: Architecture, Civil, Mechanical &
Electrical Engineering
Green Revolution: Agriculture Engineering
(Efforts: extraction, conversion, supply & use of natural resources)
Taking & Using
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Environmental Studies: Environmental Engineering & Science

Scope
Release of contaminants: Quality, Quantity, Fate &
Impacts
How to take care of environmental pollutants?
How to provide water which can be used for drinking,
bathing, washing, cooking etc.?
How to conserve the quality of air?
How to manage the solid waste?

xx

LETTER WRITTEN
IN THE YEAR 2070
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Article published in the magazine

"Crnicas de los Tiempos, in April 2002.

This is the year 2070

I have just turned 50,
but I look and feel 85.
I suffer from serious kidney problems,
because I do not drink enough water.

I'm afraid I do not have

much time left to live.
I am one of the oldest people
in this society.

I remember there were

SAVE WATER
warnings on outdoor posters, radio
and TV, but nobody paid attention.
We thought that water
was to last forever.

Now, all the rivers, lakes, dams and

underground water beds are either dry
or contaminated.

Industry came to a standstill,

unemployment is sky high.
Desalination plants are the main source of employment
and workers receive part of their salary in drinkable water.

Assaults on the streets for a can of water are very common.

Food is 80% synthetic.

The average life expectancy is 35 years.

Water became
a very coveted treasure.
Any green zones crossed by
rivers are guarded by armed
soldiers.

Was I guilty ?
My generation destroyed the
environment.
We did not heed the warning signs.

Now our children

pay a very high price!

Soon, I think,
life on earth will not be possible,
as the destruction of nature has reached an irreversible stage.

How I would like to go back and make mankind understand

...that we still had time to save our Planet Earth.

Sustainable Development
How does environment respond to
development?

How can development be made environment

friendly?
Answer is to understand/study the project,
environment, and environmental science,
and
To work towards Sustainable Development
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Sustainable Development
Meeting the needs of the present without compromising the
ability of future generations to meet their own needs (WHO).
Design of human and industrial systems (Engineering) to ensure
that humankinds use of natural resources do not lead to
diminished quality of life due either to losses in future economic
opportunities or to adverse impacts on social conditions, human
health, and the environment.
Natural resources of the earth including air, water, land, flora
and fauna must be safeguarded for the benefit of present and
future generations through careful planning and management.
Water/ air self purification.

30

Case Histories:
To illustrate some of the dilemmas that confront the
public/ companies/ environmental engineers in the 21st century.

(1) New chairs:

Development / env. Intelligent design of 2 types of office chairs
Engrs. used sustainable materials/ env. conscious design practices
2 approaches: Cradle-t-cradle (recycle / reuse)/
cradle-to-grave
Evaluation: Env. Impact, raw material, potential to recovery/reuse
Manufacturing: 50% recycled materials/plastics/aluminum/steel
At the end of useful life: 98% chairs components can be recycled
Disassembly in 5 min.
Reduced impact on env.- lower transportation cost, less weight

(2) Paper/ Plastic Bags?

Cash counter/ Which is the greener choice?/ No clear winner/ adv., disadv.
Google search

Paper

Plastic

Trees: Energy spent in

(growing/harvesting/transportation/
paper making)

Petroleum product

Pollution viewpoint: More detrimental

impact. Use of fossil fuels/ releasing
greenhouse gases/ destroying animal
habitat/ use of toxic chemicals in pulping/
air pollutants/ liquid wastes

Pollution viewpoint: use of toxic chemicals

/5 of top 6 chemicals responsible for
hazardous wastes used

2 plastic bags use less energy and produce less solid/ atmos./waterborne waste than a
single paper bag

Recyclability and degradability: easier,

weight~10 times, degrades faster

91% less energy to recycle

Difficult choice, both can and should be used/ recycled

(3) Selection of Materials for Beverage Containers:

Soft drinks-aluminum, polyehylene terephthalate (PETE), glass
Milk- polyehylene
Canned goods- steel
All recycleable
Which of these 5 materials makes most env. Friendly container?
Approach- use of least energy? Steel
Non-environmental factors:
Retention of beverage flavor / freshness
Ease of opening
Packaging/ transportation
Appearance
Customer preference
No simple method
Env. Point of view-steel

(4) Coal versus Nuclear Energy?

(5) Wastewater Pond system versus Activated Sludge Process?
(6) Petrol versus Diesel Car?

What is Environment?
Atmosphere;
Gas Phase
air

life

Biosphere

water

Hydrosphere
Aqueous Phase

land

Biotic & Abiotic Components

Interactions/Processes
Air-water
Air-Soil
Soil-Water
Air-Water-Soil
Interaction of life with air, water,
soil
Structural & Functional Components
of the Ecosystem
Natural System connects and
supports all life on Earth by providing

Lithosphere
Solid Phase

Oxygen, Water, Food

Services

Elemental and chemical composition

of the earth together with energy
from the sun, constitutes all of the
raw material that support life.
35

Environment
Sustainability
Environmental Systems: Natural/Engineered
Environmental Processes
Environmental Measurements
Energy

Environmental Systems (Natural and Engineered)

Natural Systems:
Concern is with understanding and describing changes in
constituent concentrations and other quality parameters;
Measure given conditions and describe
anticipated changes in constituent(s)
(Output depends on prevailing conditions)
Describe

Engineered System:

Concern is with the selection of conditions required to

effectively accomplish specific changes
in concentration and quality parameters
Determine desired changes in constituent
and prescribe required conditions
Design
(Conditions are modified to get desired output)
37

Environmental Processes (Natural & Engineered Processes)

Process

Nature

Example/Mass Transfer

Absorption by
liquids

(gas/liquid mass
transfer)

Dissolution of air (oxygen, nitrogen, carbon-di-oxide) in Rivers,

Lakes; Molecular diffusion of O2 across air-water interface

Absorption by
solids

Phase Transfer
(liquid-solid)

Absorption of organic contaminants from ground waters by

soils & sediments; Interfacial & interparticle diffusion of solutes

Biochemical
Transformation

Oxidationreduction

Biochemical oxidation/reduction of organics in receiving water

(BOD exertion); Diffusion & Metabolic products across cell wall

Chemical
Transformation

Photochemical ,
acid-base reactions

Atmospheric reactions;
Rain water soil-reactions

Chemical
Precipitation

Phase Transfer
(liquid-solid)

Iron oxide deposition at wetted interface, deposition of calcium

carbonates & magnesium silicates on submerged surfaces;
Interfacial & interparticle diffusion & particle growth

Disinfection

Inactivation of organisms by heat & sunlight; Mass or heat

transfer across cell membranes

Filtration

Separation Process

Deposition of bacteria & turbidity in subsurface systems;

Microscopic particle transport & interfacial deposition

Ion Exchange

Separation Process
Phase Transfer

Multivalent cation uptake and retardation by soils; Interfacial &

interparticle ion diffusion for porous ion exchange resins

Volatilization

Phase Transfer
(liquid-gas)

Release of H2S from benthic deposits; Molecular diffusion of O2

across water-air interface

Environmental Systems
(Measurement of Quantity and Concentration)
Extensive Properties:
Magnitude depends on the size of the system or on sample taken
from the system (e.g. mass, volume, heat capacity and calories).
Quantity is an extensive property

Intensive property:
Magnitude does not depend on the size of a system or on sample
taken from it (e.g. temperature, density, specific heat etc.)
Concentration is an intensive property

Expression of concentration:
mass fraction (0-1; % (per cent); (per mil); ppm; ppb) ,
volume fraction, mole fraction, mass per unit volume, moles per unit
volume (molar), moles per unit mass (molal), equivalents (normal)
Partial Pressure: Species amount in air may be expressed as partial
pressure
Px = -log [x]; [x] is molar concentration; pH, pOH, pCa++

39

Environmental Measurements

Weight %, P=W/ (W+W0) X 100%

Where P=% of substance by weight
W=grams of substance
W0=grams of water
Results: generally in mass/volume (concentration), mg/L
Environmental Engineering:
Assumption: Substance does not change density of water
Generally untrue, not too inaccurate for dilute concentrations
(~500 mg/L of DS ~ 500 mg/kg ~ 500 mg/1,000,000 mg ~ .05%)
(Assumption: 1 mL water = 1 g)
1 mg/L=1 mg/1000 g=1mg/1,000,000 mg=1 ppm (parts per million)
ppb
Weight % of 1 mg/L can be:
P=W/ (W+W0) X 100=1 mg (100)/1 L=10-3 g (100)/103 g= 1X10-4 %
Or 1 mg/L = 1X10-4 % =0.0001 %
1 % = 10,000 mg/L

1 mg/L = 1 g/m3 = 1 ppm (by weight)

1 g/L = 1 mg/m3 = 1 ppb (by weight)
1 % = 10000 mg/L
Water < 1/20 %

Environmental measurement
1. Ten gram of table salt (NaCl) is dissolved in pure water to make 1 L of
solution. Determine the mass fraction (%, ppm), mass concentration,
molarity, molality, normality, mole fraction of Na+ in solution. (Na = 23;
Cl = 35.5)
Molecular weight of NaCl = 23 + 35.5 = 58.5
10 g NaCl = 10/58.5 = 0.17 mole = 0.17 x 23 = 3.9 g of Na+.
Mass fraction = 3.9/1000 = 0.39 % = 3900 ppm
Mass concentration = 3.9 g/L = 3900 mg/L ( in aq. Systems, mg/L = ppm)
Molarity =0.17 mole/L or 0.17 M; Normality = 0.17 eq/L = 0.17 N
Molality = 0.17 mole/ 0.99 kg = 0.172
Mole fraction = 0.17/ (0.17 + 0.17 + (990/18) = 3.0719 x 10-3
2. Mole fraction of aqueous glucose solution is 0.025. What is the molar &
mass concentration of glucose? (Assumption: density of the solution = 1)
Moles of glucose = 0.025 = 0.25 x 180 = 4.5 g
& moles of water = 0.975 = 0.75 x 18 = 17.55 g
molar concentration = (.025/ 17.55) x 1000 = 1.42 M
mass concentration = (4.5 g/17.55) x 1000 = 256.4 g/L

Environmental measurement
1. Ten gram of table salt (NaCl) is dissolved in pure water to make 1 L of
solution. Determine the mass fraction (%, ppm), mass concentration,
molarity, molality, normality, mole fraction of Na+ in solution. (Na = 23; Cl =
35.5)
Molecular weight of NaCl = 23 + 35.5 = 58.5 g/mole
10 g NaCl=10 g/(58.5 g/mole)=0.17 mole=0.17 molex23 g/mole=3.9 g of Na+.
Mass fraction = 3.9 g of Na+/1000 mL=0.39 % = 3900 ppm
Mass concentration = 3.9 g/L = 3900 mg/L ( in aq. Systems, mg/L = ppm)
Molarity =0.17 mole/L or 0.17 M; Normality = 0.17 eq/L = 0.17 N
Molality = 0.17 mole/ 0.99 kg = 0.172
Mole fraction = 0.17/ (0.17 + 0.17 + (990/18) = 3.0719 x 10-3
2. Mole fraction of aqueous glucose solution is 0.025. What is the molar &
mass concentration of glucose? (Assumption: density of the solution = 1)
Moles of glucose = 0.025 = 0.025 x 180 = 4.5 g
& moles of water = 0.975 = 0.75 x 18 = 17.55 g
molar concentration = (.025/ 17.55) x 1000 = 1.42 M
mass concentration = (4.5 g/17.55) x 1000 = 256.4 g/L

Prob. 2.06 g of sodium nitrate, NaNO3 is added to a cylinder containing water. The cylinder
Diameter is 5 cm and the depth of the water in the cylinder is 10 cm. Determine the
concentration of salt in solution, showing your answer in the different units.
Solution
Molecular weight of NaNO3 = atomic wts. (Sodium + nitrogen + oxygen)
= 23 g/mole + 14 g/mole + 3 (16) g/mole = 85 g/mole
Calculate the volume of water stored in the cylinder
V = D2h/4 = 206 cm3 = 0.206 L
Conc. of NaNO3 (mg/L) = (2.06 g/0.206 L) (1000 mg/g) = 10000 mg/L
Mass % = 1%
Molarity [NaNO3] = moles NaNO3/L = (10 g/L)/(85 g/mole) = 0.118 mole/L or M

Normality = M n = (0.118 moles/L) (1 equiv/moles) = 0.118 equiv/L or N

Molality = 0.118 mole/ 0.99 kg = 0.119
Mole fraction = 0.118/ (0.118 + (990/18)) = 0.00214

Our Target Think Globally Act Locally

To understand the basics of environment &
environmental hazards (pollution) in your
surroundings.
To be able to think scientifically on the environmental
problems.
To be able to solve real environmental problems by
applying basic scientific principles.
To know the environmental consequences of different
acts

Environmental Studies
To logically understand is Science &
to channelize nature to improve standard of living is Engineering
The motto is'Replenish the earth and subdue it'.
Is there a barren desertirrigate it;
is there a mountain barrierpierce it;
is there a rushing torrentharness it.
Bridge the rivers; sail the seas; and many more---Rossiter W. Raymond 1913
Human (Our) actions have widespread impacts on our world and the
other organisms with which we share it.
Science & technology: explain how things work & reveal how we can
make our environment safer, more comfortable and more enduring.

A Study of the Environment--- Environmental Management: Prevention & Control

Developers (Engineers) can prevent environmental
degradation by knowing the response of the environment
Think globally act locally
Environmental Scientists & Engineers can attempt to control
the environmental degradation
A co-ordination between developmental projects , its
environmental impacts and remedy is possible only when we
are aware of our ENVIRONMENT, ENVIRONMENTAL SYSTEMS
& ENVIRONMNTAL PROCESSES

Development & its Unintended Consequences

What is Development?
Resource utilization to provide facilities and services.
Waste generation is the unintended consequence of
development

Unintended Consequences or Side Effects

Resource depletion
Pollution/Environmental degradation

What are we giving back to surrounding?

Air: we cannot take in
Water (wastewater): we cannot use
Scrap: we dislike

Environmental Processes
(Natural & Engineered Processes)
Environmental processes of interest are of two categories:
1. Transformation Processes

Environment is comprised of chemicals & transformation in them are described

by chemical reactions
Reactions are physical, chemical and/or biological in nature.
Three dominant characteristics of environmental processes are:

The form and amount of energy available to make them occur

The speed or rate at which energy is exercised to effect change. Most of the
environmental reactions follow first order kinetics

A system of such spatial and physical characteristics that it allows reactants

to interact or communicate for purposes of reactions.

2. Transport Processes
Macroscale Transport (System Scale):

Movement of constituents in the bulk of a system & across its boundaries

Microscale Transport (Molecular Scale):

Small scale diffusion processes

Occur primarily at the interfaces

Transport from one phase to another is referred to as mass transfer

Environmental Processes
(Natural & Engineered Processes)

Objectives, Information requirements, & expected results for

natural & engineered systems are quite different;
The underlying processes & principles of change are
essentially the same;

50