ESE 150: Environmental disturbances Pollution has four types: noise, water, air and solid waste Water

pollution - use of surface water depend on their use Water quality management - process of controlling human activity to ascertain water for its intended use - science of knowing how much waste would be too much - original intent: protect intended uses of water bodies while using surface waters as an economical means of waste disposal - redefined: restore and maintain the chemical, physical and biological integrity of the surface water to ensure water quality for the protection and propagation of fish, shellfish and wildlife and provide recreation in and on water Sources of water pollutants 1. Point sources - collected by network of pipes or channels and conveyed to a single point of discharge into the receiving water - ex. domestic sewage, industrial wastes - domestic sewage consists of wastewater (WW) from homes, schools, buildings, offices, stores - municipal sewage = domestic sewage + industrial wastes - can undergo proper WW treatment before discharge 2. Non point sources - characterized by multiple discharge points - polluted water flows over a land surface to the nearest water body - ex. urban and agricultural run off - urban run off from streets, parking lots, golf courses - agricultural run off from farm lands Water pollutants 1. Oxygen-demanding materials - any matter (mostly organic matter and some inorganic) oxidized that consumes O2 - lowers the dissolved oxygen (DO) level in water body that poses a threat to fishes and other aquatic organisms - domestic sewage = food wastes, human waste - industrial wastes = paper industry, food processing - non point sources = leaves, crop residues, bird droppings

2. Nutrients - nitrogen and phosphorous - leads to proliferation of some aquatic organisms in the expense of others - ex. excessive growth of algae, upon death would lower DO levels in water, and sink to the bottom - fertilizers, detergents, animal and human excrements, food processing wastes 3. Pathogenic organisms - bacteria, viruses, protozoa excreted by diseased human or animal - results to surface water being unpotable (unsafe for drinking) - shellfish can concentrate in their tissues pathogens and can cause gastrointestinal infections 4. Suspended solids - organic and inorganic particles carried by WW to receiving water - would settle at the bottom as sediment - colloidal particles cause turbidity - excessive sediment load: turbidity increases, light penetration decreases, bacterial population increases and solids deposit on the bottom of the water body - CONS: decrease in hatching of the eggs of salmon 5. Toxic metals - classified as priority pollutants - main source is industrial wastes: metal plating and fabrication, electronics production, mining activities - ex. Cr(VI) is corrosive to the skin, carcinogen - ex. Se causes red staining of teeth, fingers and hair - ex. Ag causes gray discoloration of skin, eyes and mucous membranes 6. Endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) - Mimic estrogens, thyroid hormones that interferes with the reproductive and development in mammals, birds and reptiles - polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), atrazine 7. Heat - source: electric power plant industry - high T: increase production of clams and oysters - high T: increase O2 depletion since it is less soluble at high T Theoretical biological oxygen demand (ThOD) - amount of oxygen to oxidize a substance to CO2 and water, which is also known as ThOD or theoretical oxygen demand Example: Compute the ThOD of 108.75 mg/L glucose. C6H12O6 + 6O2 6CO2 + 6H2O

Solution: 6molO2 mg mol 1g 32 g mg g glu cos e glu cos e O2 = 116 O2 (0.116 O2 ) L 180 g 1000mg 1mo lg lu cos e mol L L Biological oxygen demand (BOD) - oxidation of an organic compound degraded by microbes 180.75 Air pollution 1. Carbon monoxide - formation: oxidation of CH4 with a hydroxyl radical to form alkyl radical CH3 - alkyl radical when exposed to light and O2 becomes CO - sources: motor vehicles, fossil fuel burning, solid waste disposal, miscellaneous burning of leaves - no obvious increase in CO levels due to CO reacts with hydroxyl radical to form CO2 2. Hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) - sources: fuel combustion, electroplating, petroleum production - examples: chloroform, lindane, most common: formaldehyde and acetaldehyde - chemicals in atmosphere undergo reactions to form HAPs - transformation to HAPs involves photolysis, reactions with ozone and hydroxyl radicals 3. Nitrogen dioxide - 74% originates from combustion processes - N2O NO NO2 particulate NO2- and NO- dissolution NO3(HNO3) acid rain 4. Sulfur oxides - sources: ocean, power plants, volcanoes - forms: SO2, SO3, SO24-, H2S - combustion of fossil fuel yields SO2 S + O2 SO2

Example

A coal is burned at a rate of 1.00 kg/s. The analysis of coal revealed sulfur content of 3.00%, what is the annual rate of emission of SO2? About 5% of sulfur ends up as ash. Solution Mass of sulfur from coal 1.00kg kg S 0.03 = 0.030 S s s Annually: 0.030kg S 60s 60 min 24h 365d kg S = 9.46 10 5 s 1 min 1h 1d 1 yr yr Sulfur in ash kg S kg S 9.46 10 5 0.05 = 4.73 10 4 yr yr Amount sulfur for SO2 conversion kg S kg S kg S 9.46 10 5 4.73 10 4 = 8.99 10 5 yr yr yr Amount of SO2 formed in one year 1mol SO2 64 g kg SO2 kg S mol 8.99 10 5 S SO2 = 1.80 10 6 yr 32 g 1mol S mol yr 5. Carbon dioxide - acts like a greenhouse - short wave radiation passes thru CO2 and heats the ground surface but also prevents the loss of heat by radiation from the ground surface - sources: burning of fossil fuels, deforestation, motor vehicles - CONS: snow melting leads to rise in sea levels (destruction of wetlands and salt water intrusion) Effects of air pollutants 1. Deterioration of materials - via abrasion, deposition and removal, direct and indirect chemical attack, electrochemical corrosion - ex. tarnishing of Ag caused by H2S - ex. reaction of SO2 & SO3 with limestone (CaCO3) to form CaSO4 with humidity greater than 60% - ex. leather becomes brittle when exposed to SO2 2. Vegetation damage

- deposition of NOx causes surface spotting and SOx causes plant bleaching 3. Public health - inhalation of particulate matter can cause bronchial asthma, chronic bronchitis, pulmonary emphysema - particle size 5-10m screened out by hairs in the nose, 1-2 m reaches the alveoli, < 0.5 m diffuses into the alveoli wall - lethal level of CO: > 5000 ppm - cigarette smoke contains 200-400 ppm of CO - HAPs such as benzene, asbestos, arsenic causes cancer