Textbook

Environmental Engineering: Fundamentals, Sustainability, Design

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Mihelcic and Zimmerman introduce the field of environmental engineering by engaging the student in the comprehensive development of basic principles as well as providing a strong focus on designing for sustainability. The breadth of content and level of treatment is appropriate for undergraduate courses in environmental engineering. By grounding their approach on the elements of design, the authors instruct students in how to use the tools of green engineering to design for sustainability and the future of our planet and its inhabitants. The book has been designed to be covered, essentially in its entirety, in one semester.

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Table of Contents

Chapter One: Engineering and Sustainable and Development.

1.1 Background.

1.2 Defining Sustainability.

1.3 Issues That Will Affect Engineering Practice in the Future.

1.4 The Sustainability Revolution.

Key Terms.

Chapter One Problems.

References.

Chapter Two: Environmental Measurements.

2.1 Mass Concentration Units.

2.2 Volume/Volume and Mole/Mole Units.

2.3 Partial-Pressure Units.

2.4 Mole/Volume Units.

2.5 Other Types of Units.

Key Terms.

Chapter Two Problems.

References.

Chapter Three: Chemistry.

3.1 Approaches in Environmental Chemistry.

3.2 Activity and Concentration.

3.3 Reaction and Stoichiometry.

3.4 Thermodynamic Laws.

3.5 Volatilization.

3.6 Air-Water Equilibrium.

3.7 Acid-Base Chemistry.

3.8 Oxidation-Reduction.

3.9 Precipitation-Dissolution.

3.10 Adsorption, Absorption, and Sorption.

3.11 Kinetics.

Key Terms.

Chapter Three Problems.

References.

Chapter Four: Physical Processes.

4.1 Mass Balances.

4.2 Energy Balances.

4.3 Mass Transport Processes.

Key Terms.

Chapter Four Problems.

References.

Chapter Five: Biology.

5.1 Ecosystem Structure and Function.

5.2 Population Dynamics.

5.3 Energy Flow in Ecosystems.

5.4 Oxygen Demand: Biochemical, Chemical, and Theoretical.

5.5 Material Flow in Ecosystem.

5.6 Ecosystem Health and the Public Welfare.

Key Terms.

Chapter Five Problems.

References.

Chapter Six: Environmental Risk.

6.1 Risk and the Engineer.

6.2 Risk Perception.

6.3 Hazardous Waste and Toxic Chemicals.

6.4 Engineering Ethics and Risk.

6.5 Risk Assessment.

6.6 More Complicated Problems with at Least Two Exposure Routes.

Key Terms.

Chapter Six Problems.

References.

Chapter Seven: Green Engineering.

7.1 What Is ”Green Engineering?”

7.2 Design.

7.3 Pollution Prevention, Design for Environment, Industrial Ecology, Sustainability.

7.4 Fundamental Concepts.

7.5 Measuring Sustainability.

7.6 Policies Driving Green Engineering and Sustainability.

7.7 Designing a Sustainable Future.

Key Terms.

Chapter Seven Problems.

References.

Chapter Eight: Water Quality.

8.1 Introduction.

8.2 River Water Quality.

8.3 Lake and Reservoir Water Quality.

8.4 Wetlands.

8.5 Low-Impact Development.

8.6 Groundwater Quality.

Key Terms.

Chapter Eight Problems.

References.

Chapter Nine: Water Supply, Distribution, and Wastewater Collection.

9.1 Introduction.

9.2 Water Availability.

9.3 Water Usage.

9.4 Municipal Water Demand.

9.5 Water Distribution and Wastewater Collection Systems.

Key Terms.

Chapter Nine Problems.

References.

Chapter Ten: Water Treatment.

10.1 Introduction.

10.2 Characteristics of Untreated Water.

10.3 Water Quality Standards.

10.4 Overview of Water Treatment Processes.

10.5 Coagulation and Flocculation.

10.6 Hardness Removal.

10.7 Sedimentation.

10.8 Filtration.

10.9 Disinfection.

10.10 Membrane Processes.

10.11 Adsorption.

10.12 Energy Usage.

Key Terms.

Chapter Ten Problems.

References.

Chapter Eleven: Wastewater Treatment.

11.1 Introduction.

11.2 Characteristics of Domestic Wastewater.

11.3 Overview of Treatment Processes.

11.4 Preliminary Treatment.

11.5 Primary Treatment.

11.6 Secondary Treatment.

11.7 Modifications to the Activated-Sludge Process.

11.8 Attached-Growth Reactors.

11.9 Removal of Nutrients: Nitrogen and Phosphorus.

11.10 Disinfection and Aeration.

11.11 Sludge Treatment and Disposal.

11.12 Natural Treatment Systems.

11.13 Energy Usage during Wastewater.

Key Terms.

Chapter Eleven Problems.

References.

Chapter Twelve: Air Resources Engineering.

12.1 Introduction.

12.2 Human Health Impacts and Defenses.

12.3 Transport of Air.

12.4 Air Pollutants.

12.5 Emissions.

12.6 Control of Air Emissions.

12.7 Gaseous Emission-Control Technologies.

12.8 Particulate Emission-Control Technologies.

Key Terms.

Chapter Twelve Problems.

References.

Chapter Thirteen: Solid-Waste Management.

13.1 Introduction.

13.2 Solid-Waste Characterization.

13.3 Components of Solid-Waste Systems.

13.4 Management Concepts.

Key Terms.

Chapter Thirteen Problems.

References.

Chapter Fourteen: Built Environment.

14.1 Introduction.

14.2 Context-Sensitive Design.

14.3 Buildings.

14.4 Materials.

14.5 End of Life: Deconstruction, Demolition, Disposal.

14.6 Rightsizing Buildings.

14.7 Energy Efficiency: Insulation, Infiltration, and Thermal Walls.

14.8 Mobility.

14.9 Urban Heat Island.

14.10 Urban Planning, Smart Growth, and Planned Communities.

Key Terms.

Chapter Fourteen Problems.

References.

Answers to Selected Problems.

Chapter Opener Photo Credits.

Index.

Author Information

Mihelcic and Zimmerman and their co-authors introduce the field of environmental engineering by engaging the reader in a comprehensive development of basic principles, as well as providing a strong focus on design for sustainability. The breadth of content and level of treatment is appropriate for civil and environmental engineers and practitioners of elated disciplines seeking a survey of the field. By grounding their approach on the elements of design, the authors instruct readers in how to use the tools of green engineering to design for sustainability and the future of our planet and its inhabitants.

Hallmark Features

A FOCUS ON SUSTAINABLE DESIGN

Perhaps one of the most important aspects of the textbook is that it will focus the student on the elements of design. Design of products, processes, and systems will be essential not only in responding to the environmental issues in ways that our profession has done historically but also in informing the design of new products, processes, and systems to reduce or eliminate problems from occurring in the first place.

To use the tools of green engineering design truly to design for sustainability, students need a command of the framework for this design. The framework perhaps can be summarized in the four I s: (1) Inherency, (2) Integration, (3) Interdisciplinary, and (4) International.

Inherency As a reader proceeds through the text, it will become obvious that we are not merely looking at how to change the conditions or circumstances that make a product, process, or system a problem. Readers will understand the inherent nature of the material and energy inputs and outputs so that they are able to understand the fundamental basis of the hazard and the root causes of the adverse consequence they seek to address. Only through this inherency approach can we begin to design for sustainability rather than generating elegant technological bandages for flawed conceptions.

Integration Our historical approaches toward many environmental issues have been fragmented often by media, life cycle, culture, or geographic region. Understanding that energy is inextricably linked to water, water to climate change, climate change to food production, food production to health care, health care to societal development, and so on will be essential in the new paradigm of sustainable design. It is equally necessary to understand that we cannot think about approaching any environmental problem without looking at the problem across all elements of its life cycle. There have been countless attempts to improve environmental circumstances that have resulted in unintended problems that have often been worse than the problem they intended to fix. Attempts to increase drinking water supply in Bangladesh resulted in widespread arsenic poisoning. Attempts to increase crop yields through the production of pesticides in Bhopal, India, resulted in one of the greatest chemical tragedies of our time. Understanding the complex interconnections and ensuring the integration of multiple factors in the development of solutions is something that 21st century environmental engineering requires.

Interdisciplinary To achieve the goals of sustainable design, environmental engineers will be working increasingly with a wide array of other disciplines. Technicaldisciplines of chemistry and biology and other engineering disciplines will be essential but so will the disciplines of economics, systems analysis, health, sociology, and anthropology. This text seeks to introduce the interdisciplinary dimensions that will be important to the successful environmental engineer in this century. International Many well-intentioned engineering solutions of the 20th century would fail by not considering the very different context found in the diversity of nations around the world. Although water purification or municipal waste may seem like they can be dealt with through identical processes anywhere in the world, it has been shown repeatedly that the local factors geographic, climatic, cultural, socioeconomic, political, ethnic, and historical can all play a role in the success or failure of an environmental engineering solution. The international perspective is an important one this textbook emphasizes and incorporates into the fundamentals of the training of environmental engineers.

MATERIAL AND ENERGY BALANCES AND LIFE CYCLE THINKING

The book provides a rigorous development of mass and energy and mass balance concepts with numerous easy-to-follow example problems. It then applies mass and energy balance concepts to a wide range of natural and engineered systems and different environmental media. The book has appropriate coverage of life cycle assessment with an in-depth example problem and provides a life cycle thinking approach in discussion throughout other chapters.

PEDAGOGY AND ASSESSMENT

Beyond including the elements mentioned previously to prepare engineers for the 21st century, this book also incorporates changes in pedagogy and assessment that provide structure for delivering this new information in a meaningful education experience.

Fink s Taxonomy of Significant Learning

One such element is the use ofFink s taxonomy of significant learning in guiding the development of learning objectives for each chapter as well as in example and homework problems. Fink s taxonomy recognizes six domains including the traditionally considered foundational knowledge, including: foundational knowledge; application of knowledge; integration of knowledge; human dimensions of learning and caring; and learning how to learn. Without much background on the taxonomy, it is clear from these knowledge domain headings alone that these areas recognized by Fink are critical to an engineer tasked with designing solutions to many of today s sustainability challenges.

Web Modules

Icons in the margin indicate when Web modules are available on the book Web site to enhance and expand on the concepts presented in the book. Modules include animations, video clips, spreadsheets, document and PDF files, and executables. This platform provides students with a visual and interactive learning environment in which they can explore fundamentals, design, and sustainability by visually seeing how changes in numerical inputs affect the output of design and operation.

Important Equations Boxes around important equations indicate for students which are most critical.