Natural Water Remediation

Chemistry and Technology

James G. Speight

• Publisher: Butterworth-Heinemann
• Year: 2019
• ISBN:
  9780128038826
• Topic: Technik & Maschinenbau
• Subtopic: Umweltmanagement

Natural Water Remediation: Chemistry and Technology considers topics such as metal ion solubility controls, pH, carbonate equilibria, adsorption reactions, redox reactions and the kinetics of oxygenation reactions that occur in natural water environments. The book begins with the fundamentals of acid-base and redox chemistry to provide a better understanding of the natural system. Other sections cover the relationships among environmental factors and natural water (including biochemical factors, hydrologic cycles and sources of solutes in the atmosphere). Chemical thermodynamic models, as applied to natural water, are then discussed in detail.

Final sections cover self-contained applications concerning composition, quality measurement and analyses for river, lake, reservoir and groundwater sampling.

• Covers the fundamentals of acid-base and redox chemistry for environmental engineers
• Focuses on the practical uses of water, soil mineral and bedrock chemistry and how they impact surface and groundwater
• Includes applications concerning composition, quality measurement and analyses for river, lake, reservoir and groundwater sampling

1

Water systems

Abstract

The Earth is a combination of interrelated, interdependent, or interacting parts forming a collective whole or entity. On a macro level, the Earth system maintains its existence and functions as a whole through the interactions of the component parts which for the purposes of this text are: (i) the atmosphere, (ii) the hydrosphere, and (iii) the lithosphere. These component parts interconnected by processes and cycles, which, over time, intermittently store, transform, and/or transfer matter and energy throughout the whole Earth system in ways that are governed by the thermodynamic laws of conservation of matter and energy. These component parts—the atmosphere, the hydrosphere, and the lithosphere are described in turn in stand-alone sections.

Keywords

Atmosphere; Hydrosphere; Groundwater; Ice sheets; Glaciers; Ponds; Lakes; Streams; Rivers; Wetlands; Oceans; Lithosphere; Soil composition; Soil pollution; Aquatic organisms

Chapter outline

• 1 Introduction
• 2 The atmosphere
  • 2.1 The troposphere
  • 2.2 The stratosphere
  • 2.3 The mesosphere
  • 2.4 The thermosphere
  • 2.5 The exosphere
• 3 The hydrosphere
  • 3.1 Groundwater
  • 3.2 Ice sheets and glaciers
  • 3.3 Ponds and lakes
  • 3.4 Streams and rivers
  • 3.5 Wetlands
  • 3.6 The oceans
• 4 The lithosphere
  • 4.1 Types
  • 4.2 Composition of soil
  • 4.3 Soil pollution
• 5 Interrelationships
• 6 Aquatic organisms
  • 6.1 Algae and phytoplankton
  • 6.2 Bacteria
  • 6.3 Fungi
  • 6.4 Protozoa
• 7 The global water cycle
  • 7.1 Freshwater resources
  • 7.2 Depletion of freshwater resources
  • 7.3 Water pollution
  • 7.4 Water-related diseases
  • 7.5 General effects
• References
• Further reading

1 Introduction

The Earth is a complex interrelationship between the air (the atmosphere), water (the hydrosphere), and land (lithosphere) (Speight, 1996; Speight and Lee, 2000; Weiner and Matthews, 2003: Spellman, 2008; Manahan, 2010). In addition, the geosphere is often used as collective name for the atmosphere, the hydrosphere, and the lithosphere and it is also used along with the atmosphere, the hydrosphere, and the biosphere to describe the systems of the Earth and the interaction of these systems. On a more specific basis, the term geosphere is often used to refer to the solid parts of the Earth—the rocks, the minerals that make up the outer core or mantle and the iron-rich material that makes up the inner core of the Earth (Table 1.1). In that context, sometimes the term lithosphere is used instead of geosphere for the solid parts of the Earth. The lithosphere, however, only refers to the uppermost layers of the solid Earth (oceanic and continental crustal rocks and uppermost mantle).

Table 1.1

Mineral groups of the earth

Mineral group	Example	Simple formula
Silicate	Quartz	SiO2
	Olivine	(Mg,Fe)2Si4
	Potassium feldspar	KAlSi3Og
Oxide	Corundum	Al2O3
	Magnetite	Fe3O4
Carbonates	Calcite	CaCO3
	Dolomite	CaCO3.MgCO3
Sulfides	Pyrite	FeS2
	Galena	PbS
	Gypsum	CaSO4.2H2O
Halides	Halite	NaCl
	Fluorite	CaF2
Native elements	Copper	Cu
	Sulfur	S

The three major constituents of air, and therefore of atmosphere of the Earth, are nitrogen, oxygen, and argon. Thus, the atmosphere of the Earth is a mixture of chemical constituents—the most abundant of them are nitrogen (N₂, (78% v/v) and oxygen (O₂, (21% v/v). These gases, as well as the noble gases (argon, neon, helium, krypton, xenon), possess very long lifetimes against chemical destruction and, hence, are relatively well mixed throughout the entire homosphere (below approximately 295, 000 ft altitude). Minor constituents, such as water vapor, carbon dioxide, ozone, and many others, also play an important role despite their lower concentration.

In the current context of natural water, water vapor accounts for approximately 0.25% w/w of the atmosphere by mass. More pertinent to the current text, the concentration of water vapor varies significantly from approximately 10 ppm by volume (ppm v/v) in the coldest portions of the atmosphere to as much as 5% v/v in the hot, humid air masses (typically found in the tropical zones), and concentrations of other atmospheric gases are typically quoted in terms of dry air (without water vapor). The remaining gases are often referred to as trace gases, among which are the greenhouse gases, principally carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and ozone. The spatial and temporal distribution of chemical species in the atmosphere is determined by several processes, including surface emissions and deposition, chemical and photochemical reactions, and transport by wind and water.

Surface emissions are associated with volcanic eruptions, floral and faunal activity on the continents as well as in the ocean, as well as anthropological activity such as biomass burning, agricultural practices, and industrial activity. Chemical conversions are achieved by a multitude of reactions whose rate constants are measured in the laboratory. Transport is usually represented by large-scale advective motion (displacements of air masses in the quasi-horizontal direction), and by smaller scale processes, including convective motions (vertical motions produced by thermal instability and often associated with the presence of large cloud systems), boundary layer exchanges, and mixing associated with turbulence. Wet deposition results from precipitation of soluble species, while the rate of dry deposition is affected by the nature of the surface (such as the type of soil and the types of vegetation as well as ocean currents).

When a chemical is introduced into the environment, it becomes distributed among the four major environmental compartments: (i) air, (ii) water, (iii) land, and (iv) biota (living organisms). Each of the first three categories can be further subdivided in floral (plant) environments and faunal (animal, including human) environments. The portion of the chemical that will move into each compartment is governed by the physical and chemical properties of the chemical. In addition, the distribution of a chemical in the environment is governed by physical processes such as sedimentation, adsorption, and volatilization after which the chemical can then be degraded by chemical processes, physical processes, and/or biological processes. Chemical processes generally occur in water or the atmosphere and follow one of four reactions: oxidation, reduction, hydrolysis, and photolysis. Biological mechanisms in soil and living organisms utilize oxidation, reduction, hydrolysis and conjugation to degrade chemicals.

The degradation process for many inorganic and organic chemicals is typically controlled by the ecosystem (air, water, land, atmosphere, biota) in which the chemical is distributed and further control is exerted on the chemical by one or more of the physical processes already mentioned (i.e., sedimentation, adsorption, and volatilization). When assessing the impact of a chemicals on the environment, the most critical characteristics are: (i) the type of chemical, which depends on the type of industry and/or the process from which the chemical originated, (ii) the amount and concentration of the chemical. Each of the systems that can be affected by the entry of a chemical are presented below and it is the purpose of following sections to introduce the various environmental systems of the Earth and the interrelationships of these systems to each other.

Thus the Earth can be viewed as a combination of interrelated, interdependent, or interacting parts forming a collective whole or entity. On a macro level, the Earth system maintains its existence and functions as a whole through the interactions of the component parts which for the purposes of this text are: (i) the atmosphere, (ii) the hydrosphere, and (iii) the lithosphere. These component parts interconnected by processes and cycles, which, over time, intermittently store, transform, and/or transfer matter and energy throughout the whole Earth system in ways that are governed by the thermodynamic laws of conservation of matter and energy (Chapter 4).

These component parts—the atmosphere, the hydrosphere, and the lithosphere are described in turn in the following sections.

2 The atmosphere

The atmosphere is the layer or a set of layers of gases surrounding the Earth that is held in place by gravity. By volume, dry air contains nitrogen (78.09%), oxygen (20.95%), argon (0.93%), carbon dioxide (0.04%), and small amounts of other gases.

Chemical compounds released at the surface by natural processes and by anthropogenic processes are oxidized in the atmosphere before being removed by wet or dry deposition. Key chemical species of the troposphere include organic compounds such as methane and non-methane hydrocarbon derivatives as well as oxygenated organic species and carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides (which are also produced by lightning discharges in thunderstorms) as well as nitric acid. Other chemical species include: hydrogen compounds (and specifically the hydroxy radical, OH, and the hydroperoxy radical, HO₂, as well as hydrogen peroxide, H₂O₂, ozone, O₃, and sulfur compounds (such as dimethyl sulfide, CH₃SCH₃, sulfur dioxide, SO₂, and sulfuric acid, H₂SO₄]. The hydroxyl radical (OH) deserves additional consideration since it has the capability of reacting with and efficiently destroying a large number of organic chemical compounds, and hence of contributing directly to the oxidation capacity (reactivity) of the atmosphere.

Finally, the release of sulfur compounds at the surface of the Earth surface and the subsequent oxidation of the sulfur compounds in the atmosphere leads to the formation of small liquid or solid particles that remain in suspension in the atmosphere. These aerosol particles affect the radiative balance of the atmosphere directly, by reflecting and absorbing solar radiation, and indirectly, by influencing cloud microphysics. The release to the atmosphere of sulfur compounds has increased dramatically, particularly in regions of Asia, Europe, and North America as a result of human activities, specifically coal combustion (Speight, 2013a,b).

Physically, the atmosphere is the thin and fragile envelope of air surrounding the Earth that is held in place around the Earth by gravitational attraction and which has a substantial effect on the environment. The atmosphere contains oxygen used by most organisms for respiration and carbon dioxide used by plants, algae, and cyanobacteria for photosynthesis. Also, the atmosphere helps protect living organisms from genetic damage by solar ultraviolet radiation, solar wind, and cosmic rays. Its current composition is the product of billions of years of biochemical modification of the paleoatmosphere by living organisms. The atmosphere can be divided (atmospheric stratification) into five main layers. Generally,...

Table of contents

• Cover image
• Title page
• Table of Contents
• Copyright
• About the author
• Preface
• 1: Water systems
• 2: The properties of water
• 3: Water chemistry
• 4: Thermodynamics of water
• 5: Sources of water pollution
• 6: Crude oil in water systems
• 7: Water and hydraulic fracturing
• 8: Remediation technologies
• 9: Pollution prevention
• Conversion tables
• Glossary
• Selected examples of ASTM standard test methods for water
• Index