Environmental Engineering: Review for the Professional Engineering Examination

This book will help us expand further into chemical engineering and help the reader become a licensed professional engineer (PE), which can offer a tremendous boost to one’s career, as there are certain career opportunities available only to licensed engineers. Licensure demonstrates high standards of professionalism, knowledge, and ability.

There are four main steps to getting licensed as a professional engineer.  Each state and territory varies slightly, but in general one must graduate from an ABET-accredited engineering program, pass the fundamentals of engineering exam, gain work experience, and then pass the PE exam.

Because of the work experience requirement, PE examinees have generally been out of school for some time.  This book summarizes the theoretical background of topics covered in the exam, which will help potential examinees refresh their memories on subjects they may not have been exposed to since their undergraduate classes.  Another advantage of using this book to prepare for the PE exam is that two or three "logical distractors" (answers that result from common mistakes) are included among the answer choices for each problem.  The solutions to the problems also explain why the logical distractors are incorrect.  Research has shown that this is an efficient teaching tool.  Thus, the inclusion of these logical distractors and their explanations will give individuals a better foundation in the subject matter in a shorter period of time.

Although this book is intended primarily to help engineers prepare for the PE environmental engineering examination, it will also be useful in undergraduate engineering courses that cover environmental engineering topics. 
The introduction contains hints for successful completion of the exam and information on how to use this book.  Chapters 2 through 5 consist of a summary of relevant theory and multiple-choice sample examination problems for the four main topic areas of the exam (water, solid and hazardous waste, air, and environmental health, safety, and welfare).  The more than 100 sample problems presented in Chapters 2 through 5 are in the same multiple-choice format as the actual exam, and detailed solutions are provided.  An additional 100 original multiple-choice problems are provided in the Sample Exam in Chapter 6, again with detailed, step-by-step solutions.  The topic distribution of the problems in Chapters 2 through 5 and in Chapter 6 matches the NCEES descriptions of material covered in the examination, and topics covered in the chapters closely follow the syllabus published by NCEES for the Principals and Practice of Environmental Engineering exam. 

In addition to being a preparation text for potential examinees of the PE Environmental Engineering exam, this book will be an excellent reference text for students in undergraduate environmental, civil, and chemical engineering programs.

This book will help the reader expand further into chemical engineering and become a licensed professional engineer (PE), which can offer a tremendous boost to one’s career, as there are certain career opportunities available only to licensed engineers. Licensure demonstrates high standards of professionalism, knowledge, and ability.

Because of the work experience requirement, PE examinees have generally been out of school for some time.  This book summarizes the theoretical background of topics covered in the exam, which will help potential examinees refresh their memories on subjects they may not have been exposed to since their undergraduate classes.  Another advantage of using this book to prepare for the PE exam is that two or three "logical distractors" (answers that result from common mistakes) are included among the answer choices for each problem.  The solutions to the problems also explain why the logical distractors are incorrect.  Research has shown that this is an efficient teaching tool.  Thus, the inclusion of these logical distractors and their explanations will give individuals a better foundation in the subject matter in a shorter period of time.

Although this book is intended primarily to help engineers prepare for the PE environmental engineering examination, it will also be useful in undergraduate engineering courses that cover environmental engineering topics. 

CHAPTER 1:  WATER AND WASTEWATER..................................................................... 2

1.1                   WATER RESOURCES PLANNING.............................................................. 2

1.1.1.   Population Projection................................................................................................. 2

1.1.2.   Legal Aspects of Water Rights.................................................................................. 3

1.1.3.   Sources of Water....................................................................................................... 4

1.1.4.   Uses of Water............................................................................................................ 4

1.1.5.   Large-Scale Planning................................................................................................. 5

1.1.6.   Other Factors in Planning.......................................................................................... 5

1.2.                  WATER DISTRIBUTION AND WASTEWATER COLLECTION............. 5

1.2.1.   INTAKE OF WATER FOR DISTRIBUTION........................................................ 5

1.2.1.1.    Transportation of Water..................................................................................... 6

1.2.2.   WATER DISTRIBUTION AND TRANSPORTATION........................................ 8

1.2.2.1.    Design of Hydraulic System.............................................................................. 9

1.2.2.2.    Hydraulic Radius R Used for Non-Circular Conduits.................................... 10

1.2.3.   WASTEWATER COLLECTION SYSTEMS....................................................... 10

1.2.4.   FLUID MECHANICS AND HYDRAULICS...................................................... 12

1.2.4.1.    Flow measurement devices:............................................................................. 12

1.2.5.   FLUID FLOW IN PIPING SYSTEMS................................................................. 13

1.2.5.1.    Computation of h_f, the Head Loss................................................................... 15

1.3.                  CHARACTERISTICS OF WATER AND WASTEWATER....................... 16

1.3.1.   Chemical Types of Pollution.................................................................................... 16

1.3.2.   Physical Types of Pollution..................................................................................... 17

1.3.3.   Physiological Types of Pollution............................................................................. 18

1.3.4.   Biological Types of Pollution.................................................................................. 19

1.4.                  CHEMICAL, PHYSICAL, AND BIOLOGICAL PARAMETERS OF WATER QUALITY      19

1.4.1.   Analysis of water and wastewater........................................................................... 19

1.4.2.   SOLIDS CONTENT IN WASTEWATER............................................................ 20

1.4.3.   Water Treatment...................................................................................................... 23

1.4.3.1.    Sedimentation.................................................................................................. 23

1.4.3.2.    Hardness.......................................................................................................... 26

1.4.3.3.    Softening of hard water................................................................................... 27

1.4.3.4.    Coagulation and Flocculation.......................................................................... 28

1.4.3.5.    Mixing Processes............................................................................................. 29

1.4.3.6.    Adsorption....................................................................................................... 32

1.4.3.7.    Anaerobic Digester.......................................................................................... 43

Chapter 2.       GROUNDWATER, SOILS, AND REMEDIATION..................................... 1

2.1.  SOILS     ........................................................................................................................... 3

2.2.  FLOW FIELDS................................................................................................................. 3

2.3.  WELLS IN AQUIFERS................................................................................................... 4

2.4.  REMEDIATION TECHNOLOGIES.............................................................................. 5

2.4.1.   Non-Aqueous Phase Liquids..................................................................................... 5

2.4.2.   Pump and Treat Technology...................................................................................... 5

Chapter 3        Air...................................................................................................................... 2

3.1.                  Categories of air pollution................................................................................. 2

3.2.                  Harmful effects of air pollution......................................................................... 2

3.3.                  Codes, standards, regulations, and guidelines................................................... 3

3.4.                  Meteorology....................................................................................................... 4

3.5.                  Atmospheric chemistry...................................................................................... 6

3.6.                  Measuring air pollution...................................................................................... 8

3.7.                  Pollutant dispersion......................................................................................... 10

3.8.                  Risk management programs............................................................................. 12

3.9.                  Air transport systems....................................................................................... 13

3.10.                Treatment technologies.................................................................................... 15

3.11.                Odor generation and control............................................................................ 20

3.12.                Preventing air pollution.................................................................................... 21

Chapter 4.       Solid Waste....................................................................................................... 1

4.1.  Sources of Solid Waste..................................................................................................... 1

4.2.  Methods for the Disposal of Solid Wastes:....................................................................... 2

4.2.1.   Sanitary Landfill........................................................................................................ 2

4.3.  Site Selection..................................................................................................................... 3

4.3.1.   Site Selection – Landfills.......................................................................................... 3

4.3.1.1.    Objective Technical Factors............................................................................... 3

4.3.1.2.    Social and Economic Factors............................................................................. 3

4.3.2.   Operation of the Landfill.......................................................................................... 4

4.3.3.   Water Balance in Landfills........................................................................................ 5

4.3.4.   Leachate.................................................................................................................... 6

4.3.5.   Landfill Gas............................................................................................................... 8

4.3.5.1.    Upward movement of landfill gas the landfill cover:........................................ 8

4.3.5.2.    Downward movement of CO₂........................................................................... 9

4.3.5.3.    Use of Landfill Gas........................................................................................... 9

4.4.  Recycling........................................................................................................................... 9

4.4.1.   Paper........................................................................................................................ 10

4.4.2.   Aluminum and Copper............................................................................................ 10

4.4.3.   Ferrous Metals......................................................................................................... 10

4.4.4.   Glass........................................................................................................................ 10

4.4.5.   Plastics..................................................................................................................... 11

4.4.6.   Used Tires................................................................................................................ 11

4.4.7.   Construction and Demolition Wastes...................................................................... 11

4.4.8.   Yard Waste.............................................................................................................. 11

4.4.9.   Batteries................................................................................................................... 11

4.4.10. Waste Oil................................................................................................................. 11

4.5.  Composting..................................................................................................................... 12

4.6.  Incineration and Energy Recovery.................................................................................. 12

4.7.  Solid Waste Collection and Storage................................................................................ 13

4.8.  Regulations...................................................................................................................... 14

4.8.1.   Solid Waste Legal Aspects...................................................................................... 14

4.8.2.   National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).......................................................... 14

4.8.3.   Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) 15

4.8.4.   Resource Conservation Recovery Act (RCRA)...................................................... 15

5.1.                  Definition and characterization of different types of hazardous waste............ 2

5.2.                  Sampling and measurement methods for hazardous waste............................... 4

5.3.                  Storage, collection, and transportation systems for hazardous waste............... 5

5.4.                  Minimization, reduction, and recycling of hazardous waste............................. 6

5.5.                  Treatment and disposal technologies for hazardous waste................................ 7

5.6.                  Management of radioactive and mixed wastes............................................... 10

Chapter 6        Environmental Assessments and Emergency Response.................................... 2

6.1.                  Site assessment.................................................................................................. 2

6.2.                  Hydrogeology.................................................................................................... 2

6.3.                  Historical considerations and land use practices............................................... 5

6.4.                  Fate, partitioning, and transport of pollutants................................................... 5

6.5.                  Industrial hygiene, health, and safety................................................................ 7

6.6.                  Security, emergency plans, and incident response procedures.......................... 8

6.7.                  Fundamentals of epidemiology and toxicology................................................ 9

6.8.                  Exposure assessment and risk characterization................................................ 10

6.9.                  Radiation protection (health physics).............................................................. 11

6.10.                Vector control and sanitation, including biohazards....................................... 12

6.11.                Noise pollution................................................................................................. 13

6.12.                Indoor air quality............................................................................................. 14

Chapter 7        Error and Uncertainty in Environmental Measurements................................... 2

Exam 1            ........................................................................................................................... 1

Exam 1 Solutions..................................................................................................................... 20

Exam 2            ........................................................................................................................... 1

Exam 2 Solutions..................................................................................................................... 23