Basic Environmental Chemistry

Now that the transport and storage terms of Eqs. [1-la] and [1-lb] have been discussed, consider the source and sink terms. These correspond to the introduction or removal of a chemical due to either chemical reactions or transfer to another phase (e.g., volatilization of a chemical from water to air). Chemical reactions, which may occur spontaneously (abiotically) or be biologically 

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Possible role of the induced acidity and basicity in catalysis and environmental chemistry is discussed. The suggested mechanism explains the earlier reported promotive effect of some gases in the reactions catalyzed by Bronsted acid sites. Interaction between the weakly adsorbed air pollutants could lead to the enhancement of their uptake by aerosol particles as compared with separate adsoi ption, thus favoring air purification. 

For reactions in the near neutral or slightly basic pH regime - which are of interest in environmental chemistry and waste disposal problems - the presence of the common anions Cl-, S0i+ and CO3 can introduce additional complications. 

In order for the intended audience of students to become informed customers or, better still, trainee practitioners, we present in the final part some of the basic science necessary to appreciate the principles and practice underlying modern analytical chemistry. We hope that this basic science is presented in such a way that it might be useful for students of other applied chemistry disciplines, such as environmental chemistry or forensic chemistry, and even that students of chemistry might find some interest in the applications of archaeological chemistry. 

Peter A (2010) A plea for the restoration of Alpine rivers basic principles derived from the Rhone-Thur case study. In Bundi U (ed.) Alpine Waters. Handbook of Environmental Chemistry, Vol. 6. Springer, Heidelberg... 

Because of the growing importance of CFCs in environmental chemistry, a basic understanding of the chemistry and uses of this diverse chemical family is necessary. Together they represent a production of over 800 million Ib/yr that, at 1.00/lb, is a large commercial value. 

The field of environmental chemistry has now become so extensive that little more than a basic introduction can he provided to this fascinating discipline. For those wishing to pursue the subject in greater detail, a number of useful references are provided in the Further Reading section at the end of the hook. 

Environmental Chemistry is concerned with reactions in the environment. It is about distribution and equilibria between environmental compartments. It is about reactions, pathways, thermodynamics and kinetics. An important purpose of this Handbook, is to aid understanding of the basic distribution and chemical reaction processes which occur in the environment. 

The basic course content is typical for an introductory environmental chemistry course (Table 2.2). The syllabus is flexible and is modified to support the research projects. For example, when projects related to recycling are pursued, then topics related to polymers, plastics and paper chemistry are covered in detail. However, when biodiesel was the focus of a laboratory-based project (described below), then less time was spent on recycling-related topics and various organic chemistry topics were added. The syllabus is intentionally flexible and... 

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