Environmental Pollution; Types, Causes & Resolutions. IITR

Various types and causes of Environmental Polution. The major steps to prevent Environmental Pollution.

1. Environmental pollution: Environmental pollution: Sources, causes Sources, causes
, ,
effect and effect and
control control
Dr. Dr.
RenuRenu
Bhargava Bhargava
Professor, Professor,
EnvEnv
EnggEngg
Section, Section,
Deptt Deptt
of Civil of Civil
EnggEngg
.,.,
IIT, IIT,
Roorkee Roorkee

2. Pollution Pollution
Pollution may be defined as ‘an undesirable change in the physical, chemical or biological characteristics of our air, water and land that may or will harmfully, affect human life, the lives of the desirabl
e species, our industrial processes,
living conditions and cultural assets, or
that may or will waste
o
r deteriorate our
raw materials. Pollution is mostly man made, but it c
an also be natural. Natural pollution is
caused by volcanic eruptions, emission of
natural gases, soil erosion, ultraviolet
rays, cosmic rays etc.

3. Types of Pollution Types of Pollution
•
Atmospheric (air) pollution
•
Water pollution
•
Soil/land pollution
•
Radioactive pollution
•
Noise pollution

4. Air Pollution

5. Definition Definition
Presence of foreign material in the air which are harmful to man and environment.

6. Sources of Air Pollution Sources of Air Pollution
A. Natural B. Anthropogenic
Domestic Commercial Agricultural Industrial Transportation related sources

7. Natural sources Natural sources
Natural pollutant emissions vary from one location to another, with seasonal, geological and meteorological conditions and with the type of vegetation eg. Volcanic eruptions, forest fires, dust storms etc.

8. Domestic Sources Domestic Sources
In residential areas, domestic activities are the major causes of pollutant emissions.
Activity
Pollutants released
Space heating
C
O, CO
2
, NO
x
, So
x
, soot, smoke (if fossil fuels are burned at the
residence)
Cooking
F
ats ( as solids, liquids, and vapors), particles, odors
Cleaning
S
olvent vapors, dust, lint, spray can propellants
Gardening
P
esticides, fertilizers (some of which may be highly toxic)
Painting
Principally solvent vapors
Washing
D
etergent particles, soap particles, lint

9. Commercial Sources Commercial Sources
•
commercial sources of air pollution include the public services industries eg.,dry cleaning of clothes.
•
Other include restaurants, hotels, schools, printing and painting.

10. Agricultural Sources Agricultural Sources
•
animal feed operations
•
Cotton particles during harvesting and processing in sufficient quantities
•
Pesticides and insecticides

11. Industrial sources Industrial sources
A few of the polluting industries are
•
Fertilizer and explosive manufactures (produces NO
x
)
•
Paper plants, natural gas cleaning and processing plants, oil refineries, synthetic fibers plant ( Hydrogen sulfide)
•
Cast iron and other metallurgical processes ( CO)
•
Industries related to petroleum and natural gas industries (VOCs)

12. Transportation related sources Transportation related sources
•
Except agriculture the transportation sector releases one third of the total emissions of VOCs, nitrogen oxides, and lead and more two thirds of the carbon monoxide.

13. Sources of air pollution

14. Important Air Pollution Sources and emisions
Category
E
xamples
I
m
portant Pollutants
Chemical plant
Petroleum refi
neries, fertilizers, cement,
paper mill, ceramic,
cl
ay products and
glass manufacture
Hydrogen sulphi
de, sul
p
hur
o
xides,
flourides, organic
vapors and dusts.
Crop sprayi
ng
Pest and w
e
ed contro
l
O
rganophosphates, chlori
nated
hydrocarbons, lead, arsenic.
Fuel burning
D
omestic burnin
g,
t
h
erm
a
l power
plant
s
Su
phur
and nitrogen oxides.
Metal
lurgical pl
ants
Alumi
n
ium refineries, steel
p
la
n
ts
Metal fume
s ( Le
ad a
n
d Zinc) flou
rid
e
s
and particulates.
Nucl
ea
r de
vice testin
g
B
om
b expl
osions
Radioactive fa
ll
outs, Sr-90, C
a
-137, C-
14, etc.
Ore preparation
C
rushi
ng, grindi
ng scr
eeni
ng
Urani
u
m and Berylli
um dust, other
particul
a
tes, argon-41, Iodi
ne-131
Spray pai
n
ting, solvent extractions,
inks, solve
n
t clea
ni
ng
Furniture and appli
ances dyeing,
pri
n
tin
g
s a
nd ch
emica
l sep
a
ratio
n
s, dry
cleani
ng
Hydrocarbons and ot
her organic vapors
Transportation
C
ars, trucks, aeropl
anes
and ra
ilways
Carbon monoxid
e, nitrogen oxides,
lead, smoke, organic vapors etc.
Waste rec
o
very
Scrap meta
l yard
s, rendering pl
ants
Smoke,
so
ot. Odors.
Organic vapors
metal fume
s.

15. Pollutants Pollutants
Classification Primary pollutant
Secondary pollutant
Photoc
hemical smog, acid rain
Gaseous ---oxides of carbon, oxides of sulphur, oxides of nitrogen, hydrocarbons
Particulate---lead, SPM, RSP
M
,
Pollen, dust, fly ash etc.

16. Photochemical smog Photochemical smog
The product of photochemic
a
l reacti
ons are formaldehyde, peroxybenzoyl
Nitrate (PBzN), peroxyacetyl
nitrate (PAN),
and acrolein.
Hydrocarbons + NO
x
+ Sunlight Ph
otochemic
a
l smog
The NO-NO
2
-O
3
photochemic
a
l reaction sequence
N
2
+O
2
2NO
2NO+O
2
2NO
2
In presence of sunlight NO
2
+ hv
NO +O
O +O
2
+M O
3
+M
Where hv
means photon (
λ
<0.38µm)
Ozone then c
o
nvert NO back to NO
2

17. Emissions
Nitric oxide (NO)
Nitrogen dioxide (NO
2
)
Atomic oxygen (O)
Ozone (O
3
)
Oxygen (O
2
)
SUN
Fig. 3: Atmospheric nitrogen photolytic cycle

18. Reaction of hydrocarbons with NO
x
HC can cause NO to convert to NO
2
Reducing NO removes O
3
slowly
Increase in NO
2
gives rise to increase in oz
one production as shown below
RO
2
-
NO
R
-
RH emissi
ons
RO
-
HO
2
-
H
2
O
OH-
O
2
NO NO
2
O
2
R’CHO
NO
2

19. Effects Effects
Poll
utants
Effec
t
s on Man, Ve
getation and ot
her ma
te
rials
Carci
n
ogenic hydroc
arbon
O
n man ---
Cancer
Carbon monoxide
O
n man –
P
oisoni
ng, increased accident liability
Dust
On man---
Repiratory
diseases
, fiseases
like silicosis (cough,
cold, sn
e
e
zing, a
lle
rg
ic dese
ases, etc), asb
e
stosis, byssi
nosis,
poisoning from metal
lic
dust
Hydrogen sulphi
de
On man–
irritation of
respi
r
atory passages, danger of
respiratory paralysis
and
asphy
x
ia
t
ion
On mate
ria
ls–
Da
rke
n
ing of
pai
nted surfaces, corrosion
Hydrogen fl
ouride
O
n ma
n –
irritati
on, d
iseas
es of b
o
n
e
(flo
ur
o
s
is), mottli
n
g of
teeth, respi
r
atory diseases
On veg
e
tati
on –
destr
u
c
tion of cr
o
p
s
Heavy metals
On man –
s
pecific poi
s
oni
n
g,
retardati
o
n of activities of brai
n,
interference in enzyme activi
ti
es in liver and kidney
Nitrogen di
oxide
O
n man –irritatio
n , brochitis, oedema
of lungs
Photochemical smog (oxidant
s)
On ma
n –
lun
g irr
itati
o
n
, asthm
a
, bro
n
c
h
itis,e
tc
On veg
e
tati
on –
d
e
stru
ction of v
e
g
e
tatio
n
On mate
ria
ls–
d
e
ter
io
r
atio
n of ru
bber products such as tyres
and insul
a
ti
ng wi
res
Sulp
hu
r
d
io
x
ide
On ma
n–
s
u
ffocati
on, i
rrita
ti
on of throat and eyes, respiratory
diseases. On veg
e
tati
on
–
d
estru
c
tion of s
e
n
s
itive cro
p
s
and re
duc
ed yi
el
d
On mate
ria
ls –
c
orrosi
on.

20. Acid Rain and dry acid deposition

21. Control of Air pollution Control of Air pollution
I.Control
o
f particulate matter
•
Arresters
•
Scrubbers
II. Control of gaseous pollutants III. Control of automobile exhaust

22. Some air pollution control devices

23. Air pollution Meteorology Air pollution Meteorology
•
The rate of decrease of temperatur
e with increase in height is called
the temperature lapse rate. If
the ra
te of decrease refers to the air
env
ironment, it is called the environmental lapse rate.
10-2
0km
Stratosphere
Troposphere
Height
Temperature
Fig.1: Temperature change w
ith height illus
trating positive lapse in the troposphere.

24. Superadi
abati
c
TEMPERATURE
HEIGHT
Un
stable
Neutral
S
table I
Stable II
Adiabatic
Suba
di
a
b
a
t
ic
Negative (i
nversion)
Envi
ronmental Lapse Rate
Process Lapse Rate (Adiabatic)
Fig 2: Stability of an air parcel dete
rmined by environmental lapse rate.

25. Top
Inversion layer
Inversion layer
Top
Base
Base
HEIGHT
TEMPERATURE
Fig.3: Surface i
n
version and i
n
version aloft.

26. Assesment Assesment
The pollution can be assesed
b
y the use of
a.
High volume sampler
b.
Gas bubbler
c.
Respirable dust monitoring equipments
d.
Stack monitoring

27. Water pollution Water pollution
It is defined as the addition of some substance (organic, inorganic, biological or radiological) or factor (heat), which degrade the quality of water so that it either becomes health hazards or unfit for use.

28. Sources of water pollution Sources of water pollution
N
on-po
in
t sou
r
ces
P
o
int
source


1.M
u
ni
ci
p
a
l wa
st
e
wat
e
r
Mo
st impo
r
t
a
n
t charac
te
r
istic
s
BO
D, C
O
D,D
O
, m
e
t
a
ls
A
g
ricult
ural so
urce
s
Fertilizers, pe
stici
des,
f
u
ngi
c
ides
Subs
tances like
D
D
T

g
ives r
is
e
to

b
io
m
agn
ification
2
.Indus
tr
ia
l was
t
e wa
te
r
Inorgan
ic
Different met
a
ls,
F
lou
r
ides
, su
lphates
,
C
y
an
ide, o
x
ides
of
ir
on,
mercury,
a
c
id
, alkali et
c
O
r
gan
ic
C
a
rbohyd
r
a
t
e
,

prot
eins, oils
, fats
,
phen
o
ls
,
o
r
g
a
n
ic
ac
id
s e
t
c.
3.
T
h
erm
a
l
pollution
Ma
in

sour
ces
a
r
e
the
r
ma
l and nuc
lea
r
po
w
e
r
p
lan
t

29. A few industrial sources of water pollution

30. Effect on the aquatic system Effect on the aquatic system
•
The oxygen demand in waste consumes Do from water and it may bring it down to a value les
s
than
4ppm which is threshold value
f
or
the survival of fish and other aquatic
life. Reduced DO als
o
eliminate
the sensitive species like plankt
on, molusc
and fish while annelid
worm and some insect larvae are tolerant to low DO content.
•
The DO of the water depends
upon the temperature of water
•
Heavy metals and high temperature also affects the organisms
•
Eutrophic
a
tion
algal bloom

31. Effects on human health Effects on human health
•
The waste water or sewage c
ontains pathogens which when
consumed causes jaundice, c
holera, typhoid, amoebios
is
etc.
•
Heavy metals can cause seri
ous health problems. Murcuric
compounds are converted by bacterial actions into methyl mercury which causes numbness of limbs, lips
and tongue, blurring of vision
and metal derangement
•
Minimata
desease
w
as caused in 1952 in Japan due to consumption
of mercury
•
Cadmium can cause itai
itai
disease whic
h is a painful disease of
bones and joints, cancer of lungs and liv
e
r.
•
lead causes anaemia, headache, loss
of muscle pow
e
r and bluish
line around gums

32. Excess nitrate (ground water) may be fatal for infants. It causes Methaemoglobinemia
or blue baby disease
Haemoglobin
+
nitrate methaemoglobin
Flouride
Causes teeth deformaty
hardening of bones and
Skeletal florosis

33. Control Control
1.Sewage should be suitably treated
before discharging into the water
body
Conventional waste treatment
Primary
Secondary
Tertiary
Biological treatment
ASP Trickling filter Oxydation
pond
Oxydation
d
itch
Aerated Lagoon UASB and Sludge Thickening and treatment
Polishing ponds Nutrient removal Disinfection
Screen Grit Chamber Settling

34. Soil /land Pollution Soil /land Pollution
•
The top soil gets polluted by the addition
of the substances
to the soil which
adversely affec
t
physical,
chemical and biological proper
ties of
soil and reduces its
productivity
•
The process of soil production is very
slow and hence the soil can be considered as
non-renewable resource.
•
Soil pollution may occur by dumping and disp
osing the waste directly on land,
application of agrochemicals or
indirectly through air
pollution.
•
Main soil pollutants are
•
Industrial waste
•
Pesticides
•
Fertilizers and manures
•
Di
scard
ed waste
•
Solid and semi s
o
lid
•
Radioactive sources
•
And other
polluting materials entering indirectly

35. Effect Effect
•
Salination
o
f the soil
•
The soil may become infertile
•
The pollutants may leach down with
the rain water polluting the
ground water

36. Control Control
•
Manage the solid waste properly
•
Pneumatic pipes should be laid for collecting and disposing waste
•
Industrial waste should be dumped in special pits
•
Chemical fertilizers and pesticides used may be reduced---
biofertilizer,
biopesticides

37. Radioactive pollution Radioactive pollution
•
Natural sources---
from earth’s crust
•
Man made sources
•
Nuclear power plant
•
Atomic explosions
•
Nuclear fall out
•
Radioactive isotopes used in laboratories, radiation therapy

38. Effects of radioactive pollution Effects of radioactive pollution
•
It depends upon half life, energy releasing capacity, rate of diffusion, rate of deposition of pollutant and the environmental factors like wind, temperature and rainfall
•
The radiations can cause demage
to skin,
sun burns,impair
metabollism
e
tc.

39. control control
•
Proper precaution should be taken to prevent the nuclear fall out
•
Leakage should be checked
•
Safe Disposal of radioactive waste
•
Regular monitoring
•
Prevent occupational exposure

40. Noise pollution Noise pollution