CHAPTER 2

SCIENCE MATTER AND ENERGY

Density:
The density of a substance is defined as its
mass divided by a unit volume,
or = M V
Where: = density M = mass V = volume
In the SI system the base unit for density is
kg/m3 while in the American engineering
system density is commonly expressed as
[lbM/ft3 [where lbM = pounds (mass)].
Concentration
The derived dimension concentration is
usually expressed gravimetrically as the mass
of a material A in a unit volume consisting of
material A and some other material B. The
concentration of A in a mixture of A and B is
 CA = MA/ VA + VB

Where:
CA = concentration of A
MA = mass of material A
VA = volume of material A VB = volume of
material B
In the SI system the basic unit for concentration
is kg/m3. However, the most widely used
concentration term in environmental engineering
is milligrams per liter (mg/L).
 Problem :
Plastic beads with a volume of 0.04 m3 and
a mass of 0.48 kg are placed into a
container, and 100 liters of water are
poured into the container. What is the
concentration of plastic beads, in mg/L?
Flow rate:
In engineering processes the flow rate can be
either gravimetric (mass) flow rate or
volumetric (volume) flow rate. The former is in
kg/s or lbM/s while the latter is expressed as
m3/s or ft3/s. The mass and volumetric flow
rates are not independent quantities because
the mass (M) of material passing a point in a
flow line during a unit time is related to the
volume (V) of that material:
Mass = Density Volume
A volumetric flow rate (QV) can be converted to
a mass flow rate (QM) by multiplying by the
density of the material:
QM = QV
Where:
QM = mass flow rate
QV = volume flow rate
= density The symbol Q is almost universally
used to denote flow rate
The relationship between mass flow of some
component A, concentration of A, and the total
volume flow (A plus B) is:

QMA = CA QV(A+B)
Problem: A wastewater treatment plant discharges a flow of 1.5 m3/s (water
plus solids) at a solids concentration of 20 mg/L (20 mg solids per liter of flow,
solids plus water). How much solids is the plant discharging each day?

Solution:

Mass flow = Concentration Volume flow

QMA = CA QV(A+B)
= (20 mg/L 1 10^6 kg/mg ) (1.5 m3 /s 103 L/m3 86,400
s/day )
= 2592 kg/day 2600 kg/day EX
RETENTION TIME
The time an average particle of the fluid
spends in the container through which the
fluid flows (which is the time it is exposed to
treatment or a reaction). An alternate
definition is the time it takes to fill the
container.
 Mathematically, if the volume of a container, such
as a large holding tank, is V (L3), and the flow rate
into the tank is Q (L3/t), then the residence time
is:
t=VQ

The average retention time can be increased by

reducing the flow rate Q or increasing the volume
V, and decreased by doing the opposite.
 PROBLEM:
A lagoon has a volume of 1500 m3, and the flow into the
lagoon is 3 m3/hr. What is the retention time in this lagoon?

Solution :
t = 1500 m3
3 m3/hr
= 500 hr
 ENERGY FLOWS AND BALANCES
Engineers need to consider the energy used by
designs as well as the energy changes, even if
unintentional, that may be produced by designs.
British thermal unit (BTU), defined as the
amount of energy necessary to heat one pound
of water one degree Fahrenheit.
 CONVERSION
To convert to multiply by
BTU calories 252
joules 1054
kWh 0.000293
Calories BTU 0.00397
joules 4.18
kWh 0.00116
Joules BTU 0.000949
calories 0.239
kWh 2.78 107
Kilowatt-hours BTU 3413
calories 862
joules 3.6 106
PROBLEM:
One gallon of gasoline has an energy value of 126,000 BTU. Express this in
(a) calories, (b) joules, (c) kWh

Solution:
a. 126,000 BTU 252 cal/BTU = 3.17 107 cal
b. 126,000 BTU 1054 J/BTU = 1.33 108 J
c. 126,000 BTU 2.93 104 kWh/BTU = 37
kWh
 There are, of course, many forms of energy,
such as chemical, heat, and potential energy
due to elevation. Often the form of energy
available is not the form that is most useful,
and one form of energy must be converted to
another form.
 ENERGY WASTED

ENERGY IN Energy produced USEFUL ENERGY

or consumed OUT

ENERGY ACCUMULATED
Note that in a black box the energy in has to equal the energy
out (energy wasted in the conversion + useful energy) plus the
energy accumulated in the box. This can be expressed as

[ Rate of energy ACCUMULATED ] = [Rate of energy IN ] [

Rate of energy OUT ]+ [ Rate of energy PRODUCED ] [ Rate of
energy CONSUMED ]
[Rate of energy IN]=[Rate of energy OUT]

-- Remember that energy out has two terms (energy wasted in the
conversion and useful energy), so

[Rate of energy IN]=[Rate of useful energy OUT] + [Rate of wasted energy OUT]

If the input and useful output from a black box are known, the
efficiency of the process can be calculated as:

Efficiency (%) = Useful energy OUT/ Energy IN 100

 Problem: A coal-fired power plant uses 1000 Mg of coal per day.
(Note: 1 Mg is 1000 kg, commonly called a metric ton or simply a
tonne.) The energy value of the coal is 28,000 kJ/kg. The plant
produces 2.8 106 kWh of electricity each day. What is the
efficiency of the power plant?

Solution:
Energy IN = (28,000 kJ/kg) (1000 Mg/day) (1000 kg/Mg) = 28 109 kJ/day
Useful energy output = (2.8 106 kWh/day) (3.6 106 J/kWh) (103 kJ/J)
= 10.1 109 kJ/day
Efficiency (%) = [10.1 109 kJ/day]/[28 109 kJ/day] 100 = 36%
 ENERGY SOURCES AND AVAILABILITY

Renewable energy sources:

hydropower from rivers
hydropower from tidal estuaries
solar power
refuse and other waste materials
wind
wood and other biomass,
such as sugarcane and rice hulls.
The nonrenewable energy sources:
nuclear power
coal, peat, and similar materials
natural gas
oil.
 ENERGY EQUIVALANCE
There is a big difference between potentially available energy and energy that
can be effi- ciently harnessed. For example, one of the greatest sources of
potential energy is tidal energy. The difficulty, however, is how to convert this
potential to a useful form, such as electrical energy. With a few notable
exceptions, such conversions have not proven cost effective; that is, the
electrical energy from tidal power costs much more than the electrical energy
produced by other means.
Arithmetic energy equivalence- calculated simply on the basis of energy
Conversion energy equivalence- takes into account the energy loss in
conversion.
PROBLEM:
What are the arithmetic and conversion energy equivalents between gasoline
(20,000 BTU/lb) and refuse-derived fuel (5000 BTU/lb)?

Solution:
Arithmetic energy equivalence = 20,000 BTU/lb gasoline
5,000 BTU/lb refuse
= 4 lb refuse/1 lb gasoline
But the processing of refuse to make the fuel also requires energy. This can be
estimated at perhaps 50% of the refuse-derived fuel energy, so the actual net
energy in the refuse is 2,500 BTU/lb. Therefore,
Conversion energy equivalence = 20,000 BTU/lb gasoline
2,500 BTU/lb refuse
= 8 lb refuse/1 lb gasoline