Learning Objectives
• Analyze and quantify natural or engineered systems based on a mass balance approach
• Describe Brownian diffusion and the Stokes–Einstein equation for particle diffusion
• State Fick's first and second laws of diffusion for dissolved compounds
• Derive equations for different reaction orders including unknown reaction order
• Model or analyze the effect of environmental variables like temperature and pH on reactions and their kinetics
• Compare and contrast the different types of ideal reactors
• Describe the salient features of a batch reactor and derive a mass balance equation for it
• Describe the salient features of a CSTR and derive a mass balance equation for it
• Describe the salient features of a PFR and derive a mass balance equation for it
• Analyze pulse and step inputs of tracers to different types of reactors
• Determine average hydraulic residence times and dispersion numbers for the different types of reactors
• Use tracer data to model engineered and natural systems and predict their behavior/efficiency
• List and explain factors affecting growth of organisms including bacteria in nature or in the lab
• Determine bacterial growth rates for a specific set of conditions
• Describe different biochemical or metabolic pathways by which organisms derive energy for maintenance and creation of new biomass
• Derive equations for bacterial growth rates
A mass balance approach can be utilized for analyzing and quantifying the behavior of contaminants in any system: natural or engineered. Basic concepts of mass transfer and transformation can be applied to all processes including those in water and wastewater treatment, no matter how simple or complex they may be. Mass transfer and transformation are based on the laws of conservation of mass. The concept of applying mass balances to any system and using the steady-state simplification to predict system behavior is introduced in the first section. The concept of reactions or mass transformation and their application to chemical or biological reactions or transformations is dealt with in the second section of this chapter. Zero-, first-, second-, mixed-order reactions are defined in this unit. The third section includes definitions of the three basic types of ideal reactors and how their behaviors differ.
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