Environmental Chemistry

Environmental components (atmosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere and biosphere);

Atmosphere and its interaction with hydrosphere, lithosphere and biosphere. Composition of air, water, soil. Atmospheric layers, vertical temperature profile, heat radiation budget of the earth atmosphere system. Properties of troposphere, thermodynamic derivation of lapse rate. Temperature inversion, calculation of global mean temperature of the atmosphere, Pressure variation in atmosphere and scale height. Sources of trace atmospheric constituents: Nitrogen oxides, sulphur dioxide and other sulphur compounds, carbon dioxides, chlorofluorocarbons and other halogen compounds, methane and other hydrocarbons.

Biogeochemical cycles of carbon, nitrogen, sulphur, phosphorous and oxygen, Residence time.

Earths’s carbon cycle, carbon emitters, carbon sequestration, carbon footprint and carbon trading.

Chemical and photochemical reactions in atmosphere: Mechanism of photochemical decomposition of NO₂ and formation of ozone, formation of oxygen atom, hydroxyl, hydroperoxy and organic radicals and hydrogen peroxide. Reactions of hydroxyl radicals with methane and other organic compounds. Reactions of OH radical with SO₂ and NOx. Formation of Nitrate radical and its reactions. Photochemical smog meterological conditions and chemistry of its formation.

Effects and control of air pollutants-Gaseous, particulates. Environmental impact assessment, environmental modeling and environmental laws.

Renewable energy: Alternative clean fuels- Solar, biomass energy, hydrogen, hydrothermal, geothermal, wind, etc. 

Chemistry of Aquatic Environment: Chemistry of water and chemical reactions in aquatic environment; concept of oxygen demand -DO, BOD, COD; TDS, pH, conductivity. Colloids,  Salinity. Chemical speciations in aquatic environment;

Soil Chemistry: Physico-chemical characteristics of soil, soil clays, organic carbon, soil humus and mineralization, cation exchange capacity, soil water solution, Nitrogen pathways, C/N ratio, soil acidity, soil salinity.

Green house effect: Green house gases - Major sources and climate change, effect on global warming and agriculture.

Acid Rain: Introduction; acid rain precursor, their aqueous and gas phase atmospheric oxidation reactions; damazing effects on aquatic life, plants, buildings and health; acid rain control strategies.

Ozone depletion: Ozone layer – Formation, reactions, role, and processes of ozone depletion. Consequences of ozone depletion. Creation, noncatalytic and catalytic process of ozone destruction.

Aeroslo, Smog formation

Climate change in future: Predictions, consequences. Mitigation and adaptation to climate change. Montreal protocol 1987, Rio de Janeiro summit 92 Kyoto protocol 97, Johannesburg 2002, Copenhagen summit 2009.

Introduction; threshold limiting value (TLV); Toxicity and control of Toxicants­-- Non Metallic Compounds, Asbestos, Organic Compounds- Pop’s (phthalate, dioxins), PCB’s, Pesticides, VOC’s endocrine disrupters, heavy metals-As, Hg, Cd, Pb.