SYLLABUS

CE 534 – Environmental Engineering Chemistry

Spring, 2008

General Information

Time and location:	4:00-5:15 pm MW in Mechanical Engineering 208
Instructor:	Dr. Kerry J. Howe, P.E.
	Office: 112 Tapy
	Office phone: 277-2702
	Home phone: 821-9787
	Email address: howe@unm.edu
	Office hours: Stop by anytime my door is open, or call or email to make an appointment. If my door is closed, I’m gone or busy, so please do not disturb me.
Textbook:	Water Chemistry, by Mark M. Benjamin (errata for the textbook are available on the course website)

Course Objectives

This course is a comprehensive survey of principles of aquatic chemistry as applied to natural and engineered systems. Knowledge of aquatic chemistry is essential for understanding the fate of contaminants in natural and engineered systems. The approach is quantitative and geared at developing students’ abilities to predict the consequences of natural phenomena, treatment processes, or chemical modifications on the chemical composition of water. Understanding of theoretical chemical principles will be emphasized, and chemical speciation software (Visual MINTEQ) will be used for solving problems. Critical thinking skills will also be emphasized. Upon completion of this course, you should understand the complexity of chemical interactions in aquatic systems, be able to calculate the composition of an aqueous system, and appreciate the capabilities and limitations of chemical speciation software.

Topics include:

1. Thermodynamic foundations of aquatic chemistry

2. Acid-base chemistry

3. Buffers and the carbonate system

4. Gas/liquid equilibrium

5. Precipitation

6. Complexation

7. Oxidation-reduction

Grading

Homework and projects	40%
Midterm #1	15%
Midterm #2	15%
Final exam	30%	(Monday, May 12, 5:30 – 7:30 pm)

Course Website

Course materials, including the syllabus, handouts, overheads shown in class, and supplementary material will be posted on a course website. The website can be accessed by entering your UNM Net ID and password at the URL https://vista.unm.edu/. You need to have Adobe Acrobat Reader to read PDF files posted on the course website.

Prerequisites

Students are expected to be proficient with freshman level chemistry and physics. Use of a spreadsheet (i.e., Excel) and other computational software will be necessary for some homework assignments. Students will be expected to have access to and use the internet and a UNM email account.

Academic Integrity

The University expects all students to maintain the highest level of integrity. Cheating or plagiarism will not be tolerated. University policies regarding academic dishonesty are available in the UNM Student Handbook (Pathfinder) and online at http://www.unm.edu/~sac/policies.html.

READING ASSIGNMENTS

A reading assignment for each class period is posted on the class website. The average reading assignment is less than 20 pages. It is intended that this reading occur before the specified class period, because the reading will provide reinforcement and background for the material to be covered in class that day.

Homework Policy

The homework is intended to help you learn the material. All students should make an effort to solve every problem on their own and should not work together in groups, splitting the homework problems between the students. If you have put forth a sincere effort but cannot solve a problem on your own, it is acceptable for another student to teach you how to solve the problem, but it is not acceptable for you to just use another student’s paper as a guide.

All homework must be done in pencil using the standard format for the Civil Engineering department. A spreadsheet or other computational software should be used where appropriate. When software is used, the homework assignment must include the input and output, and must include a section or separate sheet showing the equation for each column or row in the spreadsheet. In general, graphs should not be drawn by hand but if they are, they must be done with a straight edge on graph paper and be properly scaled and labeled. A word processor should be used for all writing assignments. All homework must be neat and legible or it will not be graded. Homework must be turned in on time, with no exceptions (at the beginning of class on the posted due date). No credit will be given for any homework once a solution has been distributed or discussed in class. Several of the homework assignments will be more complex and will take the place of a semester project or term paper.

Exam policy

The exams will be closed book. A one-page “cheat sheet” will be allowed on each exam (i.e., 1 page for the first midterm, that plus a second sheet on the second midterm, and those 2 plus a third for the final). The cheat sheets may have writing on front and back but all material on the sheets must be hand written.

Five minutes before the end of an exam, the time remaining will be announced. You should be prepared to submit your exam paper at the end of that time. At the end of the exam period, the instructor or proctor will leave the room with all submitted exam material. No exam material of any kind will be accepted by the instructor or proctor after leaving the exam room. Medical illness or other exceptional circumstances will be the only excuse for missing an exam, and you will be expected to provide definitive evidence of the circumstances or illness. You must inform the instructor in advance if you must miss an exam, unless there are compelling reasons why you cannot do so. If you miss an exam for a medical reason or other exceptional circumstance, either a make-up exam will be given or the other exams will be weighted heavier, at the instructor’s discretion. If you miss an exam for other reasons, you will be assigned a grade of zero.