Fate of Pollutants in the Environment

Course content

Fundamental concepts regarding the fate of a pollutant once released into the environment. Classification of pollutants, equilibrium partitioning between gaseous, liquid and solid phases: vapor pressure, solubility in water, air-organic solvent, air-water partitioning, organic liquid-water partitioning, sorption, solid-water distribution, partitioning to living media. Abiotic and biotic transformation processes: hydrolysis, redox and photochemical reactions, biodegradation. Transport of pollutants and modeling concepts. Case studies.