Features
- Comprehensive
review of environmental issues and regulations.
- Allows
students to begin working within the context of the real-world restrictions and
limitations that must guide their decisions in developing chemical processes and products.
- Systematic
methods for incorporating the impact to the environment.
- Teaches
students that chemical process and product designs must coexist within a larger global
context.
- Compilation
of current strategies for preventing pollution and reducing waste-At the molecular,
unit operations, and process/facility levels.
- Offers
students effective means of evaluating the emissions and hazards of chemicals and
processes.
- Life
Cycle Assessment (LCA) and Industrial Ecology.
- Allows
students to assess the impact of chemical processes and products beyond the boundaries of
the plant.
- Cost
implications of environmental issues and problems.
- Allows
students to understand the effect of their designs on the real world.
- Additional
support online-At the green engineering web site.
- Provides
up-to-date resources for greater understanding and learning.
Preface
Chemical processes provide a
diverse array of valuable products and materials used in applications ranging from health
care to transportation and food processing. Yet these same chemical processes that provide
products and materials essential to modern economies also generate substantial quantities
of wastes and emissions. Managing these wastes costs tens of billions of dollars each
year, and as emission and treatment standards continue to become more stringent, these
costs will continue to escalate. In the face of rising costs and increasingly stringent
performance standards, traditional end-of-pipe approaches to waste management have become
less attractive and a strategy variously known as environmentally conscious manufacturing,
eco-efficient production, or pollution prevention has been gaining prominence. The basic
premise of this strategy is that avoiding the generation of wastes or pollutants can often
be more cost effective and better for the environment than controlling or disposing of
pollutants once they are formed.
The intent of this textbook
is to describe environmentally preferable or "green" approaches to the design
and development of processes and products. The idea of writing this textbook was conceived
in 1997 by the staff of the Chemical Engineering Branch (CEB), Economics, Exposure and
Technology Division (EETD), Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT) of the US
EPA. In 1997, OPPT staff found that, although there was a growing technical literature
describing "green" approaches to chemical product and process design, and a
growing number of university courses on the subject, there was no standard textbook on the
subject area of green engineering.
So, in early 1998, OPPT
initiated the Green Engineering Project with the initial goal of producing a text
describing "green" design methods suitable for inclusion in the chemical
engineering curriculum.
Years of work, involving
extensive interaction between chemical engineering educators and EPA staff, have resulted
in this text. The text presents the "green" engineering tools that have been
developed for chemical processes and is intended for senior-level chemical engineering
students. The text begins (Chapters 1-4) with a basic introduction to environmental
issues, risk concepts, and environmental regulations. This background material identifies
the types of wastes, emissions, material use, and energy use to determine the
environmental performance of chemical processes and products. Once the environmental
performance targets have been defined, the design of processes with superior environmental
performance can begin. Chapters 5-12 describe tools for assessing and improving the
environmental performance of chemical processes. The structure of the chapters revolves
around a hierarchy of design, beginning with tools for evaluating environmental hazards of
chemicals, continuing through unit operation and flowsheet analysis, and concluding with
the economics of environmental improvement projects. The final section of the text
(Chapters 13 and 14) describes tools for improving product stewardship and improving the
level of integration between chemical processes and other material processing operations.
It is our hope that this text
will contribute to the evolving process of environmentally conscious design.
Draft manuscripts of this
text have been used in senior-level engineering elective and required courses at the
University of Texas at Austin, Michigan Technological University, the University of South
Carolina, and West Virginia University. It is suggested, in a typical semester, all of the
material in the text is presented. Portions of the textbook have been and can be used in a
number of other chemical engineering courses as well as other engineering or environmental
policy courses.
Dr. David T. Allen,
University of Texas, Austin
Dr. David R. Shonnard, Michigan Technological University, Houghton
Nhan T. Nguyen, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington D.C.
Table of
Contents
Preface.
About the Authors.
Acknowledgments.
I. A CHEMICAL ENGINEER'S GUIDE TO ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES AND REGULATIONS.
1. An Introduction To
Environmental Issues.
Introduction. The Role of
Chemical Processes and Chemical Products. An Overview of Major Environmental Issues.
Global Environmental Issues. Air Quality Issues. Water Quality Issues. Ecology. Natural
Resources. Waste Flows in the United States. Summary. References. Problems.
2. Risk Concepts.
Introduction. Description of Risk. Value of Risk Assessment in the Engineering Profession.
Risk-Based Environmental Law. General Overview of Risk Assessment Concepts. Hazard
Assessment. Dose-Response. Exposure Assessment. Risk Characterization. Summary.
References. Problems.
3. Environmental Law and Regulations: From End-of-Pipe to Pollution Prevention.
Introduction. Nine Prominent Federal Environmental Statutes. Evolution of Regulatory and
Voluntary Programs: From End-of-Pipe to Pollution Prevention. Pollution Prevention
Concepts and Terminology. References. Problems.
4. The Roles and Responsibilities of Chemical Engineers.
Introduction. Responsibilities for Chemical Process Safety. Responsibilities for
Environmental Protection. Further Reading in Engineering Ethics. References. Problems.
II. EVALUATING AND IMPROVING ENVIRONMENTAL PERFORMANCE OF CHEMICAL PROCESSES.
5. Evaluating
Environmental Fate: Approaches based on chemical structure.
Introduction. Chemical and Physical Property Estimation. Estimating Environmental
Persistence. Estimating Ecosystem Risks. Using Property Estimates to Estimate
Environmental Fate and Exposure. Classifying Environmental Risks Based on Chemical
Structure. References. Problems.
6. Evaluating Exposures.
Introduction. Occupational Exposures: Recognition, Evaluation, and Control. Exposure
Assessment for Chemicals in the Ambient Environment. Designing Safer Chemicals.
References. Problems.
7. Green Chemistry.
Green Chemistry. Green Chemistry Methodologies. Quantitative/Optimization-Based Frameworks
for the Design of Green Chemical Synthesis Pathways. Green Chemistry Expert System Case
Studies. Questions for Discussion. References. Problems.
8. Evaluating Environmental Performance During Process Synthesis.
Introduction. Tier 1 Environmental Performance Tools. Tier 2 Environmental Performance
Tools. Tier 3 Environmental Performance Tools. References. Problems.
9. Unit Operations and Pollution Prevention.
Introduction. Pollution Prevention in Material Selection for Unit Operations. Pollution
Prevention for Chemical Reactors. Pollution Prevention for Separation Devices. Pollution
Prevention Applications for Separative Reactors. Pollution Prevention in Storage Tanks and
Fugitive Sources. Pollution Prevention Assessment Integrated with HAZ-OP Analysis.
Integrating Risk Assessment with Process Design-A Case Study. Questions for Discussion.
References. Problems.
10. Flowsheet Analysis for Pollution Prevention.
Introduction. Process Energy Integration. Process Mass Integration. Case Study of a
Process Flowsheet. Summary. References. Problems.
11. Evaluating the Environmental Performance of a Flowsheet.
Introduction. Estimation of Environmental Fates of Emissions and Wastes. Tier 3 Metrics
for Environmental Risk Evaluation of Process Designs. Summary. References. Problems.
12. Environmental Cost Accounting.
Introduction. Definitions. Magnitudes of Environmental Costs. A Framework for Evaluating
Environmental Costs. Hidden Environmental Costs. Liability Costs. Internal Intangible
Costs. External Intangible Costs. References. Problems.
III. MOVING BEYOND THE
PLANT BOUNDARY.
13. Life-Cycle Concepts,
Product Stewardship, and Green Engineering.
Introduction to Product Life
Cycle Concepts. Life-Cycle Assessment. Life-Cycle Impact Assessments. Streamlined
Life-Cycle Assessments. Uses of Life-Cycle Studies. Summary. Questions for Discussion.
References. Problems.
14. Industrial Ecology.
Introduction. Material Flows
in Chemical Manufacturing. Eco-Industrial Parks. Assessing Opportunities for Waste
Exchanges and Byproduct Synergies. Summary. References. Problems.
IV. APPENDICES.
A. Details Of The Nine Prominent Federal Environmental Statutes.
B. Molecular Connectivity.
C. Estimating Emissions From Storage Tanks.
D. Tables of Environmental Impact Potentials-Tables D-1 to D-.
E. Procedures for Estimating Hidden (Tier II) Costs-Tables E-1 to E-5.
F. Additional Resources-Web Resources/Online Databases/Software.
Index.
- Companion
Website - Allen
This book is about pollution
prevention and environmental risk reduction for chemical processes. This book is the
result of the US EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) green engineering curriculum
development effort for chemical engineering departments. The book was developed to fulfill
ABET/AICHE requirements on environment, health and safety.
DAVID T. ALLEN, Reese
Professor of Chemical Engineering and the Director of the Center for Energy and
Environmental Resources at the University of Texas at Austin, was the 2000 recipient of
the American Institute of Chemical Engineers Lawrence K. Cecil Award in Environmental
Chemical Engineering for his contributions to air quality and pollution prevention
engineering and environmental engineering education.
DAVID R. SHONNARD, Associate
Professor of Chemical Engineering at Michigan Technological University, is a 1998
recipient of the NSF/Lucent Technologies Foundation Industrial Ecology Research Fellowship
for research that integrates environmental impact assessment with process design. Other
related awards include an NSF-funded repository for pollution prevention curriculum
development materials.
With contributions by authors
from US EPA and Industry.
Back Cover
Copy
A chemical engineer's guide
to managing and minimizing environmental impact.
Chemical processes are
invaluable to modern society, yet they generate substantial quantities of wastes and
emissions, and safely managing these wastes costs tens of millions of dollars annually. Green
Engineering is a complete professional's guide to the cost-effective design,
commercialization, and use of chemical processes in ways that minimize pollution at the
source, and reduce impact on health and the environment. This book also offers powerful
new insights into environmental risk-based considerations in design of processes and
products.
First conceived by the staff
of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Green Engineering draws on
contributions from many leaders in the field and introduces advanced risk-based techniques
including some currently in use at the EPA. Coverage includes:
- Engineering
chemical processes, products, and systems to reduce environmental impacts
- Approaches
for evaluating emissions and hazards of chemicals and processes
- Defining
effective environmental performance targets
- Advanced
approaches and tools for evaluating environmental fate
- Early-stage
design and development techniques that minimize costs and environmental impacts
- In-depth
coverage of unit operation and flowsheet analysis
- The
economics of environmental improvement projects
- Integration
of chemical processes with other material processing operations
- Lifecycle
assessments: beyond the boundaries of the plant
Increasingly, chemical
engineers are faced with the challenge of integrating environmental objectives into design
decisions. Green Engineering gives them the technical tools they need to do so.
PTR Overview
Green Engineering is a
complete professional's guide to the cost-effective design, commercialization, and use of
chemical processes and products in ways that minimize pollution at the source, and reduce
impact on health and the environment. It also offers powerful new insights into
environmental risk-based considerations in design of processes and products.KEY TOPICS:First
conceived by the staff of the US Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Pollution
Prevention and Toxics, Green Engineering draws upon contributions from many leaders
in the field, and introduces advanced risk-based techniques currently in use at the EPA.
The book introduces sophisticated, early-stage design and development techniques that
minimize pollution and cost. Professionals will learn how to define effective
environmental performance targets; screen chemicals based on environmental fate,
emissions, and risks; and assess the entire lifecycle of a chemical process, including
events beyond the boundaries of the plant. The book offers in-depth coverage of unit
operation and flowsheet analysis; advanced tools for evaluating environmental impacts; and
realistic guidance for understanding the economics of environmental improvement projects.MARKET:For
all engineers, managers, regulators, and other professionals concerned with managing and
mitigating the environmental impact of chemical processes.
416 pages