Environmental Transport Processes: Dispersion and Advection

How do pollutants disperse in a river, and how does smoke spread through the atmosphere? Understanding the physical mechanisms behind the movement of substances is essential for protecting our natural resources and designing effective environmental solutions. This text-based course guides you through the fundamental principles of environmental transport processes. You will learn how to analyze and model how mass, heat, and momentum move through environmental systems, starting with core concepts and building up to practical analytical calculations. What you'll learn: Understand the fundamentals of advection, molecular diffusion, and turbulent dispersion; Calculate pollutant concentrations over time using analytical transport equations; Analyze how boundary layers and fluid flow influence substance mixing in natural systems; Apply mass balance principles to track contaminants in rivers, lakes, and estuaries; Evaluate environmental engineering problems using modern conceptual modeling frameworks; Predict the fate and transport of chemicals to assess environmental impact. The course begins with key definitions, transport terminology, and foundational fluid mechanics before moving into the mathematical formulations of diffusion and advection. You will then explore real-world environmental scenarios, studying how rivers, lakes, and the atmosphere disperse substances. This course is designed for beginning engineering students, environmental science majors, and professionals looking to build a strong foundation in transport phenomena. No advanced fluid dynamics background is required. Start reading today to master the core principles of environmental transport.