JAIN UNIVERSITY

DEPARTMENT OF ELECTRONICS & COMMUNICATION ENGINEERING

ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING & SUSTAINABILITY

QUESTION BANK WITH ANSWERS FOR MODULE -03 & 05

QUESTIONS FOR 2 Marks

State the differences between Distillation & Demineralization

In distillation, the water is boiled & then the vapour is cooled. When the vapour has condensed,
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demineralized water is produced. In case of Demineralization, the water runs through a bed of ion
exchange resin, which separates out the ionic impurities, including dissolved carbon dioxide.
What is E-Waste? List the components of E-Waste management system.
E-Waste is a generic term used to describe all types of old, end of life or discarded electrical & electronic
2 equipment such as house hold appliances, office information & communication equipments,
entertainment & consumer electronic equipment, lighting equipment, other electric & electronic tools.
Collection, Treatment & Disposal system are the critical elements of E-waste management system.
Define the terms Reverse Osmosis & Osmotic Pressure.
Reverse osmosis – it is a water purification process that removes ions, unwanted molecules & unwanted
particles from drinking water using a partially permeable membrane. As a result, the solute is kept on
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the membrane’s pressurised side & the pure solvent is allowed to pass to the other side.
Osmotic pressure – it is defined as the minimum pressure applied to a solution to prevent the inward
flow of its pure solvent across a semipermeable membrane.
List your responsibilities to reduce waste generation.
Reduce – Try to reduce the waste by buying products with minimal packaging
Reuse – Reusing items such as bags & containers.
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Recycle – Recycling materials such as plastics, papers & glass.
Composting – Setting up a compost bin or pile to dispose off organic waste such as foods, scraps &
yard trimmings etc.
Name any 4 best electronic water purifiers available in the market.
Kent guard RO water purifier
5 AO Smith Z5 water purifier
Aqua guard aura water purifier
Liv pure Glo star water purifier
What are the uses of Activated carbon in water purification.
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Following are the uses of Activated carbon in water purification:
 • Remove contamination
• Makes water odour & tasteless
• Control disinfectant byproducts
• Chlorine & organic removal
State the advantages & disadvantages of Solar powered water filtration system
Advantages:
• It is more compact and more affordable with less infrastructure maintenance costs.
• When power conditions are exceptionally low, the Solar Pure system comes with a backup
rechargeable battery, so there is never an interruption in water production.
7 • It can produce up to 20,000 liters per 12-hour day using any power supply (solar, wind, battery,
generator, etc.
Disadvantages:
• The system is not fully automated, so it will take some trained operators to diagnose issues that
occur.
• The filtered water rate amounts vary on available power input.

QUESTIONS FOR 5 Marks

Explain the Working Principle of Reverse Osmosis. List the advantages.

Osmotic pressure is the minimum pressure required to stop solvent flow through the semipermeable
membrane. Therefore, when the solution side (the side where the solute concentration is high) is
subjected to a pressure greater than the osmotic pressure, the solvent particles on the solution side move
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through the semipermeable membrane to the region where the solute concentration is low. Such inverse
solvent movement through the semipermeable membrane is called reverse osmosis.
It is important to note that the pressure applied to the solution side must be higher than the osmotic
pressure for the reverse osmosis process to proceed. Osmotic pressure is a colligative property, which
depends on the concentration of the solution. Following are the advantages of Reverse Osmosis:
• Bacteria, viruses, and pyrogen materials are rejected by the intact membrane. In this respect,
RO water approaches distilled water in quality.
• Available units are relatively compact and require little space. They are well suited to home
dialysis.
 • In average use, the membrane has a life of a little more than one to two years before replacement
is necessary.
• Periodic complete sterilization of the RO system with formalin or other sterilant is practical.

With a neat Sketch, Explain ION Exchange process for water Purification
For the ion exchange process to occur, the equipment must contain a micro-porous exchange resin. This
resin is saturated with a solution that is very loosely held. When the process is being used for water
softening purposes, sulfonated polystyrene beds are placed within the unit. These beds are saturated
with a sodium solution that covers the surface of the bed. When water is passed through the resin bed,
the ions will attach directly to the beads, which releases the solution into the sample water. Over time,
the beds will become saturated with contaminants, which is when the exchange resin will need to be
recharged or regenerated. To complete the regeneration process, it’s important that a salt brine solution
is used to flush the exchange resin. The salt brine solution consists of sodium ions. These ions will
replace the contaminants that coat the resin bed, after which the contaminants will be flushed out with
all the wastewater. Because of how the ion exchange process works, it can be used to soften hard water
that contains high levels of magnesium and calcium while also being used for the water treatment
2 process.

Explain the steps involved in Solar Powered water filtration system.

• Pre-Filtration – Water is first screened through a stainless-steel screen
• Ultrafiltration – Water then passes through additional filters to remove all bacteria, viruses, and
other causes of waterborne illnesses
3 • Activated Carbon – Reduces foul tastes and odors from water without using reverse osmosis
• Polishing Filter – Removes any carbon particles from the carbon filter from the previous step,
acts as a final safety check before ready to bottle for consumption
• Chloramine – Injects a mixture of chlorine and ammonia to preserve the water, but avoids giving
it a chlorine taste.
 Articulate the responsibilities of SPCB’s in India.
• To prepare a comprehensive program to prevent, control, and reduce water and air pollution in
the State.
• To advise the respective state Government on the subject matter regarding prevention, control,
or reduction of water and air pollution.
• To formulate, modify, or set aside effluent standards for sewage and trade effluents and for the
quality of receiving waters and classify waters of the State.
• To develop economical as well as reliable methods for treatment of sewage and trade effluents,
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for their utilization in agriculture, and their disposal on land.
• To formulate, in consultation with and having regard to the standards set by the CPCB, norms
for emission of air pollutants into the open air from different sources except for ships and
aircraft.
• To gather and pass on the information relating to water and air pollution and the prevention,
control, or reduction thereof.
• To motivate, direct, and participate in investigations and research on water pollution problems.
• To inspect sewage or trade effluents, works, and plants to treat sewage and trade effluents.
List the applications of Distillation.
• Distillation plays an important role in many water purification techniques. Many desalination
plants incorporate this method to obtain drinking water from seawater.
• Distilled water has numerous applications, such as in lead-acid batteries and low-volume
humidifiers.
• Many fermented products such as alcoholic beverages are purified with the help of this method.
5 • Many perfumes and food flavorings are obtained from herbs and plants via distillation.
• Oil stabilization is an important type of distillation that reduces the vapor pressure of the crude
oil, enabling safe storage and transportation.
• Air can be separated into nitrogen, oxygen, and argon by employing the process of cryogenic
distillation.
• Distillation is also employed on an industrial scale to purify the liquid products obtained from
chemical synthesis.
List the Objectives of Water (Prevention & control of pollution) Act 1981.
• To prevent and control water pollution
• To assess pollution levels and punish polluters
6 • To maintain or restore the wholesomeness of water
• To establish Central and State boards to carry out the objectives of the Act.
• To confer on and assign to the boards, the power, and functions relating prevention and control
of water pollution.
 • To establish Central and State water testing laboratories to enable the Boards to discharge their
functions.
• To penalize contravention of the provisions of the Act.
• To deal with matters connected with the prevention and control of water pollution.
Write a short note on THE AIR (PREVENTION AND CONTROL OF POLLUTION) ACT, 1981
• This Act was passed for the "prevention, control and abatement of air pollution."
• This law defined an air pollutant as "any solid, liquid or gaseous substance present in the
atmosphere in such concentration as may be or tend to be injurious to human beings or other
living creatures or plants or property or environment."
• In this Act, power to declare air pollution, control areas has been given to the state government
after consulting the State Board. By this, it may control or even prohibit burning of certain
materials in those specific areas.
• This Act requires approval prior to operating any industrial plant.
7.
• Government may suggest "control equipment" prior to giving its consent to any industry for its
operation.
• It may include chimney etc. In case there is any new technology for emission control, then the
Board may insist on this to being installed. Standards specific to industries have been specified.
• Penalties were for a minimum of six months imprisonment to a maximum of seven years and
fine up to Rs. 5,000 for every day during which contravention continues after conviction for the
first such contravention.
• This law makes it clear that when offenses are committed by a company, its director, manager,
secretary, or other officers could be held guilty and punished accordingly.

QUESTIONS FOR 10 Marks

Explain Water Purification by UV radiations. Describe the points to be considered for the
maintenance of UV water treatment system
An ultraviolet (UV) water purifier exposes living organisms, such as bacteria, viruses, or cysts to a
germicidal ultraviolet wavelength. With enough energy, UV radiation of about 254-nm wavelength
disrupts the DNA in pathogenic microorganisms so they cannot reproduce. The ultraviolet light prevents
1 bacteria from spreading disease through drinking water.
The glass quartz sleeve present in the UV water Purifier holds the UV lamp that emits a germicidal
wavelength of radiation to deactivate living organisms. The quartz glass sleeve is transparent to the UV
wavelength, which allows UV light to penetrate the glass and disinfect the water. A quartz sleeve
protects the UV lamp from the water because water and electricity do not mix well. One or two O-rings
seal the whole system together.
Maintenance of UV Water treatment System
• UV water purifiers last many years, but they require maintenance like any other water treatment
system. However, UV systems are easy to maintain and designed to run continually.
• Replace the UV lamp once a year. UV lamps use mercury vapor as fuel to ignite the UV
wavelength. Over time, the mercury inside the lamp dissipates. A UV lamp lasts about 9,000
hours or 375 days (if you run it all the time).
• Clean the quartz sleeve. The glass quartz sleeve that surrounds the lamp needs to be clean for
the UV lamp to work effectively. Check the quartz sleeve when you change the lamp to make
sure it is clean.
• Replace the quartz sleeve once every two years. Quartz sleeves are very fragile, so keeping an
extra on hand is recommended in case of an accident
 Explain the challenges of E-Waste management in India.

Explain the Practices for efficient E-Waste management.

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 Write a short note on Plastic waste management rules 2016 Water (Prevention & control of
pollution) act 1981
PLASTIC WASTE MANAGEMENT RULES
• Increase minimum thickness of plastic carry bags from 40 to 50 microns and stipulate minimum
thickness of 50 micron for plastic sheets also to facilitate collection and recycle of plastic waste
• Expand the jurisdiction of applicability from the municipal area to rural areas, because plastic
has reached rural areas also
• To bring in the responsibilities of producers and generators, both in plastic waste management
system and to introduce collect back system of plastic waste by the producers/brand owners, as
per extended producers’ responsibility
• To introduce collection of plastic waste management fee through pre-registration of the
producers, importers of plastic carry bags/multilayered packaging and vendors selling the same
for establishing the waste management system
• To promote use of plastic waste for road construction as per Indian Road Congress guidelines
or energy recovery, or waste to oil etc. for gainful utilization of waste and also address the waste
disposal issue; to entrust more responsibility on waste generators, namely payment of user
charge as prescribed by local authority, collection and handing over of waste by the institutional
generator, event organizers.
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• An eco-friendly product, which is a complete substitute of the plastic in all uses, has not been
found till date. In the absence of a suitable alternative, it is impractical and undesirable to impose
a blanket ban on the use of plastic all over the country. The real challenge is to improve plastic
waste management systems.
WATER (PREVENTION & CONTROL OF POLLUTION) ACT 1981
It is an Act to provide for the prevention and control of water pollution and the maintaining or restoring
of wholesomeness of water for the establishment, with a view to carrying out the purposes aforesaid, of
Boards for the prevention and control of water pollution, for conferring on and assigning to such Boards
powers and functions relating thereto and for matters connected therewith. This Act came into force on
23 March 1974 and was amended in the years 1978 and 1988. There are a total of 8 chapters and 64
Sections in the Act.
• The purpose of this act is to provide for the prevention and control of water pollution and the
maintenance or restoring wholesomeness of water for the establishment, with a view to carrying
out the purpose of aforesaid of Boards for the prevention and control of water pollution, for
conferring on and assigning to such Boards powers and functions relating thereto and for matters
connected there with.
• This is the Act that established the Central and a State Board and also the authority and power
to constitute as many committees as it feels essential to carry out specific functions for it.
• The Act specifically prohibits "any poisonous, noxious or polluting matter' into any stream or
well.
• A consent from the State Board is required for any type of new discharge into any new stream
or well.
• This also includes consent for "temperature" discharges as done by cooling tower users.
• In general, this means that a state consent or permit is required for all types of intakes and/or
discharge of any type of liquid or water either from a running stream or well.
• Under these rules, "effluent standards to be complied with by persons while causing discharge
of sewage or silage or both" have been specified. Standards for small scale industries have been
specified separately.
• Penalties for non-compliance with the permit or polluting in any way are imprisonment for three
months and fine of Rs. 10,000 or fine up to Rs. 5,000 per day of violation or both plus any
expenses incurred by the Board for sampling, analysis, inspection etc.
• These penalties can also be imposed for "obstructing any person acting under the orders or
direction of the Board" or for "damages to any work or property of the Board."