Environmental Engineering Systems

AIMS

This subject covers topics required to understand systems involving fluids, both in motion and at rest, and their application in engineered systems. These include dams, pipes, open channels, pumps and both liquid and gaseous flow, with relevance to civil, mechanical, infrastructure and environmental engineering contexts. Students will gain an understanding of the fundamentals of how fluids behave and how this can be applied to solve engineering challenges. Topics covered include - Fluid statics, manometry, derivation of the continuity equation, mechanical energy balance, friction losses in a straight pipe, Newton’s law of viscosity, treatment of pipe roughness, valves and fittings; simple pipe network problems; principles of open channel flow; compressible flow, propagation of pressure wave, isothermal and adiabatic flow equations in a pipe, choked flow. Pumps – pump characteristics, centrifugal pumps, derivation of theoretical head, head losses leading to the actual pump head curve, calculating system head, determining the operating point of a pumping system, throttling for flow control, cavitation and NPSH, affinity laws and pump scale-up, introduction to positive displacement pumps; Newtonian and non-Newtonian fluids, Multi-dimensional fluid flow-momentum flux, development of multi-dimensional equations of continuity and for momentum transfer, Navier-Stokes equations, application to tube flow, Couette flow, Stokes flow.

Please view this video for further information: Fluid Mechanics

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This subject aims to analyse the key concepts underpinning the sustainable use of water within the context of integrated river basin management. Lectures draw on extensive experience in water and river basin management, particularly in Australia and China including guest lecturers from industry practitioners. The subject focuses on the analysis of complex water resource systems that involve multiple sources of water supply and multiple water uses including agriculture, urban, industrial, recreation and the environment. The subject builds on students’ knowledge of sustainability, economics and resource management.

While the principles of resource management are learnt in the context of water and river basins, they can be applied in a range of natural resource management scenarios. Students contemplating a career in any aspect of natural resource management will find this subject of value.

Please view this video for further information: Intro to Sustainable Water Management

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This capstone subject involves an investigation and problem-solving project which will require students to apply a broad knowledge to realistic problems typical of what would be expected with employment in the environmental engineering industry. The subject revolves around the engineering education framework - CIDO: conceive, design, implement, operate, with the addition of 'monitor and evaluate'. Students will apply skills developed in other subjects to a single overarching project that will run through the entire semester, and demonstrate an ability to design sustainable engineering projects. Focusing on urban stormwater management, the project will require the students to develop a conceptual and quantitative model of a small-scale environmental engineering system (i.e. a biofiltration system). The students will then build and operate these systems and undertake monitoring and analysis of their behaviour to provide a critical appraisal of the original model. Having characterised the system, interpretation and evaluation of the impacts of a scaled up system on associated human and non-human stakeholders will form part of an evidence based report. Students will also be expected to critically evaluate the quality of their model, assumptions, data and analysis. The subject will be supported by specialised lectures and workshops.

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This subject is a core subject for the Environmental Engineering Systems major in the Bachelor of Science. It addresses the major steps in environmental engineering design using the systems approach and builds on knowledge gained in subjects including Engineering Mathematics, Fluid Mechanics and Earth Processes for Engineering and assumes a familiarity with concepts of sustainability and engineering systems.

Engineering systems are often highly complex, especially environmental systems which are often not well understood. Engineering design of models of such systems pose significant challenges since the models typically involve a large number of decision variables (and therefore a large number of potential solutions), multiple competing objectives and are often subject to various constraints.

Factors that influence the design process include logical problem formulation which facilitates a systematic approach to problem solution, analysis of the model to identify optimal design solutions and investigation of model performance. The final decision-making process can be further complicated by the fact that different stakeholders may have different or conflicting preferences.

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