METHODOLOGIES FOR ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING

The aim of the course is to direct the student in identifying strategies and procedures to assess the quality of environmental systems, therefore the student will be supported to choose the more appropriate chimico-analytical methodologies to assess the presence and distribution of pollutants in environmental matrices and the more suitable parameters to define the quality level of environmental systems.
The course allows to acquire the analytical competence to determine trace and ultra-trace chemical species, acquire the concept of speciation and the analytical techniques to differentiate and quantify the chemical forms in which elements can be present in environmental matrices.

The student will acquire the ability to produce and interpret analytical data for a correct assessment of the quality of the environment. In particular, the student will have the necessary skills to choose the most suitable analytical chemical techniques for the characterization of natural waters, soils and sediments, the control of the presence and distribution of polluting chemical species or parameters that allow to define the quality status of an environmental system; it will have the ability to define sampling strategies, in terms of sample distribution, sampling methodologies and sampling instrumentation, which are more suitable for monitoring environmental systems.

knowledge of instrumental and classical analytical techniques. Basic knowledge of statistics and chemometric methods.

It will be considered all the analytical steps to determine the pollutant concentration in environemtal systems.
General characterization of the environmental system. Sampling strategy. Sample treatment. Analytical determination. Procedures for the chemical and physical speciation of analytes.
The parameters considered can be shared in two groups as:
-Inorganic parameters and anlytes
Total content and speciation of trace elements, total phosphorous and hydrolysable phosphorous, total nitrogen and its speciation, reactive silicon: Dissolved oxygen, chemical oxygen demand, Biochemical oxygen demand.
-Organic parameters and pollutants
Total organic carbon, hydrocarbons (aliphatic and polycyclic aromatic), clorinate hydrocarbons (PCBs, PCDFs, PCDDs, pesticides).
For some parameters will be also described the automatic methodologies for continuous monitoring.
Will be made experimental exercises to apply the techniques and methodologies studied.

Teaching handout prepared by the teacher.
Fiefield F.W., Hanes P., Environmental Analytical Chemistry, Chapman and Hall, London
Mundroch A., MacKmight S.D., Handbook of Techniques for acquatic Sediments Sampling, Lewis Publ., Boca Raton.
Fresenius W., Quentin K.E. and Schneider W., Water Analysis, Springer-Verlag Berlin.
Hunt D.T.E. and Wilson A.L., The Chemical Analysis of Water, Royal Society of Chemistry, Cambridge.
Manahan S.E., Environmental Chemistry, Lewis, Chelsea, Michigan.
Moore T.C.Jr. and Health G.R., in "Chemical Oceanography", J.P. Riley and R. Chester (Eds.), Vol.7, chapt. 36, Academic Press, London.
UNICHIM, Misure alle Emissioni, Flussi gassosi convogliati, Metodo Unichim n.825.
Methods for determination of inorganic substances in water and fluvial sediments, U.S.Geological Survey.
Batley G.E., Trace Element Speciation: Analytical Methods and Problems, CRC Press, Florida.
Greenberg A.E., Connors J.J. and Jenkins D., Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater, APHA, AAWWA, WPCF, Washington.
Manahan S.E., Environmental Chemistry, Lewis, Chelsea, Michigan.
Spiro T.G., Stigliani W.M., Chemistry of the Environment,Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River.

During the laboratory activity the student will be invited to present and give the interpretation of experimental results, at the end the student must present one report to describe the studied system by critical discussion of results obtained during the experimental activities.

Lectures in class and experimental activity in laboratory and on field. The class lectures will be used to explain the strategy to describe one environmental system taking in consideration the physical characteristics of environmetal systems (morphology, time and space variability, homogeneity) and relation with the study aims; will be highlighted chemical, physical and biological parameters that can be used for the general characterization of the system; will be described the chemico-analytical methodologies to determine specific classes of pollutants. The experimental activities will be used to give at the student the opportunity to apply autonomously the studied procedures.

Italian

Should the COVID-19 emergency worsen, the exercises may undergo changes in the organization. Activities are currently conducted in small groups, this should reduce the risk of infection; so the changes may be necessary only if the epidemic were to expand in an uncontrolled manner.

oral

This subject deals with topics related to the macro-area "Natural capital and environmental quality" and contributes to the achievement of one or more goals of U. N. Agenda for Sustainable Development