Explore UCD

UCD Home >

CVEN20030

Academic Year 2024/2025

Environmental Engineering Fundamentals (CVEN20030)

Subject:
Civil Engineering
College:
Engineering & Architecture
School:
Civil Engineering
Level:
2 (Intermediate)
Credits:
5
Module Coordinator:
Dr Sarah Cotterill
Trimester:
Autumn
Mode of Delivery:
Blended
Internship Module:
No
How will I be graded?
Letter grades

Curricular information is subject to change.

This module is designed primarily for engineering students intending to focus in the area of environmental engineering. The module lays a foundation for more intensive modules in later stages by introducing concepts about, among other things, environmental ethics, engineering calculations, and the fundamental biological, chemical and physical processes used in environmental engineering. Applications of these concepts to developing engineering solutions for several contemporary environmental problems are also examined. This module will cover the following topics: Sustainability, Units for Environmental Measurements, Physical, Chemical and Biological Principle, Engineering Approximations, Hydrology, Pollution Transport Processes, Solid Waste Management, Ethics, Environmental Laws and EU Regulation.

About this Module

Learning Outcomes:

Upon successful completion of this module, students will demonstrate an ability to:
1. Describe the role of engineers in environmental protection;
2. Explain the fundamental ethical considerations on which environmental engineering is based;
3. Perform basic engineering calculations involving physical, chemical and biological principles.

Indicative Module Content:

• Introduction
• Sustainability
• Units for environmental measurements
• Physical principles (mass + energy balances)
• Chemical principles (stoichiometry, laws, equilibria, kinetics, chemical reactors)
• Ethics and EU regulation
• Biological principles (ecosystems, population dynamics)
• Water quality (biochemical oxygen demand, dissolved oxygen)
• Engineering approximations
• Pollution transport processes (advection, dispersion, sedimentation, flow through porous media)
• Hydrology (precipitation, runoff, groundwater)
• Waste management

Student Effort Hours:
Student Effort Type Hours
Lectures

15
Tutorial

10
Autonomous Student Learning

95
Online Learning

5
Total

125

Approaches to Teaching and Learning:
1. Lectures
2. Problem-based learning
3. Case-based learning

Requirements, Exclusions and Recommendations
Learning Requirements:

Differential calculus
Linear algebra
Integral calculus and differential equations

Learning Recommendations:

Fundamental chemistry and biology


Module Requisites and Incompatibles
Not applicable to this module.
 

Assessment Strategy
Description Timing Component Scale Must Pass Component % of Final Grade In Module Component Repeat Offered
Quizzes/Short Exercises: In class test - incl. MCQs and short written answers Week 6 Standard conversion grade scale 40% No
15
 No
Group Work Assignment: Group report set in week 1 on a topical environmental engineering issue with an initial submission in week 4 (worth 5%) and final submission in week 9 (worth 20%). Week 4, Week 9 Standard conversion grade scale 40% No
25
 No
Exam (In-person): End of module exam - 2 hours closed book. End of trimester
Duration:
2 hr(s)
 Standard conversion grade scale 40% No
60
 Yes

Carry forward of passed components
Yes
 

Resit In Terminal Exam
Spring Yes - 2 Hour
Please see Student Jargon Buster for more information about remediation types and timing. 

Feedback Strategy/Strategies

• Feedback individually to students, post-assessment
• Group/class feedback, post-assessment
• Online automated feedback

How will my Feedback be Delivered?

Not yet recorded.

Textbook:
1. Environmental Engineering: Fundamentals, Sustainability, Design, Mihelcic & Zimmerman, 2010, John Wiley & Sons.

Suggested reading:
1. Fundamentals of Environmental Engineering: Reible, 1999, CRC Press.
2. Environmental Engineering, Kiely, 2006, McGraw Hill.

Name Role
Behzad Mozafari Lecturer / Co-Lecturer

Timetabling information is displayed only for guidance purposes, relates to the current Academic Year only and is subject to change.
Autumn Lecture Offering 1 Week(s) - Autumn: All Weeks Thurs 10:00 - 10:50
Autumn Lecture Offering 1 Week(s) - Autumn: All Weeks Wed 10:00 - 11:50
Print this page
Fill in the following details:
Enter the body of your query here.

From time to time UCD would like to send you further information that we feel, based on your enquiry, would be of interest to you.