Thesis Type: Postgraduate
Institution Of The Thesis: Middle East Technical University, Faculty of Engineering, Department of Environmental Engineering, Turkey
Approval Date: 2019
Thesis Language: English
Student: SARP ÇELEBİ
Supervisor: Kahraman Ünlü
Abstract:
The
control of point source discharges to rivers has become more elaborate since
the establishment of environmental quality standards (EQSs). Many countries
including Turkey have set EQS values for various contaminants of concern
(CoCs) i.e. maximum concentration limits that would not cause detrimental
effects on the health of the human-beings or the overall environment. One
important challenge of achieving these EQSs is to reconcile the effluent
limits that are technically and economically achievable with the ones that are
required to accomplish the EQSs. Tersakan Sub-basin of Yeşilırmak River
acquires good examples of this challenge due to the intense industrial and
agricultural activities present. In this study, an approach to help this
compromise is developed and implemented for all suitable discharge points
within the sub-basin. The foundation of this approach is that effluent
discharges may mix and become diluted within negligibly short distances from
the point of discharge where exceedance of EQSs can be permissible. The
approach developed, modularly combines different analytical solutions of the
advective-dispersive mass transport equation that are applicable under
different mixing conditions and estimates maximum allowable discharge
concentrations of CoCs. The results of the case study which included all 20
instances, indicate that none of these discharges need load reduction to
achieve EQSs. However, in various points tridecane, nickel, bis(2-ethylhexyl)
terephthalate, NH4-N, total phosphorus, and free CN have consumed
≥10% of their discharge quotas estimated by the mentioned approach. Therefore,
these six CoCs and their corresponding two discharge points may require more
attention in the future.