Environmental Geology and Geochemistry: A Brief Introduction

by Stanley Manahan

Overview

"Environmental Geology and Geochemistry: A Brief Introduction" discusses the geosphere as one of the five environmental spheres, the others of which are the hydrosphere, atmosphere, biosphere, and anthrosphere (that part of the environment made and operated by humans). In addition, a significant part of the work deals with soil and its critical role in food production and, increasingly, in the generation of renewable raw materials and biofuels. The concept of plate tectonics in shaping the geosphere is explained. The nature of rocks and the rock cycle are discussed. Emphasis is placed upon chemical processes in the geosphere including the main concepts involved in geochemistry. Weathering as a critical geochemical process is discussed.
The relationship of the geosphere to emerging green (sustainable) sciences including green chemistry is explained. An important aspect of the geosphere is as a source of much of Earth’s natural capital including essential minerals and fossil fuels. The specific topics covered in the book are the following: 1. The Geosphere (The Geosphere Related to the Other Environmental Spheres, Plate Tectonics, The Rock Cycle, The Geosphere, Green Chemistry, and Sustainability). 2. Chemical Composition of the Geosphere and Geochemistry (Biological Aspects of Weathering). 3. The Geosphere as a Source of Natural Capital, 4. Environmental Hazards of the Geosphere (Volcanoes, Toxicological and Public Health Aspects of Volcanoes, Earthquakes, Toxicological and Public Health Aspects of Earthquakes, Surface Effects, Radon, a Toxic Gas from the Geosphere. 5. Water in and on the Geosphere (Geospheric Water and Health Effects). 6 Anthrospheric Influences on the Geosphere. 7. The Geosphere as a Waste Repository. 8 Have You Thanked a Clod Today? (What is Soil?, Inorganic Solids in Soil, Soil Organic Matter, Water in Soil and The Soil Solution, Chemical Exchange Processes in Soil). 9 Plant Nutrients and Fertilizers in Soil. 10 Soil and Plants Related to Wastes and Pollutants. 11 Soil Loss — Desertification and Deforestation (Biochar for Soil Conservation and Enrichment, Water and Soil Conservation). 12 Toxicological and Public Health Aspects of Soil.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940012449665
Publisher:	Chemchar
Publication date:	05/21/2011
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	1 MB

About the Author

Stanley E. Manahan is Professor Emeritus of Chemistry at the University of Missouri-Columbia, where he has been on the faculty since 1965. He received his A.B. in chemistry from Emporia State University in Kansas in 1960 and his Ph.D. in analytical chemistry from the University of Kansas in 1965. Since 1968, his primary research and professional activities have been in environmental chemistry, with recent emphasis on hazardous waste treatment. His latest research has involved gasification of wastes and gasification of sewage sludge and crop byproduct biomass for energy production. Professor Manahan has taught courses on environmental chemistry, hazardous wastes, toxicological chemistry, and analytical chemistry and has lectured on these topics throughout the U.S. as an American Chemical Society Local Sections tour speaker and in a number of countries including France, Italy, Austria, Japan, Mexico, and Venezuela. Professor Manahan has written books on environmental chemistry (Environmental Chemistry, 9th ed., 2010, Taylor & Francis/CRC press, and Fundamentals of Environmental Chemistry, 3rd ed., 2009, Taylor & Francis/CRC press), green chemistry (Green Chemistry and the Ten Commandments of Sustainability, 3rd ed., 2010, ChemChar Research, Inc.), water chemistry (Water Chemistry: Green Science and Technology of Nature’s Most Renewable Resource, Taylor & Francis/CRC Press, 2011), general chemistry (Fundamentals of Sustainable Chemical Science 2009, Taylor & Francis/CRC press), hazardous wastes and industrial ecology (Industrial Ecology: Environmental Chemistry and Hazardous Waste, 1999, Lewis Publishers/CRC press), toxicological chemistry (Toxicological Chemistry and Biochemistry, 3rd ed., 2002, Lewis Publishers/CRC press), applied chemistry, and quantitative chemical analysis. He is the author or co-author of approximately 90 research articles.