Problem
Mercury exists in the environment in a variety of forms. Organic mercury exists predominantly as dimethyl mercury, (CH3)2Hg which is easily assimilated by the biota. Hence fish in the lakes of several states in the United States are known to contain high concentrations of Hg. Dimethyl mercury has the following properties: Kaw = 0.31 (molar concentration ratio), Ksw = 7.5 L/kg, Kbw = 10 L/kg. Consider an evaluative environment of 109 m3 of air in contact with 105 m3 of water in a lake containing 103 m3 of sediment and 10 m3 of biota. The sediment density is 1000 kg/m3 and that of biota is 1500 kg/m3
(a) What is the fraction accumulated by the biota in the lake? Use the fugacity level I model.
(b) If an influent feed rate of 100 m3/h of air with a concentration of 0.1 mol/m3 is assumed, calculate the fraction assimilated by the biota using the fugacity level II model.
The response should include a reference list. Double-space, using Times New Roman 12 pnt font, one-inch margins, and APA style of writing and citations.