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Evaluating the environmental fate of a variety of types of chemicals using the EQC model
Author(s) -
Mackay Donald,
Di Guardo Antonio,
Paterson Sally,
Cowan Christina E.
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
environmental toxicology and chemistry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.1
H-Index - 171
eISSN - 1552-8618
pISSN - 0730-7268
DOI - 10.1002/etc.5620150929
Subject(s) - chemical industry , biochemical engineering , organic chemicals , process (computing) , variety (cybernetics) , partition (number theory) , pyrene , environmental science , computer science , biological system , chemistry , environmental chemistry , mathematics , environmental engineering , biology , engineering , organic chemistry , artificial intelligence , combinatorics , operating system
The multimedia equilibrium criterion model, which can be used to evaluate the environmental fate of a variety of chemicals, is described. The model treats chemicals that fall into three categories. In the first the chemicals may partition into all environmental media, in the second they are involatile, and in the third they are insoluble in water. The structure of the model, the process equations, and the required input data for each chemical type are described. By undertaking a sequence of level I, II, and III calculations, increasing information is obtained about the chemical's partitioning, its susceptibility to transformation and transport, and the environmental process and the chemical characteristics that most influence chemical fate. Output data, consisting of tables and charts, give a complete picture of the chemical's fate in an evaluative or generic environment. The model is illustrated by applying it to two chemicals, pyrene, which is a chemical of the first type, and lead, which is of a second type. The role of this model as a tool for assessing the fate of new and existing chemicals is discussed.