Environmental and Systems Engineering Flashcards
6 cards from real ME or MEng Master of Engineering practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 6 Environmental and Systems Engineering flashcards as text
Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) in environmental engineering evaluates:
Answer: Environmental impacts from raw material extraction through end-of-life disposal
LCA quantifies environmental burdens (energy, emissions, waste) at every stage of a product's life from cradle to grave.
In systems engineering, a system's reliability R(t) is related to its hazard (failure) rate λ(t) by:
Answer: R(t) = e^(−∫λ(t)dt)
Reliability R(t) = exp(−∫₀ᵗ λ(τ)dτ); for constant hazard rate, R(t) = e^(−λt), giving the exponential failure distribution.
The Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD) test measures:
Answer: Oxygen consumed by microorganisms to decompose organic matter in water
BOD measures the oxygen consumed by microorganisms breaking down organic matter in a water sample over typically 5 days at 20°C (BOD₅).
A fault tree analysis (FTA) is a top-down method used to:
Answer: Identify combinations of events leading to a specified top-level failure
FTA uses Boolean logic (AND/OR gates) to model pathways of basic events that combine to cause an undesired top event (system failure).
Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) in water quality refers to:
Answer: Inorganic salts, minerals, and organic matter dissolved in water
TDS encompasses all dissolved inorganic and organic substances (ions, metals, minerals) passing through a 0.45 μm filter, expressed in mg/L or ppm.
In a FMEA (Failure Mode and Effects Analysis), the Risk Priority Number (RPN) is calculated as:
Answer: Severity × Occurrence × Detection
RPN = Severity × Occurrence × Detection (each rated 1–10); higher RPN values indicate failure modes requiring priority corrective action.