Chemical exergy based evaluation of water quality

The thermodynamic concept of chemical exergy is introduced for water quality evaluation, to develop unified objective indicators in contrast to conventional indicators characteristic of subjectivity. While a quantity termed specific standard chemical exergy based on the global reference substances is used to evaluate the standard water quality, an indicator as specific relative chemical exergy with reference to a spectrum of substances associated with some specified water quality standard is developed for practical water quality evaluation, with related concepts of carrying deficit and carrying capacity well embodied in exergy terms. Based on the data collected in the GEMS/WATER project, water qualities of 72 rivers and 24 lakes over the world are evaluated, as a detailed case study to illustrate the adaptability of the chemical exergy based indicators for water quality evaluation.