Thesis (BS Applied Mathematics) -- University of the Philippines Mindanao, 2004

The coastal marine environment is greatly affected by wide array of pollutants derived from human activities. Wastes from treatment plants are disposed to the seawater causing biological instability to the marine organisms. For many years, studies of the oceans were very limited maybe because of the characteristics of the water itself. Water characteristics are indefinite, particularly seawater due to some factors (i.e. salinity, temperature, current, waves, etc.) and of course the water properties. These factors lead to the difficulty of conducting studies about water. In addition, it is very difficult to conduct oceanic studies because of the ocean?s area. But with the aid of mathematical modeling, the real problem is converted into mathematical equations that would give solutions and eventually applied to the problem itself. The study aimed to develop a model that will determine the surface area of the discharge from the Franklin Baker Company Davao-Plant using CORMIX-GI Version 4.2E Software for the prediction of the data points of the size of the whole plume region. Mathematica Software was used in determining the best polynomial fit Wn(x) of the prediction outputs likewise for solving integration equation for the surface area of the discharge. For this study, there were two sets of results, the steady and unsteady flow results. At a constant seawater velocity of 0.30 m/s, the computed surface area of the plume distribution is 95,838,39524 m2 after 3274 seconds. The plume travels up to a distance of 1000 m based on the assumption on the limit of the region of interest. The concentration at the end of the prediction is 0.00906 mg/l. in the unsteady flow, it was assumed that the tide is unsteady. The prediction was made during slack tide, the period where tide reverses at 1.5 hr. At a maximum tidal velocity of 0.34m/s, the computed surface area of the plume distribution is 21.05158 m2 after 26 seconds. The plume travels up to a distance of 15.17 m. the concentration at the end of the prediction is 1.2 mg/l. From the set of results, the tide reversal affects the flow of the discharge thus, causing a difference in the surface area of the plume region. These surface areas can be used as a guide in determining sampling sites for future studies on wastewater.