Air pollution
The primary function of the catalytic converter now installed on most automobiles is to
complete the oxidation of hydrocarbons and carbon monoxide.
Which of the following statements is true about pH and aquatic life?
most species tolerate a relatively narrow range of pH.
The brownish color of air in some polluted urban areas is due to:
nitrogen oxides
The major constituents of the atmosphere are
nitrogen, oxygen, carbon dioxide
Which of the following was true of the ban on the use of lead in gasoline?
once banned, lead levels quickly dropped in the population and the environment.
Trace gases in the atmosphere include
ozone, helium, hydrogen, nitrogen oxide, sulfur dioxide
Reaction of volatile organic compounds (VOC's) with nitrogen oxides in urban areas produce:
photochemical oxidants.
A type of air pollution in urban areas that tends to increase over the course of the day is:
photochemical smog.
Rainwater having a pH of 4 is
1000 times more acidic than pure water.
False
A substance that will neutralize a given amount of acid without being used up by the acid is a catalyst.
False
As the time of exposure to a particular pollutant becomes larger, its threshold level will remain the same.
Standards were established for vehicle fuel economy under the:
CAFÉ (Corporate Average Fuel Economy).
A strategy to deal with pollution in which the government sets specific limits on emissions and then monitors pollution and enforces those standards is called:
CAFÉ standards.
The major federal law aimed at controlling air pollution is the
Clean air act
false
Experiments have shown that plants are overall much less sensitive to air pollutants than humans are because plants have better defense mechanisms.
The EPA sets limits on the 5 criteria air pollutants and lead necessary to protect the environment and public health under which of the following?
National Ambient Air Quality Standards.
The EPA sets standards for the release of toxic air pollutants under the:
National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants.
Fasle
None of the air pollutants produced by humans can be broken down or recycled by nature.
Which of the following statements about ozone pollution in the lower atmosphere is FALSE?
Ozone causes reduction in crop yields only if the EPA standards for ozone are exceeded.
false
Plants are less susceptible to ozone and sulfur dioxide than are humans.
A temperature inversion is when:
a layer of warm air lies above a layer of cool air.
Which of the following is/are common secondary pollutants?
acids
Which of the following pollutants is NOT a direct product of combustion fuels
acids
Pollutants capable of causing immediate life-threatening physiological illness are said to be
acute.
Which of the following is true of air pollution and rural areas?
air pollution can be transported from urban to rural areas.
A reduction in which of the following would have the greatest effect on reducing outdoor air pollution?
automobile use.
A chemical in automobile exhaust that the EPA has classified as a known human carcinogen is:
benzene.
The ability of a forest soil to absorb and neutralize acid rain is due to the presence of minerals that act as:
buffers.
Which of the following is true of air pollution, agriculture, and crop yields?
c. air pollution can reduce crop yields and soil fertility.
Flexibility in achieving the National Ambient Air Quality Standards is possible because each state:
can develop its own strategy in meeting the national standards through a State Implementation Plan (SIP).
"Normal" precipitation is slightly acidic because this is dissolved in it.
carbon dioxide.
The principal gaseous product produced in the combustion of coal, oil, and natural gas is
carbon dioxide.
Pollutants that can cause cancer in animals are said to be
carcinogenic.
A pollution control device that is designed to remove carbon monoxide and volatile organic compounds (VOC's) is the:
catalytic converter.
These are devices which remove air pollutants from emissions:
catalytic converters and electrostatic precipitators .
Which of the following is true of ground level ozone?
causes respiratory damage and lung disorders
Pollutants which cause a gradual deterioration of physiological processes are:
chronic.
The most significant factor in reducing sulfur dioxide at ground level has been
coal-burning power plants building tall smokestacks.
The most significant source of sulfur dioxide emissions into the atmosphere has been found to be
coal-burning power plants.
Hydroxyl radicals that form in the atmosphere from water:
combine with and neutralize naturally occurring air pollutants.
The most significant source of all the major air pollutants is
combustion of fuels and wastes.
Acid precipitation is likely to have the greatest impact on Earth through
die offs of forests and aquatic ecosystems.
Two lakes are close to each other and receive roughly the same acidic precipitation. One lake has turned acidic in recent years while the other lake is still neutral. This can best be explained by
difference in buffering capacity of the two lakes.
Which of the following is true about the relationship of air pollutants to health effects?
exposure to a varying mixture of air pollutants makes it difficult to show cause and effect.
Which of the following is NOT a major step in controlling air pollution?
finding cures for the diseases caused by air pollutants.
Which of the following is NOT a significant source of indoor air pollution?
house plants.
The chemical component which is responsible for BASIC properties is
hydroxyl ions (OH-).
An aerosol mixture of particulates and sulfur compounds forms a grayish colored substance that is called
industrial smog
Of the following criteria pollutants, which one was added to fuel?
lead
Which rock type is most effective at buffering acid precipitation?
limestone.
Acid precipitation
may occur hundreds of miles from the source of emissions.
The products produced by the combustion and evaporation of hydrocarbons and fossil fuels are called
primary pollutants.
Ozone in the UPPER atmosphere
reaction of oxygen to ultra-violet light.
Ozone is a form of oxygen produced by
reaction of oxygen to ultra-violet light.
Ozone, PANS, and aldehydes and ketones are examples of ________ pollutants.
secondary.
The pH of normal precipitation is
slightly acidic
The major source of sulfur dioxide emissions affecting the eastern United States and Canada has been identified as
some 50 coal burning power plants.
Which of the following are major sources of acid deposition?
sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides
Which of the following is the major contributor to the formation of acid rain?
sulfur dioxide.
Plants exposed to pollutants over a long time may become more susceptible to disease or insect attack. Which of the following best explains this observation?
synergistic effect.
What happens to pollutants during a temperature inversion?
they concentrate in the cool air layer near the ground.
Which of the following best describes the fate of high levels of air pollutants?
they may "use up" naturally occurring hydroxyl radicals that serve to clean air of pollutants.
Acid precipitation refers
to any precipitation which is more acidic than normal.
An unexpected consequence of the acid rain that runs off forests into nearby lakes is that:
toxic chemicals such as mercury and aluminum are leached out of soils.
Many lakes in Scandinavia, Canada, and the Adirondack Mountains of New York State have become acidified over the past few decades because of acid deposition. Fish mortality in these lakes is high because of
toxic metals leaching from surrounding soils and rocks and building up in the lakes
A non-anthropogenic source of sulfur oxides is:
volcanic activity.
The greenhouse effect refers to
warming of the Earth's atmosphere.
