Chapter 16 Envi Sci

High concentration of nitrogen dioxide causes

damage to plant leaves. It also causes respiratory problems.

air pollutants movement through atmosphere

natural/ human generated sources→ wind transport and chemical reactions→ haze/ deposition→biological effects on natural environment

nations with lowest air pollution

new zealand, Brunei Darussalam, Sweden, Australia, Canada

tropospheric ozone sources

oil and gas, biogenic sources (forest fire), vehicles, planes, non-road engines (lawn mower)

Smoke

particulates formed during combustion of organic matter. For example, garbage, burning of fossil fuels, smoke from burning of oil.

Over ___% of world's population lives in places where air pollution is above World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines.

90%

What are overall effects of air pollution?

-Acid rain is most common result of air pollution. -Acidification causes damage to both plants and animals. -Ozone depletion is another important effect of atmospheric pollution. -Photochemical smog is another effect of air pollution. -Respiratory diseases are another effect of air pollution.

What are effects of photochemical smog?

-Causes eye irritation -Headache, chest pain, cough, difficulty in breathing -Damage to the plant life -Corrosion of stones and metals -It also leads to cracking in rubber

air pollution deaths in 2012

1) china 2) India 3) russia 4)indonesia

What are sources of CO2, a greenhouse gas?

1) electricity generation 2)transportation 3) industry

By the ___ in USA , the environmental movement began to emerge. This movement sought to stem the tide of pollutants flowing into the planet's ecosystems.

1960s

About ____% of solar radiation is absorbed in atmosphere, ___% is reflected and ___% absorbed by Earth's surface.

23%, 29%, 48%

VOCs sources

26% vehicles, 28% solvent use, 18% non-road equipment

nitrogen oxide sources

35% vehicles, 23% non-road equipment

lead sources

42% non-road equipment, 41% industrial processes

"We still have _____ deaths in Europe [per year] and this is totally unacceptable."

500,000

carbon monoxide sources

59% vehicles, 25% non-road equipment

sulfur dioxide sources

73% electricity generation

In 1905, the term "smog" identified and defined:

A mixture of smoke (sm) and fog (og).

___ is highly polluted but little measured.

Africa

How is air quality measured?

Air Quality Index (AQI)

least polluted places in USA

Albany NY, Honolulu, Casper WY, Bismarck ND

How is ozone depleted?

CFCs in atmosphere absorbs ultraviolet rays and forms chlorine free radical. These chlorine free radicals formed are continuously used to breakdown the ozone.

_____ is one of the toxic pollutant

Carbon monoxide

Out of this movement came events like Earth Day, and legislative victories like the_________ and ________.

Clean Air Act (1970), the Clean Water Act (1972

Since the_____ and ______, air pollution has decreased markedly.

Clean Air Act of 1970, the identification of these pollutants

most polluted places in usa

Fairbanks Alaska, Visalia-porterville-hanford CA, Bakers field CA, LA CA

Hydrocarbons (VOCs) are composed of hydrogen and carbon and are caused by__

Incomplete combustion of fossil fuels used in automobiles forms hydrocarbons.

____ has 20 of 33 most polluted cities in the world.

India

ground level ozone formation

Nitrogen Oxides + VOCS=Ozone (pollutants "bake" together in direct sunlight forming ozone)

what is PM 2.5?

PM 2.5 is the concentration of microscopic particles less than 2.5 microns in diameter.

what is PM 10

PM10 refers to the concentration of particles less than 10 microns in diameter.

Formation of photochemical smog

Primary pollutants, like oxides of nitrogen and VOCs, interact due to sunlight to produce a hazardous chums (secondary pollutants) like Add to peroxyacetyl nitrates (PAN) and ground-level ozone.

Hydrocarbons (VOCs) cause

They are carcinogenic. They cause ageing in plants, shedding of flowers and leaves etc.

How is this ozone formed?

When oxygen (O2) absorbs ultraviolet rays, it breaks into oxygen atoms. O2 molecules combine with O atom to form O3 (ozone).

Stratosphere

above troposphere where protective layer of ozone is present.

Technically, greenhouse gases are not classified as _____

air pollutants.

Sulfurous smog

also called "London smog," results from high concentration of sulfur oxides in air and caused by use of sulfur-bearing fossil fuels, i.e., coal.

Air Quality Index (AQI)

an index used by government agencies to communicate to public the current status of air quality and how polluted it may become. Public health risks increase as the AQI rises. Different countries have their own air quality indices.

Fumes

are another non-viable particulate pollutants that are formed due to condensation of vapors during distillation, boiling etc.

Dust

are particles that are formed due to various sources such as crushing or grinding of solid particles. Sand, saw dust, fly ash, etc. are also important source of particulate matter.

Mists

are small water droplets that decreases the visibility in the atmosphere. For example, Mist from herbicide and insecticides.

greenhouse gases

carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, water vapor, carbon monoxide, CFCs, Sulphur Dioxide, and ozone in the atmosphere which are involved in the greenhouse effect.

major primary pollutants and their sources

carbon monoxide (49.1%), sulfur oxides (16.4%), nitrogen oxides (14.8%), VOCs (13.6%), particulates (6%) transportation (46.2%), stationary source fuel combustion (27.3%), Industrial processes (15%)

air pollution affects on health

carbon monoxide: head fatigue lead: nerve damage VOCs: cancer, nausea, skin irritation particulate matter: respitory disease

The main pollutant behind the ozone depletion is _____ known as ____.

chlorofluorocarbon (CFCs), Freon (CFCs are used in refrigerators)

Oxides of Sulfur are formed when

fossil fuels are burnt. Burning of fossil fuels form Sulfur dioxide.

Carbon monoxide has a strong affinity to bind with ____.

hemoglobin, This reduces the amount of oxygen that bind with the hemoglobin. This forms carboxyhemoglobin which causes reduce availability of oxygen to tissues.

Photochemical smog

is produced when sunlight reacts with nitrogen oxides (NOx) and at least one volatile organic compound (VOC) in the atmosphere. Nitrogen oxides come from car exhaust, coal power plants, and factory emissions. When sunlight hits these chemicals, they form airborne particles and ground-level ozone—or smog.

Thermosphere

layer where sun's rays are first absorbed, that is, X-rays, UV-rays etc.

Mesosphere

layer where temperature is low and air is thin to breathe.

Oxides of Nitrogen are formed when

lightning strikes the oxygen at higher altitude. During burning of fossil fuels at high temperature, oxygen and nitrogen combines to form nitrogen dioxide and nitric oxide. Nitric oxide than reacts further with oxygen to form nitrogen dioxide. NO formed also reacts with ozone to form nitrogen dioxide and oxygen.

Troposphere

lowest region where living organisms inhabit & pollutants first collect.

Particulate pollutants include ____ or _____.

minute solid particles or liquid droplets suspended in air

What are four major sources of air pollution?

mobile sources (cars, buses, planes, trucks, and trains), stationary sources (power plants, oil refineries, industrial facilities, and factories), area sources (agricultural areas, cities, and wood-burning fireplaces), natural sources (wind-blown dust, wildfires, and volcanos)

Sulfur dioxide is harmful for

plants and animals and causes respiratory disorders. It also causes irritation in eyes such as tears and redness. In plants, it causes flower buds to fall from the plant. The oxides of sulfur are potential agents that causes acid rain.

secondary pollutants

pollutants that are formed by the combination of primary pollutants in the atmosphere. (ozone, sulfate, nitrate)

Carbon Dioxide is added to the atmosphere by

respiration, burning of fossil fuels, and decomposition of limestone.

nartiopns with highest air pollution

saudi arabia, qatar, egypt, bangladesh

The source of particulate pollutants can be ______

smoke particles from fires, vehicle emissions, ash, dust particles etc. Bacteria, viruses, molds, algae also qualify as a particulate pollutant.

Overall: Air pollutants can be ______, ______ and _____ or any ______

solid, liquid, certain gases, particulate matter

air pollution is the worst in ____

south and east Asia, where most of humanity lives, with traffic, dirty industry and the open burning of waste delivering a triple whammy

The ______ contains a layer of ozone that protects the Earth from harmful ultraviolet rays

stratosphere

six major air pollutants

sulfur dioxide (SO2) nitrogen oxides (NOx) ozone (O3) particulate matter (small suspended particles of varying sizes) carbon monoxide (CO) volatile organic compounds (VOCs)

primary pollutants

sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrous oxide, carbon dioxide, NO2

There at least two distinct types of smog

sulfurous smog and photochemical smog.

In the modern world, fossil fuel (oil, coal, natural gas) combustion is the biggest contributor to air pollution. The leading sources today include _____, ______ , _______, ______, ______, _____

vehicular traffic, factory & industry productions, mining operations, agriculture, domestic/commercial, and electric-generating power plants.

VOCs

volatile organic compounds

How does the AQI work?

works like a thermometer that runs from 0 to 500 degrees. The AQI is a way of showing changes in the amount of pollution in the air.