Ch 6 Air Pollution and Noise
T/F In general terms, it is safe to assume that any two identical sound levels will have the effect of increasing the overall level by 10db
False
T/F Particulates larger than 10 microns can penetrate easily into the respiratory tract
False
The accumulation or increased concentration of a continuously emitted pollutant is
Inversely proportional to wind speed
What size particle can reach the lowest parts of the lung?
3 microns
T/F Sounds with a frequency of 30 hertz are considered very low pitch
True
T/F The frequency of a sound determines its pitch
True
T/F Transportation is the largest source of air pollution.
True
HCFCs
Hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) are a large group of compounds, whose structure is very close to that of Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), but including one or more hydrogen atoms. Under normal conditions, HCFCs are gases or liquids which evaporate easily. They are generally fairly stable and unreactive. HCFCs do not usually dissolve in water, but do dissolve in organic (carbon-containing) solvents. HCFCs are chemically similar to Hydrobromofluorocarbons (HBFCs), Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and Halons and therefore display some similar properties, though they are much less stable and persistent. HCFCs are also part of a group of chemicals known as the volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Since the use of CFCs has been phased out, HCFCs have replaced them for some applications. In particular, HCFCs are now used as refrigerants (in refrigerators, freezers and air conditioning systems) and also in insulative foams. The use of HCFCs as solvents is now being phased out in developed countries and has been banned in the UK since 2001. Their use in general is also being phased out. The most significant releases of HCFCs occur as leakage from cooling applicances which contain them, both during their manufacture, use and disposal. There are not thought to be any natural sources of HCFCs to the environment.
Stability of the atmosphere
Is the ability to enhance or suppress vertical air motions and is largely determined by the vertical temperature profile
Sources of pollutants can generally be classified as
Line sources, area sources, point sources
For a pure tone (single frequency) to be produced, there must be a one-to-one correspondence between
Loudness and intensity
Which of the following are major sources of sulfur dioxide pollution?
Metal smelters, coal and oil burning power plants, refineries
The information needed to use an air quality models includes
Meteorological data, pollutant concentration data, and source emissions data
What involves the chemistry, physics, and dynamics of the atmosphere and includes many direct effects of the atmosphere on the earth's surface, ocean and life.
Meteorology
The normal change in temperature with altitude is
Noted as a decrease due to expansion and thus adiabatic cooling of air
A primary pollutant is
One that is found in the atmosphere in the same form as it exists
Injury to plants due to _____shows up as flecks, stipple and bleaching, tip burns on conifers, and growth suppression
Ozone
What can be formed as a result of the sun's action on nitrogen oxides and hydrocarbons?
Ozone
The Ringlemann chart method of evaluating particle pollution in the atmosphere is being replaced by a determination of the
Percent opacity
Glazing, silvering, or bronzing on the underside of a leaf is evidence that injury has occurred by
Peroxyacyl nitrates
If 10 deciblels is 10 times more intense than one decibel, how many times more intense is 20 decibles than one decibel?
100
Air is vital to existence. In fact, humans breathe in a day's time an average of
35lbs of air
A particle count of above___is said to be representative of an urban area
50,000
For workers, a sound level above___dBA should be considered unsafe for daily exposure over a period of months
90
Decibel
A dimensionless unit to express physical intensity or sound pressure levels
Wind rose
A wind rose gives a very succinct but information-laden view of how wind speed and direction are typically distributed at a particular location. Presented in a circular format, the wind rose shows the frequency of winds blowing FROM particular directions. The length of each "spoke" around the circle is related to the frequency of time that the wind blows from a particular direction. Each concentric circle represents a different frequency, emanating from zero at the center to increasing frequencies at the outer circles. The wind roses shown here contain additional information, in that each spoke is broken down into discrete frequency categories that show the percentage of time that winds blow from a particular direction and at certain speed ranges. All wind roses shown here use 16 cardinal directions, such as north (N), NNE, NE, etc.
It is possible to control noise
At the source, in its path of transmission and where it is received
What is the primary difference between criteria air pollutants and air toxics pollutants with respect to health standards? Select one: a. There is no difference - they're both the same b. There are no minimum health standards for air toxics pollutants set by the USEPA c. There are no minimum health standards for criteria air pollutants d. Standards for air toxic pollutants are higher than for air pollutants e. Standards for air pollutants are higher than for air toxics
B
The Montreal Protocol categorizes___and____ in two classes based on their ozone-depiction potential.
CFCs and halons
Which of the following items are not natural topographic features?
Canals (rivers, foliages, hills)
Which of the following is not a malodorous gas?
Carbon monoxide (sulfur dioxide, hydrogen sulfide, phenol)
CFCs are widely used because they are
Chemically stable
How are total suspended particles measured?
Collection and weighing
What are two (2) diseases associated with asbestos exposure? Select one: a. Mesothelioma b. Skin Cancer c. Asbestosis d. A and C e. All of the above
D
Which of the following are health effects of ozone? Select one: a. Airway irritation b. Coughing, pain when breathing c. Wheezing during exercise or outdoor activities d. Increased susceptibility to respiratory illnesses and lung damage e. All of the above
E
Which of the following are potential indoor air pollutants? Select one: a. Asbestos b. Biological contaminants (bacteria, mold, mildew, viruses, animal dander/cat saliva, house dust, mites, cockroaches, pollen) c. CO d. Formaldehyde e. All of the above
E
Which of the following is/are economic effects of pollution? Select one: a. Damage to property, equipment, facilities b. Increased medical costs, lost wages, crop damage c. Increased operational costs by facilities-increased product costs d. A and B e. All of the above
E
T/F A primary pollutant is one that is formed in the atmosphere as a result of chemical reactions
False
T/F Chlorofluorcarbons increase the amount of ozone in the atmosphere.
False
T/F Continuous exposure to high-level noise is level noise is less harmful than intermittent or occasional exposure.
False
T/F Dry cotton ear plugs are just as effective against noise control as expensive fitted ear plugs and earmuffs.
False
T/F Sound absorbing materials absorb low frequency sounds much more effectively than high frequency sounds
False
T/F The precise levels at which specific air pollutants become a health hazard are relatively easy to establish by existing surveillance systems
False
T/F The US EPA has the sole responsibility for implementing "The Noise Control Act of 1972"
False (responsibility of the Federal government)
Halon-1301 is used primarily in____
Fixed fire suppression systems
What has been known to cause crippling skeletal damage to cattle through ingested contaminated vegetation.
Fluorides
Street dust would be considered what type of pollution?
Fugitive pollutant: Particulates, gases and vapors that find their way into the air without being vented through a stack
What is considered to be the least damaging to the stratospheric ozone layer?
HCFCs
Photochemical smog has been reported in congested areas with
High motor vehicle traffic
Particle size selective inlets are used to separate particulates above and below 2-3 microns in size on
High volume samples
Peroxyacyl nitrates
Peroxyacyl nitrates (also known as Acyl peroxy nitrates, APN or PANs) are powerful respiratory and eye irritants present in photochemical smog. They are nitrates produced in the thermal equilibrium between organic peroxy radicals by the gas-phase oxidation of a variety of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), or by aldehydes and other oxygenated VOCs oxidizing in the presence of NO2. They are good markers for the source of VOCs as either biogenic or anthropogenic, which is useful in the study of global and local effects of pollutants. PANs are both toxic and irritating, as they dissolve more readily in water than ozone. They are lachrymators, causing eye irritation at concentrations of only a few parts per billion. At higher concentrations they cause extensive damage to vegetation. Both PANs and their chlorinated derivates are said to be mutagenic, as they can be a factor causing skin cancer. PANs are secondary pollutants, which means they are not directly emitted as exhaust from power plants or internal combustion engines, but they are formed from other pollutants by chemical reactions in the atmosphere. Free radical reactions catalyzed by ultraviolet light from the sun oxidize unburned hydrocarbons to aldehydes, ketones, and dicarbonyl compounds, whose secondary reactions create peroxyacyl radicals, which combine with nitrogen dioxide to form peroxyacyl nitrates. The most common peroxyacyl radical is peroxyacetyl, which can be formed from the free radical oxidation of acetaldehyde, various ketones, or the photolysis of dicarbonyl compounds such as methylglyoxal or diacetyl. Since they dissociate quite slowly in the atmosphere into radicals and NO2, PANs are able to transport these unstable compounds far away from the urban and industrial origin. This is important for tropospheric ozone production as PANs transport NOx to regions where it can more efficiently produce ozone.
The unit of measurement most commonly used to measure loudness is called
Phon (1000Hz 40dB =1 sone, 1 sone =40phons, each doubling of the sones increases the phones by 10)
Halon-1211 is used primarily in ___
Portable fire extinguishers
Which of the following inversions develops at night under conditions of relatively clear skies and very light winds?
Radiational inversion
Fluorocarbons in the atmosphere are of concern because they may
React with the ozone in the upper atmosphere, thus reducing the total amount of ozone available, cause an increase in ultraviolet radiation reaching the earth, cause an increase in skin cancers and change in our climate animal, and plant life
Which of the following types of materials are known to reflect sound?
Rubber tiles
Ozone reduces the useful life of all of the following:
Rubber, textiles and dyes (not nylon)
Some specific measures that can be used to reduce the effect of highway noise include:
Setting lower speed limits for certain sections of a highway, establishing alternate truck routes, enclosure of highways going through residential areas
The meteorological elements that have the most direct and significant effects on the distribution of air pollutants are
Solar radiation, wind speed and direction, precipitation and stability
Air pollution is the presence of ______ in the outside air in amounts that are injurious or detrimental to humans, animals, plants or property.
Solids, liquids and gases
The ratio of the energy passing through a wall, floor or ceiling to the energy striking it is called
Sound transmission loss
Air pollution control should first be considered at the
Source
The Safe Alternatives Policy program
Specifies alternatives for all ozone-depleting substances
Impurities in combustible hydrocarbons (coal and oil) combine with oxygen to produce_____ when burned.
Sulfur dioxide
What type of air pollution causes bleaching of leaves in plants?
Sulfur dioxide
Which component of clean, dry air has the smallest volume?
Sulfur dioxide
Animals are primarily affected by the fluorides in the air
Through ingesting vegetation
Which of the following are examples of short-range primary pollutants?
Total suspended solids and sulfur dioxide
In what part of the earth's atmosphere are photochemical oxidants produced?
Troposphere
T/F Almost all sound contains multiple frequencies
True
T/F Bacteria and spores are considered natural sources of air pollution
True
T/F Individuals react differently to noise depending on age, sex and socioeconomic background
True
T/F Stack samples must be collected at the same speed of flow that gasses normally pass though the stack
True
T/F The amount of sound energy a material can absorb is a function of its absorption coefficient at a specified frequency.
True
T/F The terms "washout" and "rainout" both refer to a cleansing process of pollutants in the atmosphere.
True
The distance that a sound wave travels in one cycle or period is the
Wavelength of the sound
Long-term wind data of a given location are presented graphically in the form of
Wind rose
