Science

7. What is a temperature inversion and how it works

An atmospheric condition that traps pollution near the ground. Warmer air is already located above the cooler layer near the ground which does not allow for air to rise and carry away the pollution. This typically occurs in valleys.

4. What are the causes of acid precipitation

Burning fossil fuels in cars and industry which release sulfur and nitrogen oxides into the atmosphere.

b. uranium

Found naturally in the Earth's crust, the decay of uranium in the soil results in the production of radon gas (ends up in basements in the Midwest) responsible for causing lung cancer.

3. What is the pH of normal rain and of acid precipitation?

Normal rain is 5.5 to 5.6. Acid Rain is pH below 5. In Canada it can range from 4.2 to 4.8.

United States

Pollution from the Midwestern US causes acid rain in the Eastern part of Canada.

8. What happens when soil becomes acidified

Protons become more concentrated, thereby lowering the pH (more acid) which causes nutrients to wash out of the soil easily. Also, breaks it down and dissolves heavy metals like aluminum and leaches it into the soil and groundwater. Causes crops to wither and damages roots, causing them to die.

how are scrubbers, electrostatic precipitators and catalytic converters work and what they are used for. They all remove harmful substances from exhaust so that they don't enter the air we breathe.

Scrubbers - trap harmful particulates and other substances in a filter sprayed with water. b. Electrostatic precipitators - gas containing particles is moved through a chamber containing metal plates that have an electrical charge in them. Smoke particles pick up a positive charge when they pass through a positively charged metal grid, smoke particles are then attracted to the collecting plates. Collecting plates are knocked to remove the particles. c. Catalytic converters - Converts toxic chemicals that are formed from combustion of fuel in automobiles to less toxic substances. A honeycomb network of ceramic surfaces that are coated with compounds of precious metals (platinum) to react with the harmful emissions and turn them into less harmful ones.

Briefly explain the role of the stratospheric ozone layer in the protection of living organisms on Earth's surface.

THE OZONE PROTE4CTS LIVING ORGANISMS FROM HARMGUL UV RADIATION CAUSED BY THE SUN. FILTERS OUT THE DANGEROUS UV RAYS.

e. Sunlight

The sun creates a UV ray which causes a reaction with chemicals to create secondary air pollution

At your school, a student who is not taking an environmental science class asks what an individual can do to reduce air pollution. What would you suggest? Explain why these actions would reduce air pollution.

USE ELECTRIC CARS INSTEAD OF GASOLINE, USE CARPOOLING, USE ALTERNATIVE ENERGY, AIR POWER, WIND POWER, SUN POWER.

c. ozone or O3

When pollutants created by chemical reactions, between oxides and oxygen, and nitrous oxides and VOCs

what carbon monoxide is and what it does to the human body.

a. A compound of one carbon atom and one oxygen atom (CO). It is colorless, odorless, tasteless, poisonous (toxic) gas that is formed by incomplete combustion of carbon. In other words, if fuel is burned with insufficient oxygen, it produces carbon monoxide. b. It binds more tightly to hemoglobin (the protein in blood cells that carries oxygen to the tissues of the body) than oxygen, which takes the place of oxygen, so the hemoglobin can no longer bind to oxygen. It also does not release easily from the hemoglobin. As a result the person suffocates.

how are the following are produced? ozone, acid rain, smog

a. Ozone (Ground Level) - car emissions mixes with UV from the sun. b. Acid Rain (Nitric acid, Sulfuric acid) - Sulfur dioxide and Nitrous oxides are released into the atmosphere and mix with water and oxygen to form the acids. c. Smog - results from a chemical reaction of automobile exhaust and exhaust from industry, UV from the sun, Ozone and air to create the brownish haze known as smog.

examples of and what primary vs. secondary air pollutants are.

a. Primary (released directly by human activity) - carbon monoxide, nitrous oxides (aka nitrogen oxides), sulfur dioxide, carbon dioxides, particulate matter, methane, VOCs, lead. b. Secondary (forms from chemical reactions in the air) - Ground -level ozone, smog, acid rain (sulfuric acid and nitric acid).

a. acidic

having a pH below 7, rain is acidic below 5, three main things that become acidic that we don't want; rain, soil, and lakes