APES Air Pollution – Flashcards
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a long, thin, fibrous silicate mineral with insulating properties, which can cause cancer when inhaled. Used as an insulator on steam and hot water pipes
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Asbetos
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solid or liquid particles suspended in air
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Particulate Matter (PM)
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a class of air pollutants formed as a result of sunlight acting on compounds such as nitrogen oxides
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Photochemical oxidant
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a secondary pollutant made up of three oxygen atoms bound together. It is harmful to both plants and animals and impairs respiratory function
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Ozone
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a type of air pollution that is a mixture of oxidants and particulate matter
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Smog
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smog that is dominated by oxidants such as ozone
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Photochemical smog
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Other names for photochemical smog
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Los Angeles Smog Brown Smog
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smog that is dominated by sulfur dioxide and sulfate compounds
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Sulfurous smog
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Other names for Sulfurous smog
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London-type smog Gray smog Industrial smog
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an organic compound that evaporates at typical atmospheric temperatures
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Volatile Organic Compound (VOC)
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a polluting compound that comes directly out of a smokestack, exhaust pipe, or natural emission source
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Primary Pollutant
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a primary pollutant that has undergone transformation in the presence of sunlight water, oxygen, or other compounds
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Secondary Pollutant
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a situation in which a relatively warm layer of air at mid-altitude covers a later of cold, dense air below
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Thermal Inversion
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a layer of warm air that traps emissions in a thermal inversion
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Inversion layer
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a buildup of toxic pollutants in an airtight space, seen in buildings
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Sick building syndrome
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The introduction of chemicals, particulate matters, or microorganisms into the atmosphere at concentrations high enough to harm plants, animals, and materials such as buildings, or to alter ecosystems. It's a global system what happens in one country harmfully impacts the rest
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Air Pollution
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US Clean Air Act of 1970 identified six air polluants
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1. Sulfur Dioxide 2. Nitrogen Oxides 3. Carbon Monoxide 4. Particulate Matter 5. Tropospheric ozone 6. Lead
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Which air pollutant was added as an air pollutant from the US Clean Air Act
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Carbon Dioxide Not listed as air pollutant but measured are Violate Organic Compound and Mercury
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Property: A corrosive gas Comes from: Combustion of fuels (coal ; oil) What is it:It's a respiratory irritant and can affect plant tissues as well Where is found: Living organisms and Fossil Fuels derive sulfur Forms: when fuels are combusted (in fossil fuels) the sulfur and oxygen combine Released: Volcanic Eruptions and Forest Fires
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Sulfur Dioxide
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Forms: Combustion in atmosphere. Motor Vehicles and stationary fossil fuels Released: Forrest Fires, lighting, and microbial action in soil
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Nitrogen Oxides
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78% of atmosphere is
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Nitrogen gas
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Atmospheric Nitrogen Oxides plays a role in forming
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ozone and other components of smog
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Properties: Colorless, odorless gas Formed: During incomplete combustion of most matter Released: Vehicle Exhaust and combustion process.
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Carbon Monoxide
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Where is Carbon Monoxide a problem and why?
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In developing countries where people may cook with manure, charcoal, or kerosene within poorly ventilated structures.
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Properties: colorless, odorless gas Formed: During combustion of most matter, including fossil fuels and biomass Released: Burning Fossil Fuels
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Carbon Dioxide
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Formed: Combustion of wood, animal manure and other bio fuels Released: Combustion of fuels Come from: road dust and rock-crushing operations Natural Sources: Volcanoes, Forest Fires, and dust storms
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Particulate Matter
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Safe Particulate Matter
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The ones that can be filtered by the nose hairs. Particulate that are 10 micrometers and bigger
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Reduced visibility is called
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Haze
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What does Particulate matter do?
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Scatters and absorbs sunlight.
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Reduced visibility occurs primarily
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when particulate matter from air pollution scatters light.
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Reactive compounds that remove electrons from other substances
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Oxides
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What are chemical oxidants harmful to
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Plant tissue, human respiratory tissue, and construction materials
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In the presence of sulfur and nitrogen oxides, photochemical oxidants can enhance the formation of certain particulate matter, which contributes to scattering light resulting mixture is
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called smog
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New descriptive term given to the the combination of particulate matter and ozone Primarily derived from combustion of fossil fuel and burning biomass
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Atmospheric brown smog
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Where does the atmospheric brown smog get the brown tint of color
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from the presence of black or brown light absorbing carbon particles and/or nitrogen dioxide
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What caused the lead to be leaked into the atmosphere
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Lead compounds were added to ne for so many years to improve the vehicle's performance. During this time, the lead would be released through the burning of that gasoline and from the snow and rain it was deposited on the ground
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What happens with the lead-based paint
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when it peels off the resulting dust and chips can affect the nervous system and the learning and intelligence of the kids who ingest it
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What has similar consequences to lead
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Mercury
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What releases mercury into the atmosphere
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the burning of fossil fuels and combustion of coal
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Many are hydrocarbons- compounds that contains carbon-hydrogen bonds
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VOCs
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When air pollution is dissolved in water vapor the result is
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water deposition
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A temperature inversion is the result of
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warm air on top of cooler, more dense, stagnant air
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The chemical that causes most people in developed countries the most difficulty is
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formaldehyde
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The correct sequence of layers of the atmosphere from innermost to outermost is
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troposphere-stratosphere-mesosphere-thermosphere
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Radioactive ____ is a product of uranium decay
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radon from the soil
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Temperature inversions make pollution problems worse or better
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worse
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Which bioindicator is used to detect air pollution?
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lichens
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Air pollution in the urban areas of many less-developed countries is
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getting worse
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Most of the ozone layer is found in which of the following?
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stratosphere
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The Clean Air Act established to reduce air pollution standards for 6 major outdoor pollutants has resulted in
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better than 50% overall average reduction
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Photochemical smog is characteristic of urban areas with many vehicles and a climate that is
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warm, dry, and sunny
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Human inputs of outdoor air pollutants occur mostly
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in urban areas
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About 90% of radon related lung cancers in the US occur among
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current or former smokers
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Sixteen of the world's twenty most polluted cities are found in
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China
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The atmosphere is divided into spherical layers based upon the
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temperature changes from variations in absorption of solar energy
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The difference between primary and secondary pollutants is that the secondary pollutants are
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a combination of primary pollutants
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The force or mass per unit area of a column of air is called
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atmospheric pressure
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Most of earth's climate occurs in the
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troposphere
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The biggest air pollution threat to poor people is
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indoor air pollution
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Many VOCs are hydrocarbons such as
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gasoline, lighter fluid, dry-cleaning fluid, oil-based paints, and perfumes
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VOCs play an important role in
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the formation of photochemical oxidants
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How harmful are VOCs?
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VOCs are not necessarily harmful but they van lead to formation of photochemical oxidants, they have the potential to be harmful
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What do primary pollutants include
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CO, CO2, SO2, NOx, and most suspended particulate matter
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Ozone is formed
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in the atmosphere as a result of the emission of primary air pollutants NOx and VOCs in the presence of sunlight
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When trying to control secondary pollutants
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it is necessary to consider the primary pollutants that create them, as well as factors that may lead to the breakdown or reduction in secondary pollutants themselves
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What are natural emissions sources
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Volcanoes, lightning, forest fires, and plants both living and dead
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Volcanoes release
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Sulfur dioxide, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, and nitrogen oxides
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Lightning strikes release (creates)
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nitrogen oxides from atmospheric nitrogen
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Forest fires release
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particulate matter, nitrogen oxides, and carbon monoxide
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Living plants release
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a variety of VOCs including ethylene and terpenes
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Agricultural fields can give rise
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to particulate matter when they are plowed
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Particulate matter comes from
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variety of sources including natural and human-made fires, road dust, and generation of electrcity
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The abundance of VOC can
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take up the free oxygen emitted from the NO and they bound with NO so the ozone can't be broken down and stays abundant in the atmosphere
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The warmest air is closest or furthest to Earth
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It is closest to Earth
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What can warm air do to air pollution
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warm air can disperses pollutants because warm air is less dense than cold air and it will rise. It allows pollutants from the surface to be reduced
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How does acid deposition form?
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1.Nitrogen oxides and sulfur dioxide released in atmosphere 2.Throughout atmospheric oxygen and water reactions they turn into secondary pollutants (nitrite acid and sulfuric acid) 3.Break down producing nitrate, sulfate 4.Eventually these pollutants wash out of the air into rain or in dry form on vegetation soil
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Effects of acid deposition
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1.On aquatic ecosystems, lower PH of lakes and streams affecting the species that can survive within that habitat 2.Also lead to mobilization of metals which means that metals are bounding in organic or inorganic compounds in soils and sediments 3.Can ahave an affect on statues and materials in there partially dissolve
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The more acidic the percipitation
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the more hydrogen ions there are to interact with calcium
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The best way to decrease air pollution
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is to avoid it in the first place
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Sulfur dioxide emissions from coal exhaust can be reduced by
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fuidized bed combustion
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Fuidized bed combustion process
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1. Coal is burned in close proximity to calcium carbonate 2.Heated calcium carbonate absorbs sulfur dioxide and produces calcium sulfate
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In order to reduce nitrogen oxide emissions
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burn temps must be reduced and the amount of oxygen must be controlled
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Ways to remove particulate matter
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Gravitational settling Fabric filters (Allows gases to pass through them but remove particulate matter Scrubber (uses combo of water and air that separates and removes particles)
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Removing smog can happen thorugh
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removing VOCs
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The clean air amendments assigns each firm a specific kind of emissions if you want more
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you can emit more when you buy more emission s from firms that didn't use all their emissions limit
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UV-A
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low-energy ultraviolet radiation
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UV-B ; UV-C
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shorter and higher energy
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UV radiation can
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damage the tissues and DNA of living organisms
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Exposure to UV-B
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increases the risk of skin cancer Harmful to cells of plants (reduces their ability to absorb light)
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Which layer absorbs the ultraviolet radiation and filters out harmful UV rays
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Stratosphere
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Formation of Stratospheric ozone
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1. UV-C or UV-Bbreaks molecular bond of oxygen into two oxygen alone atoms 2.A free oxygen atom combines with an oxygen monocle forming ozone
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What did CFCs do
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introduce chlorine into stratosphere which interfers with the process that produces ozone
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is an organic compound that contains only carbon, chlorine, and fluorine, produced as volatile derivative of methane, ethane, and propane. Used in fridges because we thought that it wasn't harmful we are wrong
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A chlorofluorocarbon (CFC)
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The ozone depletion can also be seasonal what seasons
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August through November
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What causes the ozone hole
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extremely cold weather conditions during polar winter cause buildup of ice crystals mixed with nitrogen oxide which accumulates as atmospheric chlorine and during spring that is under control
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Decreased stratospheric ozone has
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increased UV-B waves that reaches the earth
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Problems of indoor air pollution in developing world
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Through the lack of proper vandilation when the a fire is used with burned wood and animal manure and coal that creates carbon monoxide and particulates that can't escape to the outside
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Carbon monoxide as an indoor air pollutant
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can be more dangerous than as an outdoor pollutant
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Its the second leading cause of lung cancer after smoking
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Radon
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One of the most toxic VOCs compounds, Can cause burning sensation in the eyes and the throat and causes cancer
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Formaldehyde
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Four reasons for Sick building syndrome
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1. inadequate ventilation 2. chemical contamination from indoor sources such as glues, carpeting, furniture 3.chemical contamination from outdoor sources 4. Biological contamination from inside or outside (molds and pollen)
