Unit 7 Atmospheric Pollution Exam Review Q & A’S.

Unit 7 Atmospheric Pollution Exam Review Q & A’S. 1. List ALL the air pollutants emit- ted from burning coal. 2. Nitrogen oxides are primary air pollutants. How- When coal is burned it releases a number of airborne toxins and pollutants. They include mercury, lead, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, particulates, and various other heavy metals Smog: This kind of visible air pollution is composed of nitrogen oxides, sulphur oxides, ozone, smoke and other particulates. Man-made smog is derived from coal combustion emissions, vehicular emissions, industrial emissions, forest and ever, they can mix agricultural fires and photochemical reactions of these emissions. with other com- pounds in the air to make pho- tochemical smog and acid rain. Smog and acid rain are examples of what type of pollutants? 3. The burning of diesel fuel releas- es what type of outdoor air pollu- tant? 4. Below, write a series of chemi- cal reactions that leads to the for- mation of tro- pospheric ozone acid rain: sulfur dioxide. Acid rain is caused by a chemical reaction that begins when compounds like sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides are released into the air. These substances can rise very high into the atmosphere, where they mix and react with water, oxygen, and other chemicals to form more acidic pollutants, known as acid rain Carbon dioxide is produced when fuels are burned. Plants convert carbon dioxide back to oxygen, but the release of carbon dioxide from human activities is higher than the world's plants can process. Formation. The majority of tropospheric ozone formation occurs when nitrogen oxides (NOx), carbon monoxide (CO) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs), react in the atmosphere in the presence of sunlight, specifically the UV spectrum NOx, CO, and VOCs are considered ozone precursors. HOCO + O2 ’HO2• + CO. in photochemical smog. 5. What is a VOC? What are their main sources? 6. In what sea- sons do we see increases in smog concentra- tion? Why? 7. Why are there high levels of Volatile organic compounds are organic chemicals that have a high vapor pressure at ordinary room temperature. Other sources of VOCs include the burning of fuels such as gas, wood and kerosene and tobacco products. VOCs can also come from personal care products such as perfume and hair spray, cleaning agents, dry cleaning fluid, paints, lacquers, varnishes, hobby supplies and from copying and printing machines. In the summer because Smog is often categorized as being either summer smog or winter smog. Summer smog is primarily associated with the photochemical for- mation of ozone. During the summer season when the temperatures are warmer and there is more sunlight present, photochemical smog is the dominant type of smog formation. Many urban areas tend to have high levels of ground-level ozone, but increased ozone attects rural areas too, because wind can carry ozone and the pollutants smog in urban ar- from hundreds of miles away. eas? 8. Why do thermal inversion layers trap pollutants? 9. What are natur- al sources of par- ticulate matter in the air? The warm air above cooler air acts like a lid, suppressing vertical mixing and trapping the cooler air at the surface. As pollutants from vehicles, fireplaces, and industry are emitted into the air, the inversion traps these pollutants near the ground, leading to poor air quality.