UNIT 11 BLOG


Vocabulary

Primary pollutant: air pollution directly emitted form a known source.
ex: carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides

Secondary pollutant: not directly emitted by a certain source, but created when other sources react in the atmosphere. Primary pollutants that underwent transformation under sunlight, water, oxygen, etc.
ex: ozone (caused by primary pollutant  nitrogen oxides and VOCs), sulfate and nitrate (acid deposition)

Thermal inversion: warm layer of air at mid altitude covers a layer of cold air below. The warm inversion layer traps emissions underneath and this trapped emissions cause severe air pollution.

Scrubber: removes sulfur dioxide and PM. Mists of water vapor traps them and turn them in to a sludge which is disposed to landfills.

Sick building syndrome: sickness caused by indoor pollution usually due to paints and other building materials.

Pollutants

Sulfur Dioxide (SO2):
- Corrosive gas that comes from combustion of fuels such as coal and oil.
- Respiratory irritant, can affect plant tissue
- Fossil fuels contain sulfur. When burnt, it creates SO2
- One of the primary pollutant
- Primary pollutant that is responsible of causing acid deposition
- Mainly caused by electricity generation

Nitrogen Oxides (NOx)
Nitrogen Oxide - colorless, odorless
Nitrogen Dioxide- Pungent, reddish brown.
- Atmosphere 78% Nitrogen gas (N2)
- all combustion in the atmosphere leads to the formation of nitrogen oxides
- Due to fossil fuel, wood, and biomass combustion
- Causes respiratory irritation

Carbon Monoxide (CO)
- Colorless, odorless
- formed during incomplete combustion of most matter (most commonly vehicle exhaust)
- can also be an indoor pollutant. Natural gas heaters malfunction and poor ventilation.
- travels to blood stream with oxygen, causes headaches and low concentration

Particulate Matter (PM)
- solid or liquid particles suspended in air
- combustion of wood, manure, biofuels, coal, oil, and gasoline
- exacerbate respiratory, cardiovascular disease, lung cancer

Lead (Pb)
- Gasoline additive, oil and gasoline, coal and old paint
- can effect learning ability
- attacks central nerve system

Ozone (O3)
- secondary pollutant
- most abundant and most frequently measured photochemical oxidant in the troposphere
- one in the stratosphere is good, troposphere is bad.

Volatile Organic Compounds  (VOC)
-hydrocarbons.
 - gasoline, dry cleaning fluids, oil based paints, and perfumes
- not yet proven to be harmful

Mercury (Hg)
- Coal, oil, gold mining
- bioaccumulates in to food chain
- attacks central nerve system

Carbon Dioxide (CO2)
- most common green house gas today
- mainly caused by vehicle exhaust
- colorless, odorless
- formed during complete combustion- fossil fuels and biomass
- absorbed by plant during photosynthesis

Smog (sulfurous and photochemical)
- mix between smoke and fog
- when ozone and photchemical oxidants meet it creates photochemical smog

Indoor Pollutants

Asbestos- long thing mineral with insulating properties. Can cause respiratory diseases and lung cancer. Usually become harmful when insulating materials become old and danged and the particles are airborne so they can travel through respiratory systems. U.S. no longer allows asbestos as an insulating system.

Radon-  Radon-222
from decayed uranium. It is a radioactive gas. Radon can seep in to people's house and particles can be attached to air and inhaled by humans. Causes lung cancer.

Greenhouse Gases

Water Vapor
- about 66% of the greenhouse gas is water vapor
- controlled by temperature

Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)
- chlorine in tje stratosphere
- anthropogenic compound
- ideal for refrigeration and air conditioning
- released to air by escaping leaky appliances.

Connections Discussions

Both Salmon and Coral Reefs are being hugely impacted by the increase in Ocean temperature. Coral reef is suffering from bleaching, which is caused by higher water temperature and carbon dioxide which stresses the corals to release the color pigment it has and later causes corals to die. Death of corals not only effect the population of the corals themselves but the entire ecosystem which they inhabit because many animals live off of corals. Salmons are also victims of high water temperature. Higher temperature makes salmons more susceptible to predators and diseases which caused massive killing of salmons. More carbon dioxide not only mean higher water temperature but also means acidic Ocean water. When Ocean water becomes acidic, salmons lose their main food source due to the destroyed shells of mollusks.

Ozone Discussion

Ozone is usually harmless and actually beneficial to humans in stratosphere. It blocks all the harmful UV rays that can cause skin cancer and other harmful results to earth. But when ozone is located in troposphere, it traps all the heat and is categorized as one of the greenhouse gasses. UV rays that does not make in to the earth, thanks to stratosphere ozone, it bounces off as infrared and be trapped by the troposphere ozone. Also, ozone in troposphere harms plants. It affects their tissue sells, causing them to have diseases like stomata. And being one of the greenhouse gasses, it is responsible for raise in Ocean temperature. Like discussed before, raised water temperature in coral reef area will cause corals to die out which will virtually destroy the entire coral reef ecosystems.

Big Discussion

Some greenhouse gasses are naturally produced but most of the harmful air pollutants that adds on to the greenhouse gasses and more are created by human activities. Almost everything humans do requires energy and most of them creates air pollutant. Carbon dioxide, the most abundant greenhouse gas is mainly from vehicle exhaust. Also factories where they burn oil, coal, and fossil fuels to generate electricity and energy release nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, and other harmful pollutants that threatens human health. Lung cancer and respiratory diseases are the main result from smogs and other air pollutants. 
These air pollutants are causing global warming also. And global warming throws off everything in our environment. For example, coral reefs need to be kept under a certain temperature but due to global warming and raised Ocean temperature, coral bleaching is taking place which ends up killing all the corals and other species in that ecosystem due to the loss of corals. Salmons are also a prime example of global warming victims. Higher temperature means that salmons are more prone to diseases and predators. And loss of salmons and coral reefs will do a huge economic damage. So many fishermen, stores, markets, and restaurants are dependent on salmons and other fish. If they were to decrease in number, many people will run out of business either by shortage of product or by serving low quality product. 
Clean Air Act plays a huge role in air pollutant in U.S. Many greenhouse gasses were publicized to people and educated the public how they can be harmful to human health and the environment.