1. What is a pollutant?
Ans: A substance (solid liquid or gas) whose concentration is more than its natural abundance and causes
pollution is called pollutant.
2. What is troposphere?
Ans: It is the lowest region of atmosphere in which human beings and other organisms live. It lies between 10 km
and 50 km above sea level. It contains dust, air, water vapour and clouds. It is also the region in which planes fly.
3. What is stratosphere?
Ans: The region above troposphere is known as stratosphere. It contains ozone layer.
4. What are the major pollutants of troposphere?
Ans: (i) Gaseous air pollutants: oxides of sulphur, nitrogen, carbon; hydrogen sulphide; ozone.
(ii) particulates: mist, dust, smoke, smog etc.
5. How are oxides of sulphur produced?
Ans: By burning of fossil fuels.
6. Give some harmful effects of SO2?
Ans: (i) It is poisonous to animals and plants.
(ii) It causes respiratory diseases even at low concentration.
(iii) It causes irritation of eyes and redness.
(iv) It leads to stiffness of flower buds.
(v) It forms sulphur trioxide, which causes acid rain
7. How are oxides of nitrogen formed?
Ans: At high altitudes, when lightening strikes, nitrogen and oxygen combine to form oxides of nitrogen. NO and
NO2 are also present in the exhaust of automobile engines. NO and NO2 are also formed by burning the fossil
fuels.
8. How are nitrates formed?
Ans: NO2 is oxidized to nitrate ion, NO3_, which gets washed into soil and serves as fertilizer.
9. What are harmful effects of NO2?
Ans: (a) It causes irritant red haze in traffic
(b) It retards the rate of photosynthesis
(c) It leads to acute respiratory diseases.
(d) it is harmful to textile fibres and metals.
10. Is CO colorless and odorless?
Ans: Yes
11. Why is CO poisonous?
Ans: It is poisonous because it blocks the delivery of oxygen to the organs and tissues. It binds to hemoglobin to
form carboxyhemoglobin. Carboxyhemoglobin is 300 times more stable than oxygen-hemoglobin complex.
12. What is the main source of CO?
Ans: The main source of CO is automobile exhaust where it is produced as a result of incomplete combustion of
carbon.
13. Other than being poisonous, what are the other harmful effects of CO?
Ans: At 3-4% concentration of carboxyhemoglobin, it causes headache, weak eye sight, nervousness and cardiac
diseases. In pregnant women, who are in habit of smoking, the increased CO in blood may induce premature
birth.
14. What are the main sources of CO2?
Ans: Respiration, burning of fossil fuels, decomposition of limestone and volcanic eruptions.
15. What are the harmful effects of excess CO2?
Ans: It is mainly responsible for greenhouse effect
16. Name some greenhouse gases.
Ans: Carbon dioxide, Methane, Ozone, Chlorofluorocarbons, nitrous oxide and water vapour.
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17. How is methane produced?
Ans: Methane is produced when vegetation is burnt or rotted in the absence of oxygen. It is also released in
paddy fields and coal mines.
18. Which gas is released by rotting garbage dump?
Ans: Methane
19. What is the pH of normal rain water?
Ans: 5.6
20. What is acid rain?
Ans: When the pH of rain water falls below 5.6, it is called acid rain.
21. What causes acid rain?
Ans: Acid rain is caused by oxides of sulphur and nitrogen.
22. What are the harmful effects of acid rain?
Ans: It is harmful for agriculture, trees and plants as it washes away nutrients needed for their growth. It causes
respiratory ailments in human beings. It affects plant and animal life in aquatic ecosystems. It corrodes water
pipes resulting in leaching of toxic metals such as iron, lead and copper in drinking water. It damages buildings
like Taj Mahal (Taj Mahal is made of limestone, which is basic in nature. It reacts with acid present in acid rain).
23. What are particulate pollutants?
Ans: These are the minute solid or liquid droplets in air, released from vehicle emmissions and smoke particles.
For example, smoke (cigarette smoke, smoke from burning fossil fuels etc), dust and mists. Particulate pollutants
bigger than 5 microns lodge in nasal passages, while particulate pollutants smaller than 1 micron enter the lungs
easily.
24. What is smog?
Ans: Smoke + fog is called smog
25. What are the two types of smog?
Ans: Classical smog and Photochemical smog.
26. What are the differences between classical smog and photochemical smog?
Ans: Classical Smog Photochemical Smog
1. It is formed in cool humid climate. 1. It is formed in warm, dry and sunny climate.
2. It contains smoke, fog and SO2 2. It is formed by action of sunlight on unsaturated
Hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides produced by
Automobiles.
3. It is reducing in nature 3. It is oxidizing in nature.
27. How is photochemical smog formed?
Ans: When fossil fuels are burnt, then different types of pollutants are emitted. Among these pollutants,
hydrocarbons and NO are responsible for photochemical smog. NO is formed by interaction of NO2 with sunlight
releasing nascent oxygen in the process. The nascent oxygen is very reactive and reacts with O 2 to form ozone
(O3). All three things- ozone, NO2 and unburnt hydrocarbons react to form some chemicals like formaldehyde,
acrolein and PAN (Peroxyacetyl nitrate).
28. What are the harmful effects of photochemical smog?
Ans: Ozone and PAN are eye irritants. Ozone and NO irritate the nose and throat. Their high concentration may
cause chest pain and difficulty in breathing. It leads to cracking of rubber, corrosion of metals and painted
surfaces.
29. How can photochemical smog be controlled?
Ans: In order to control photochemical smog, we must control primary precursors such as NO 2 and hydrocarbons;
and secondary precursors such as PAN and ozone. For this reason, catalytic convertors are used in automobiles.
Certain plants prevent the release of nitrogen oxide such as Pinus, Juniparus.
30. What is the wavelength of ultraviolet rays?
Ans: 255 nm
31. Is ozone thermodynamically stable?
Ans: No
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32. How is ozone formed in stratosphere?
Ans: Ozone is formed in stratosphere by the action of ultraviolet rays on oxygen.
33. Which chemicals are responsible for depletion of ozone layer?
Ans: chlorofluorocarbons (also known as freons). Earlier, they were used in refrigerators and air conditioners.
34. How do CFCs deplete the ozone layer?
Ans: CFCs mix with normal gases and reach stratosphere. In stratosphere, they get broken down by UV radiations
releasing chlorine free radical. The chlorine free radical reacts with oxygen to produce chlorine monoxide
radical (ClO.). Both the radicals react with ozone and cause its degeneration
35. Where is ozone hole located?
Ans: Ozone hole is located over South Pole.
36. What causes formation of ozone hole?
Ans: In summer season, nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and methane (CH4) react with chlorine monoxide and chlorine
radicals. In winter, special type of clouds called polar stratospheric clouds are formed over Antartica. These
provide surface on which NO2 and ClO. React to form ClONO2 (chlorine nitrate). Chlorine nitrate reacts with water
to form hypochlorous acid (HOCl). HOCl reacts with HCl to form Cl2. During spring, sun’s warmth converts Cl2 to
Cl., which depletes ozone and results in ozone hole.
37. What are the harmful effects of ultraviolet radiations?
Ans They cause ageing of skin, cataract, sunburn, skin cancer, killing of phytoplanktons, damage to fish, harmful
mutation of cells, it increases evaporation of surface water through stomata of leaves, decreases moisture content
of soil .
38. What are pathogens?
Ans: Pathogens are the disease causing agents (like bacteria and other organisms) that are present in water.
39. Name some common pathogens present in water responsible for gastrointestinal diseases?
Ans: Escherichia coli and Streptococcus faecalis
40. What is the minimum concentration of dissolved oxygen for healthy growth of fish?
Ans: 6 ppm. Below 6 ppm, the growth of fish gets inhibited.
41. How is too much of organic matter in water harmful?
Ans: Too much organic matter present in water uses up all the available oxygen. This causes oxygen dependent
aquatic life to die.
42. What is the full form of BOD?
Ans: Biochemical Oxygen Demand
43. Define BOD.
Ans: The amount of oxygen required by bacteria to break down the organic matter present in a certain volume of a
water sample is called BOD..
44. If BOD value is high, then is the water more polluted or less polluted?
Ans: More polluted
45. What is the BOD value of pure water?
Ans: Clean water should have BOD value of less than 5 ppm whereas highly polluted water could have a BOD
value of 17 ppm or more.
46. Other than organic matter, what else causes water pollution?
Ans: Heavy metals (cadmium, mercury, nickel); acids; raw salt used to melt snow; organic chemicals; petroleum
products causing oil spills; pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls (also known as PCBs) etc are major water
pollutants. PCB are known to be cancer causing (carcinogenic).
47. What is eutrophication?
Ans: Sometimes, there is excess algae growth in a water body. The excess algae growth covers the water surface
and uses up all the dissolved oxygen of water. This results in anaerobic conditions, which inhibits the growth of
other living organisms in the water body. This process in which dense algae growth kills animal life (for example
fish) is known as eutrophication.
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48. What causes eutrophication?
Ans: Excess algae growth
49. What causes excess algae growth?
Ans: Use of excessive fertilizers. Fertilizers contain phosphates and phosphates enhance algae growth.
50. Write the permissible limit of various substances present in water.
Ans: (a) Fluoride: 1 ppm
If the concentration of fluoride is above 2ppm, it causes brown mottling of teeth. If its value is more
than 10 ppm, it causes harmful effects to bones and teeth.
(b) Lead: 50 ppb
Lead enters drinking water when lead pipes are used for water transportation. It can damage kidney
and liver.
(c) Sulphate: 500 ppm
Excess sulphate in water has laxative effect.
(d) Nitrate: 50 ppm
Excess nitrate can cause methemoglobinimea (blue baby syndrome)
(e) Iron: 0.2 ppm
(f) Manganese: 0.05 ppm
(g) Aluminium: 0.2 ppm
(h) Copper: 3.0 ppm
(i) Zinc: 5.0 ppm
(j) Cadmium: 0.005 ppm
51. What is the benefit of adding fluoride to drinking water?
Ans: The fluoride ions make tooth enamel harder by converting hydroxyapatite (3Ca3(PO4)[Link](OH)2 into much
harder fluorapatite [3(Ca3(PO4)2.CaF2]
52. Learn the formulae of hydroxyapatite and fluorapatite given above.
53. What are the commonly used herbicides?
Ans: sodium chlorate (NaClO3) and sodium arsenate (NaAsO3)
54. What is green chemistry?
Ans: It is a way of utilizing the existing knowledge of chemistry to reduce adverse impact on environments. It
involves using those production processes that result in minimum pollution and the byproducts generated in a
process should also be non polluting.
55. Give some examples of green chemistry in daily life.
Ans: Earlier tetrachloroethene was used as a solvent for dry cleaning. It is a carcinogenic substance. Nowadays,
hydrogen peroxide is used.
Similarly, earlier chlorine was used for bleaching of paper. Nowadays, hydrogen peroxide is used
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