By FAIZA JAVAID
Atmosphere & Environment-Notes-OL
Air
Air is a mixture of different gases. Important gases present in the air are,
Nitrogen = 78%
Oxygen = 21% Memorize these percentages
Ar = 0.9 %
CO2 = 0.03 %
(The percentages of rest of the gases in air are not included in our syllabus)
The gases, present in the air, can be separated by fractional distillation of liquid air on the basis of difference
of boiling points.
Pollutant
“Any harmful substance present in the air is called pollutant.”
Important pollutants
Pollutant Source Harmful effect
Carbon monoxide (CO) Incomplete combustion (burning) of fuel Poisonous gas
Reaction: 2C + O2 → 2CO
Nitrogen monoxide (NO) Produces inside the internal Acid rain
combustion engine
Thunder lightening
Reaction: N2 + O2 → 2NO
Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) Produce inside petrol car engine Acid rain
Reaction: 2NO + O2 → 2NO2
Sulfur dioxide (SO2) Volcano eruption Acid rain
Burning of coal because S is
present as impurity in coal
Reaction: S + O2 → SO2
Unburnt hydrocarbons Biological decomposition of organic Global warming
( e.g. CH4) matter
Ozone (O3) In presence of sunlight, NO2 releases Photochemical smog that
atomic oxygen (O) which combines with aggravates respiratory disease
O2 of air to form O3
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By FAIZA JAVAID
Catalytic Converter
It is a device that contains a catalyst like platinum (Pt) or palladium (Pd). Catalytic converter is fitted in exhaust
pipe of car. It converts harmful gases (CO, NO, CH4), coming from engine, into safe gases (CO2, N2, H2O).
Reactions in catalytic converter
CO + (O) → CO2
2NO + 2CO → N2 + 2CO2 Memorize these equations
CH4 + 2O2 → CO2 + 2H2O
Acid Rain
Some atmospheric pollutants like NO2 and SO2 when mixed with rain water, form acids like HNO3 and H2SO4.
Such a rain that contains these acids, is called acid rain.
Important Equations of the formation of HNO3 and H2SO4
Nitric Acid (HNO3)
Formation of NO and NO2
N2 + O2 → 2NO
2NO + O2 → 2NO2 Memorize these equations
Conversion of NO2 into HNO3
2NO2 + H2O + 0.5O2 → 2HNO3 (Nitric acid)
Sulfuric Acid (H2SO4)
Formation of SO2 and SO3
S + O2 → SO2
SO2 + NO2 → SO3 + NO
Conversion of SO3 into H2SO4
SO3 + H2O → H2SO4 (Sulfuric acid)
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By FAIZA JAVAID
Harmful effects of acid rain
Corrodes metal work [Acid + Metal → Salt + H2 (g)]
Reacts with limestone (marble or CaCO3) buildings [Acid + Metal Carbonate → Salt + H2O + CO2 (g)]
Kills aquatic life
Ozone Depletion
Ozone (O3) layer is present around earth which absorbs UV rays coming from sun.
Formation of ozone
3O2 2O3
Oxygen converts into ozone in presence of UV rays in the atmosphere at a certain height above the earth.
Depletion process
Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) deplete (destroy) this layer that is called ozone depletion.
Some possible formulae of CFCs are CCl3F, CCl2F2, CClF3, C2ClF5 (Essential elements are C, Cl and F)
Reactions of ozone depletion
CFCs → Cl (Here Cl atom is called free radical)
Cl + O3 → ClO + O2
Above reactions are called photochemical reactions. A reaction is called photochemical if light is required in
breakdown of reactants. Such reactions are initialized and catalyzed by light.
Effect of UV rays
Too much UV rays cause skin cancer
Carbon Cycle
Carbon is present in atmosphere in the form of CO2.
Description
“Production of CO2 gas and its consumption, is balanced in atmosphere by different processes, this balance of
CO2 in the atmosphere is called carbon cycle.”
Production of CO2
There are two processes,
1- Respiration
C6H12O6 + 6O2 → 6CO2 + 6H2O + energy
Conditions
Enzyme Memorize these reactions and conditions
37 C
O
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By FAIZA JAVAID
2- Combustion of fossil fuels
Carbon is one of the important element in the fossil fuels. During its burning, it combines with oxygen to form
CO2 (along with some other products),
C + O2 → CO2
Consumption of CO2
There is one process (that is included in our syllabus),
Photosynthesis
6CO2 + 6H2O → C6H12O6 + 6O2
Conditions
Chlorophyll Memorize these reactions and conditions
Sunlight
Greenhouse Effect/Global Warming
Greenhouse gases, CO2 and CH4, are present in the atmosphere. Greenhouse gases absorb energy, coming
from the sun, therefore they cause a rise in temperature of the environment. This is called greenhouse
effect/global warming.
Effects of global warming
Melting of glaciers; so there will be flood in low lying areas.
Climate change; so there will be more hurricanes and tornados.
Desulphurization
“Removal of SO2 gas from flue gases (waste gases) coming out from chimney of factories is called
desulphurization.”
For this purpose, we use calcium carbonate (marble powder).
Reaction
CaCO3 (S) + SO2(g) → CaSO3(S) + CO2(g) (Tip: Simply, C & S are being replaced in this reaction)
Above reaction is an acid-base reaction because CaCO3 is a basic substance while SO2 is an acidic substance.
Important points:
The solid product CaSO3 (calcium sulfite) is removed from the chimney. In this way, we stop the
emission of SO2 into the atmosphere, instead, now CO2 is going into the atmosphere. CO2 gas is not a
pollutant and it just causes the global warming.
For desulfurization, an alternative of CaCO3 is sea water. Advantage of using sea water; it is cheap.
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By FAIZA JAVAID
Water
Purification of river water
There are three steps,
1- Filtration
It is used to remove the insoluble materials from river water.
2- Use of carbon Columns
It is used to remove the unpleasant smell and unpleasant taste of river water.
3- Chlorination
It is used to kill the disease spreading bacteria or microbes of river water.
Purification of sea water
Seawater is purified (or converted into drinkable water) by a process which is known as “desalination”.
We actually remove salts from the sea water by this process.
This process involves evaporation and condensation of water molecules, so it is a type of simple
distillation that provides us a pure drinkable water.
After desalination process, solid salt is left over in the vessel.
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By FAIZA JAVAID
Eutrophication
Nitrate and phosphate salts are used as fertilizers in the fields. e.g. ammonium nitrate, NH4NO3 and
ammonium phosphate, (NH4)3PO4.
When water, from the agriculture fields, go to streams and lakes then these fertilizers cause a rapid
growth of algae (green plant) on the surface of water. Remember that the negative ion (nitrate ion and
phosphate ion) of these fertilizers is mainly responsible for the growth of algae.
This layer of algae blocks the sunlight, so aquatic plants die, due to “no photosynthesis”.
Under the algae layer, bacterial growth increases rapidly.
Bacteria use up the dissolved oxygen of water to decompose different materials. Therefore, due to the
lack of dissolved oxygen of water, fish die.