Air: Chapter 12 - Almost There Review
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Define the Following:
Air pollution – Mostly produced by fuel burning
Primary pollutant – A pollutant that is put directly into the atmosphere by human or natural activity.
Secondary pollutant – Smog formed in the presence of sunlight
Temperature inversion – Work to trap pollution when warm air above keeps cooler air at the surface from moving up.
Sick-building syndrome – A set of symptoms, such as a headache or fatigue that my affect workers in airtight buildings.
Decibel (dB) – The most common used to measure loudness, abbreviated dB.
Acid Precipitation – Precipitation that contains a high concentration of acids, often because of pollution in the air.
pH – The lower the PH number is, the more Acidic a substance is; the higher the PH number is, the more Basic.
How does ground level ozone form (what are the two things that combine to make it)?
Automobile emissions combines with oxygen gas and ultraviolet rays
What are the 5 types of primary air pollutants?
1. Carbon monoxide
2. Sulfur oxides
3. VOCs
4. Nitrogen oxides
5. Particulate matter
Power plants makes two-thirds (a fraction) of sulfur dioxide
What pollutant does the following device help remove:
 scrubbers: Removes poisonous gases from industrial emissions before they are released into the atmosphere.
What is lacking in buildings that causes “sick building syndrome”? Warm climates where buildings are tightly sealed to
keep in heat.
What pollutants build up in these buildings? VOCs found in the buildings foam insulation
How much has it cost schools in the United States to remove asbestos insulation? 40 Billion
What is the pH of pure water? 7
What is the normal pH of rain water? 5.6
What is the normal pH of acid rain? 4.1
What is the biggest man made contributor to acid precipitation? Burning fossil fuels
What is the biggest cause of primary pollutants in the United States? Electricity production
As a lake becomes more acidic, fish are harmed not only by the acidity but also by substances that leach out of the soil
into the water. Which of these toxic substances is leached when conditions are acidic? Aluminum
Southeastern Canada experiences the majority of its acid rain effects from pollution released where?
The midwestern and eastern United States
Most air pollution is produced by human activities, the biggest of which is Fuel burning
Sulfur dioxides are primarily a byproduct of fuel burning in automobiles. (True/False)
Sulfur dioxides are involved in the formation of acid precipitation. (True/False)
What pollutants are created primarily from construction and agriculture? Particulate Matter
Carbon monoxide has what effect on your blood? Can lower the level of oxygen carried in the blood.
The automobile’s contribution to air pollution includes nitrogen oxides emitted in exhaust. We should also be
concerned about, and have taken steps to reduce what other air pollution related to fuel?
Fumes that escape when the gas tank is filled
What contributes most to smog formation? Vehicles and industries.
Why is smog considered a secondary pollutant? It forms in the atmosphere by chemical reactions with primary air
pollutants.
What is radon gas? Colorless, tasteless, odorless, and radioactive.
What causes it to show up? Produced by the decay of uranium
What does it do to you? Increase risk of cancer
What is asbestos? Silicate minerals that form bundles of minute fibers that are heat resistant, flexible, and durable.
What does it do to you? Increase risk of cancer
What is acid rain? Precipitation that contains a high concentration of acids, often because of pollution in the air.
What causes it to show up? Burning fossil fuels
What does it do to you? The standard living for some people is affected.
What is smog? Results from chemical reactions that involve sunlight, Automobile exhaust, and Ozone
What can we do to reduce light pollution? Directing lighting downward.
Why is light pollution a problem? It waste energy and negatively affects the environment.
What effect does high acidity in soil have? Some nutrients are dissolved and washed away.
Particulates can form Clouds that reduce visibility and cause a variety of respiratory problems.
The Clean Air Act, passed in 1970 and strengthened in 1990, gives the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) the
authority to regulate vehicle emissions in the United States.
The Circulation of air in the atmosphere usually keeps air pollution from reaching dangerous levels.
Long-term effects on health that have been linked to air pollution include: Emphysema, lung cancer, and heart disease
Those people who are most at risk from ground-level ozone include Children, adults who exercise or work outdoors,
older people, and people who suffer from respiratory Diseases.
What problems are associated with noise pollution over 120 dBs? Permanent deafness from long-term exposure.
Energy is Wasted when light is directed upward into the night sky and lost into Space. Light pollution can be decreased
by directing lighting downward
When fossil fuels are burned, they release oxides of Sulfur and Nitrogen.
Normal precipitation is slightly acidic because atmospheric carbon dioxide dissolves in the precipitation and forms
carbonic acid.
A scrubber is a machine that moves Gases through a spray of Water that removes many pollutants.