Sample Quiz Questions from lecture 6B
Environmental Studies 126
Integrated Liberal Studies 126
Air quality! When you turn on a light, there must be an electrical power plant.
And if the plant is fossil-fuel fired, there must be a smokestack.
And if there’s a smokestack, …
1. …then there is NO, nitrogen monoxide.
a. Review: Under what condition is NO formed?
b. After it forms, NO reacts in the air to form another
compound. Give the name and chemical formula.
c. What does the designation NOx refer to?
2. Ozone, a secondary pollutant
a. Does ozone come out of an automobile exhaust pipe or out of a smokestack?
b. By what chemical process is all ozone formed? Explain how this occurs naturally
with lightning.
c. What health effects does ozone have on humans? How about plants?
d. If it is a bad air day for ozone, what’s your best option if you wish to exercise?
Explain.
e. Isn’t ozone good …? Explain the slogan “Good up high, bad nearby.”
3. Small and important molecules
Earlier in the course, you viewed this slide:
This slide is now needs updating with some new characters: NO, NO2, O, SO2 and
O3. Which are atoms and which are molecules? In what context have you
learned about these and how do they behave?
4. Walnut street heating and chilling plant
a. Review: What gases come out of the smokestack?
b. Review: Which of these gases are regulated under law as air pollutants (for
now, leave carbon dioxide out of the picture)?
c. Why doesn’t ozone come out the smokestack?
5. Air quality today
a. From the Great London Smog and the air quality episode in Donora, PA, you
may be thinking that bad air is a historic curiosity. Give examples to the contrary.
b. Review: When is fine particle pollution most common in Madison? What is the
likely cause?
c. How about ozone pollution … what are the ingredients that cause ozone to be
produced?
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6. SmogCity
http://www.smogcity.com/
You got a quick preview of this in lecture. We’ll return to it, but at this point you should
know the effects of
(1) sunlight
(2) population
(3) wind
(4) an air inversion
on the production of ozone.
Go explore Smog City!
7. Laboratory
Be able to answer the questions from “Preparing for the Investigation” from the Root Beer
lab and the Bioethanol Synthesis lab.
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