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WHAT’S IN OUR AIR?

WHAT’S IN OUR AIR?. THE STRUCTURE OF THE ATMOSPHERE. 78% Nitrogen (N 2 ) 21% Oxygen (O 2 ) 0.035 % Carbon Dioxide (CO 2 ) Rest trace gases such as H 2 O, CH 4 , SO X , N0 X , O 3 , CO. ATMOSPHERIC LAYERS. TROPOSPHERE: weather occurs here; birds and planes fly here

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WHAT’S IN OUR AIR?

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  1. WHAT’S IN OUR AIR?

  2. THE STRUCTURE OF THE ATMOSPHERE • 78% Nitrogen (N2) • 21% Oxygen (O2) • 0.035 % Carbon Dioxide (CO2) • Rest trace gases such as H2O, CH4, SOX, N0X, O3, CO

  3. ATMOSPHERIC LAYERS • TROPOSPHERE: weather occurs here; birds and planes fly here • STRATOSPHERE: contains Ozone • MESOSPHERE: Radio waves travel up to here • THERMOSPHERE: aurora borealis

  4. MAJOR AIR POLLUTANTS AND THEIR SOURCES • VOC: Volatile Organic Compounds (incomplete combustion of fossil fuels) • PM: Particulate Matter (soot, smoke, metals, dust and dirt) • NOX: high combustion temperatures • SOX: combustion of sulfur containing fuels such as coal • Rn: Rocks and soil as radium and uranium break down

  5. WHAT ARE GREENHOUSE GASES? • CO2: Humans breathing, fossil fuels • H20: Water cycle • CH4: fermentation, rice, cows, wetlands • N20: agriculture (major component of fertilizer) • Ozone: Sunlight on pollutants creates ozone in the troposphere • CFC: aerosol cans, refrigerants, styrofoam (most potent greenhouse gas!)

  6. WHAT IS ACID RAIN? • Acid rain is formed from sulfuric acid (H2SO4) and nitric acid (HNO3) in a ratio of about 2 to 1. • Sources include burning of fossil fuels and natural sources such as volcanoes.

  7. Massive Volcanism in Human History • 1980 Mt St Helens • 1883 Krakatau: created a 140 ft high tsunami and killed 34,000 people in South Pacific • 1815 Tambora killed 100,000 people in Indonesia and decreased global temperature by 3° C • 630,000 years ago Yellowstone National Park left a 45 x 30 mile wide caldera and dumped 2,500 times the ash of Mt St Helens

  8. EFFECTS ON HUMAN HEALTH • Asthma • Cancer • Lung Disease • Heart Disease

  9. EFFECTS ON THE ENVIRONMENT • Crop Damage • Forest damage • Aquatic Ecosystem damage due to rise in pH • Visibility (smog) • Chemical weathering of rocks, buildings and monuments

  10. CLEAN AIR ACT OF 1970 ═ • Main goal to regulate emissions of air pollutants • Clean Air Act Amendment 1990 (CAAA): Targeted cars, trucks and buses by adding catalytic converters • Demands by the year 2010, reduce SO2 levels by 10 million tons (Title IV)

  11. KYOTO PROTOCOL • 38 industrial nations met in Kyoto, Japan in 1997 and agreed on reducing greenhouse gases (stabalization at 450 ppm) • Developing countries refused to agree to reductions • In 2001, 110 parties ratified treaty • Two countries pulled out of the treaty, US and Australia • Kyoto Protocol will not stabilize GHG, but is an important step

  12. WHAT ARE THE OPTIONS FOR MITIGATION OF GHG EMISSION? • Place a worldwide cap on GHG emission • Invest in renewable forms of energy • Stop loss of tropical forests and encourage planting • Make energy conservation rules much more stringent • Reduce amount of fuel used by raising mileage standards • Capture CO2 emission at site, convert to liquid and pump it to deep oceans where high pressure and low temperatures would preserve it as a solid mass • Slow down human population

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