SCH 300

Application Quiz
TONY MORERWA MOGAKA
E37/OL/EMB/6878/2015
tmmogaka@gmail.com
0728911157.
1 : Acid Rain
Acid rain is caused by a chemical reaction that begins when compounds like sulfur dioxide and
nitrogen oxides are released into the air. These substances can rise very high into the atmosphere,
where they mix and react with water, oxygen, and other chemicals to form more acidic
pollutants, known as acid rain.

Sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxides, NOx, are toxic acidic gases which readily react with the
water in the atmosphere to form a mixture of sulphuric acid, nitric acid and nitrous acid. The
dilute solutions of these acids which result give rain water a far greater acidity than normal (i.e. a
lower pH) and this is known as acid rain.

Natural Acidity of Rainwater

Pure water has a pH of 7.0 (neutral); however, natural, unpolluted rainwater actually has a pH of
about 5.6 (acidic) The acidity of rainwater comes from the natural presence of three substances
(CO2, NO, and SO2) found in the troposphere (the lowest layer of the atmosphere}Carbon
dioxide reacts with water to form carbonic acid (Equation 1). Carbonic acid then dissociates to
give the hydrogen ion (H+) and the hydrogen carbonate ion (HCO3-) (Equation 2). The ability of
H2CO3 to deliver H+ is what classifies this molecule as an acid, thus lowering the pH of a
solution.

(1)

(2)
Nitric oxide (NO), which also contributes to the natural acidity of rainwater, is formed during
lightning storms by the reaction of nitrogen and oxygen, two common atmospheric gases
(Equation 3). In air, NO is oxidized to nitrogen dioxide (NO2) (Equation 4), which in turn reacts
with water to give nitric acid (HNO3) (Equation 5). This acid dissociates in water to yield
hydrogen ions and nitrate ions (NO3-) in a reaction analagous to the dissociation of carbonic acid
shown in Equation 2, again lowering the pH of the solution.

(3)

(4)

(5)

What about the other 75% of the acidity of rain? Most is accounted for by the presence of
sulfuric acid (H2SO4) in rainwater. Although sulfuric acid may be produced naturally in small
quantities from biological decay and volcanic activity (Figure 1), it is produced almost entirely
by human activity, especially the combustion of sulfur-containing fossil fuels in power plants.
When these fossil fuels are burned, the sulfur contained in them reacts with oxygen from the air
to form sulfur dioxide (SO2). Combustion of fossil fuels accounts for approximately 80% of the
total atmospheric SO2 in the United States. The effects of burning fossil fuels can be dramatic: in
contrast to the unpolluted atmospheric SO2 concentration of 0 to 0.01 ppm, polluted urban air
can contain 0.1 to 2 ppm SO2, or up to 200 times more SO2! Sulfur dioxide, like the oxides of
carbon and nitrogen, reacts with water to form sulfuric acid (Equation 6).

(6)

Sulfuric acid is a strong acid, so it readily dissociates in water, to give an H+ ion and an HSO4-
ion (Equation 7). The HSO4- ion may further dissociate to give H+ and SO42- (Equation 8). Thus,
the presence of H2SO4 causes the concentration of H+ ions to increase dramatically, and so the
pH of the rainwater drops to harmful levels.

(7)
 (8)

2: OZONE DEPLETION

It is the chlorine atoms in CFCs that destroy ozone in the stratosphere (upper atmosphere). There
are three main steps in this process:

1. CFC molecules reach the stratosphere. Ultraviolet radiation breaks them down, releasing
highly reactive chlorine atoms. For example:

CCl3F → •CCl2F + •Cl

The chlorine atoms are called chlorine radicals. They are shown as •Cl in equations.

2. Chlorine radicals react with ozone molecules, breaking them down

3. The reactions in step 2 regenerate the chlorine radicals, so they can go on to destroy more
ozone molecules.

CFCs are broken down slowly by ultraviolet radiation, so they are only slowly removed from the
stratosphere.

The atoms in a CFC molecule are joined together by covalent bonds. A covalent bond is a shared
pair of electrons.

When a CFC molecule absorbs ultraviolet radiation, a carbon-chlorine bond breaks. One of the
shared electrons goes with the released chlorine atom, while the other stays with the remainder of
the CFC molecule. These unpaired electrons are shown as dots in formulae for radicals, such as
•Cl (a chlorine radical).

A small number of chlorine radicals can destroy many ozone molecules. Take a look at these
equations:

1. CCl3F → •CCl2F + •Cl

2. •Cl + O3 → •ClO + O2
3. •ClO + O3 → •Cl + 2O3

Notice how in steps 2 and 3, two molecules of ozone become three molecules of oxygen, and the
chlorine radical is regenerated ready to destroy more ozone. Once Achlorine radical has been
released, it can go on to destroy many ozone molecules. This means that CFCs released in the
past will continue to deplete the ozone layer.
3: Photochemical smog
Photochemical smog is the chemical reaction of sunlight, nitrogen oxides and volatile organic
compounds in the atmosphere, which leaves airborne particles and ground-level ozone.

Photochemical smog reactions.

1. NO + O2 ---> NO2 + u.v. ---> O + NO

In this first reaction, Nitric Oxide (NO), which is emitted from
various combustion processes. It combines with oxygen in the atmosphere to form
nitrogen dioxide ( NO2 ), which has a characteristic brown color. When the u.v. rays
of sunlight strike the NO2, it breaks off a single oxygen radical (O) that triggers many
subsequent reactions of photochemical smog.
2. O + O 2 ---> O 3
In this second reaction, a single oxygen radical helps form ozone ( O3 ).
A variety of molecules can act as catalysts for this reaction.

3. O3 + NO ---> O2 + NO2
This third reaction is called a scavenging reaction, and it happens normally in the
evening.
Because it converts ozone to O2, the net result is a drop in the ozone concentration in
the evenings.

4. RC + O ---> RCO + O2 ---> RCO 3

The fourth reaction shifts attention to the hydrocarbons (represented here as RC).
When combined with the oxygen free radical, it forms RCO, which represents a
variety of aldehydes and ketones. Some of these constiutents can combine with
oxygen to form peroxide readicals ( RCO3 ).
5. O2 + RCO3 ---> O3 + RCO2
The fifth reaction demonstrates the importance of these peroxide radicals ( RCO3 ) --
it enhances the formation of ozone.
6. NO + RCO 3---> NO 2 + RCO2
The last reaction shows a more subtle role of the peroxide radicals -- by enhancing
the formation of nitrogen dioxide, we know that the nitrogen dioxide will go on to
form more ozone.
4 : GREEN HOUSE GASES

Greenhouse gases absorb infrared (long-wave, heat) radiation. This is the form of the
sun's energy reflected off the earth's surface. Greenhouse gases then radiate heat
energy back toward the earth. This heats the earth's atmosphere and ultimately
contributes to increasingly warmer climates, a process known as global warming.
Common greenhouse gases include

-carbon dioxide (CO2),

-chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs),

- methane (CH4),

-nitrous oxide (N2O),

-tropospheric ozone (O3).

Carbon dioxide (CO2)

is a byproduct of the combustion--or burning--of fossil fuels such as coal and oil..
During the process of combustion, O2 reacts with glucose (C6H12O6, a form of sugar) to
produce water and CO2. As the organic matter burns, chemical energy in the form of
heat and light is released. The following chemical equation describes the chemical
process of combustion:

6 O2 + C6H12O6 --------> 6 H2O + 6 CO2 + energy.

Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) are anthropogenic compounds; that is to say they are

created by humans. There is no known natural source of these greenhouse gases
which contain chlorine, fluorine, and carbon.

Methane (CH4)

During the microbial metabolic process of methanogenesis, acetate (CH 3COOH) is split
into CO2 and CH4:

CH3COOH --------> CO2 + CH4.

Nitrous oxide (N2O)

is a byproduct of nitrification and denitrification--the natural processes by which NH4+

and NO3-, respectively, are biotically transformed (i.e. changed by microbes). Studies
have shown that the use of nitrogen fertilizer on agricultural fields stimulates these
processes and thus increases the production of N2O.
Tropospheric ozone (O3),

a constituent of smog that irritates the eyes and lungs of many city inhabitants, is a
greenhouse gas that can be produced from another greenhouse gas--methane (see
above section on the production of methane). This process involves many steps, the net
reaction of which is described by the chemical equation:

CH4 + 4O2 --------> HCHO + H2O + 2O3.

Another source of tropospheric ozone is atmospheric nitrate (NO2). First, the nitrate is
broken down into nitric oxide (NO) and a single atom of oxygen (O):

NO2 + sunlight --------> NO + O;

then, the atom of O combines with a molecule of O2 to produce O3:

O + O2 --------> O3.

The net reaction, which is in equilibrium (i.e. it goes back and forth), is:

NO2 + O2 <--------> NO + O3.

5 : GLOBAL WARMING.

Global warming is the term used to describe a gradual increase in the average temperature of
the Earth's atmosphere and its oceans, a change that is believed to be permanently changing the
Earth's climate.