Tarlac State University

College of Engineering
San Vicente, Tarlac City
A.Y. 2016-2017

Composition of Biosphere
and Natural Composition of
Air, Water, and Soil

A written report in partial fulfillment of requirements in ES 7

Prepared by:
GROUP 1
Dimatulac, Eduardo P.
Gramonte, Valentina P.
Manzano, Pauline Grace B.
Pineda, Joseph Carlo M.
Venus, Renjo Kim D.
CE-3G

Submitted to:
Dr. Robert V. Marcos
Instructor
Introduction to Biosphere
Some four billion years ago, based on scientific theories developed by scientists devoted to
discover its origin, Earth is believed to be born. From a giant, hot molten rock that collided with
smaller bodies in the space, this planet was formed. As the collision happened less often and
became weaker, Earth cools down that caused the formation of crust on its surface. Water vapor
condensed in atmosphere forming clouds and storms making the earth’s surface cooler and flooded
with water.
One billion years later, biosphere’s earliest life forms survived without oxygen. Through the
addition of oxygen and the evolution of these one-celled creatures into multicellular organisms, life
of different forms started on Earth.
As these living and non-living elements interact with each other accordingly, an ecosystem
is formed. The collection of many ecosystems is known to be the biosphere. In a biosphere, biotic
factors together with the abiotic factors depend on each other, that is, the absence of one factor can
affect how the biosphere functions.
Being the consumers, we, human beings, also play a significant role in the largest and only
existing biosphere in the universe we belong into—the Earth.
Biosphere, by definition, is the zone of our planet that life inhabits. It includes the
hydrosphere (water), the lower parts of atmosphere (air), and the lithosphere (land) serving as its
abiotic components. Since life exists on the ground, in the air, and in the water, the biosphere
overlaps all other Earth’s spheres interacting with one another to create a vigorous relationship.

Composition of Biosphere
Biosphere is divided into two components: biotic and abiotic components. These two
components interact with one another as all organisms are naturally linked and dependent to their
physical environment.
Biotic components are the living things in the biosphere, such as plants, animals and human
beings, and decomposers which act as its sub-systems. Biotic components play the role of
producers, consumers, and decomposers in the biosphere. These are capable of biological
reproduction.
All plants or autotrophs, including grass and trees, are the producers that absorb the sun’s
energy converting it into food for themselves. Animals and human beings, known as the
heterotrophs, are the consumers of what was produced by the plants and also prey on other
animals. Those that only eat plants, known as herbivores, are the primary consumers in the
ecosystem. The last sub-system of the biotic components are the micro-organisms. These organisms
act as decomposers by breaking down dead plants and animals and returning the nutrients to the
soil which will be used again by the plants to create their food.
On the other hand, abiotic components consist all the non-living parts. These components
have a very significant role in the biosphere as they provide the necessities for the biotic
components to survive. Plants and animals are affected by the abiotic factors in the environment.
Living organisms breathe air, consume water, and grow in a narrow temperature range. Thus, the
survival of all living organisms depend on the existence of the abiotic components. These
components can exist without the biotic components.
 Another essential factor in the biosphere is the source of energy. Energy has an important
part in the reproduction of all biological living organisms and in the preservation of the
environment. The spheres of the Earth all depend on the sun as their source of energy. Sunlight is
necessary for the process of photosynthesis to take place that is a requirement for plants’ growth.
Photosynthesis produces oxygen for animals and glucose for plants which will then become food for
animals. Thus, without the sun, animals and plants cannot live and biosphere would not exist.

Importance of Biotic and Abiotic Components

Each of the major components of the biosphere plays an important role. They cannot
function without the presence another. The non-living components or abiotic components support
the living components.
Abiotic components influence the living organisms in a way that they serve as a habitat and
provider of other life-supporting factors such as air and water that living organisms need for
survival. Biotic components are the consumers and also act as producers and decomposers in the
biosphere.

Abiotic components of Biosphere

The abiotic components have three major parts: the hydrosphere, the atmosphere, and the
lithosphere. Living organisms are dependent of these parts of abiotic components in order to
maintain the existence of life in the biosphere.

Atmosphere

Lithosphere
Lithosphere is the solid outermost part of the Earth. It includes the crust and the uppermost
layer of the mantle which is joined to the crust. Lithosphere is limited to where life exists. Lying
beneath it is the asthenosphere and it is bounded by the atmosphere above. Its surface is uneven as
it is characterized by different landforms.
This layer of the Earth has two types: oceanic lithosphere and continental lithosphere.
Oceanic lithosphere is the thin layer of the Earth that sits beneath ocean basins, while continental
lithosphere is the thick layer of Earth that sits beneath continents.
The lithosphere contains rocks, minerals, and soils. Its interaction with biosphere,
atmosphere, and hydrosphere produces the pedosphere which includes soils and their biotic and
biotic components.

Hydrosphere
The hydrosphere is the total amount of water on Earth which can be liquid, vapor, or ice. It
consists of different entities of water such as the oceans, but technically, it includes the clouds,
inland seas, lakes, rivers, found on, under, and over the surface of the Earth.
Water is the most abundant substance on the surface. About 1.4 billion cubic kilometers of
water, both in liquid and frozen form, make up the oceans, lakes, streams, glaciers, and other bodies
of water. It is this huge volume of water that forms the discontinuous layer, enclosing most of the
surface of our planet. About 97% of all Earth’s water is salty, most of it found in the oceans while
the majority of lakes and rivers carry fresh water. The Earth’s temperature is highly influenced by
the hydrosphere.
Water on Earth moves through the hydrosphere in a cycle. Water collects in clouds, then
falls to Earth in the form of rain or snow. This water is collected in the rivers, lakes, and oceans,
then it evaporates into the atmosphere to start the cycle all over again. This is known to be the
water cycle.
The hydrosphere exists all the way from the Earth’s surface downward hundreds of
kilometers into the lithosphere and high above the crust into the atmosphere.

Air Composition and Importance

Air is the mixture of different gases present in the atmosphere. It is the third critical
resource for humans, plants, animals and other living organisms. It is important to monitor air to
control the pollution levels. About 78% of air is made up of nitrogen, 21% is oxygen, and less than
1% is argon, carbon dioxide, and other gases. Air contains too much oxygen not because the Earth
provides us the atmosphere with that composition but because living things such as plants produce
oxygen for over 2 billion of years from carbon dioxide.

Soil Composition and Importance

Formed by breaking up of rocks in various geological, climatic and biological processes, soil
is a complex mixture of minerals, water, air, organic matter, gases, and organisms that work
together to help in sustaining life on Earth. It is a natural medium for the growth of natural
vegetation and plants. It contains various nutrients and minerals suitable for plants of all kinds.
Most soils are made up of about 45% inorganic mineral matter, 25% water, 25% air, 5%
organic matter (4% humus, 0.5% organisms, 0.5% humus). These compositions depend on the
amount of vegetation, compaction of the soil, and the water present. A soil is said to be healthy if it
contains sufficient water, air, and organic material needed for sustaining life.
The core of soil are small pieces of rocks and dissolved organic and inorganic minerals.
When organic materials that have been collected over thousands of years are combined with other
properties of soil, a substance that can sustain life particularly for plants is produced. Although
animals do not need much out of soil, plants cannot survive without it. In the biosphere, nutrients in
soil are continually recycled through the decomposition of dead materials by microorganisms
Soil serves as a habitat for organisms living in the ground and also acts as a natural filter by
purifying water before it goes to the ground. It holds water and makes it available for plants to use
and also modifies the atmosphere by emitting and absorbing gases and dust.
There are different kinds of soil, each has its own characteristics. Most soils have three
major layers: topsoil, subsoil, and parent material and some have humus or organic layer. Topsoil is
the best medium for plants to grow and its minerals are from parent material with organic matter
combined; parent material is the deposit at Earth’s surface from which the soil develops; and the
humus is made up of organic matter including decomposing leaves.

Water Composition and Importance

 Composed of two hydrogen molecules and one oxygen, water is essential for living. It makes
up of 71% of the earth’s surface while the remaining 29%, consist of continents and islands. 96.5%
of all the earth’s water is contained within the oceans as salt water, while the remaining percentage
belongs to fresh water lakes, and frozen water locked up in glaciers and the polar ice caps.
- Human life begins in the watery environment of its mother's womb, our cells and tissues are
mostly water, and most of the chemical reactions that are part of life's processes take place
in water.
- The water or hydrologic cycle is a major driving force on our planet. Water is in constant
motion, evaporating into the atmosphere from oceans, lakes, rivers and streams. Water
provides the Earth with the capacity of supporting life.

As we all know, air, soil, and water are the three natural resources that living organisms
cannot live without. Life exists as these three natural resources interact and create balance between
living and non-living things. Each has a relationship to the other resources that runs the interaction
within the biosphere. From there, life is continuous.
Combining these elements to form life on Earth, biosphere exists. People play the most
essential part as we maintain the flow of energy in the biosphere but we are also the one causing its
destruction. The future of our biosphere will depend on how we use the abiotic components
present in our environment and how we interact with other living organisms. We have a choice:
either preserve it or destroy it.