Introduction :
Air pollution
is the modification of the naturalcharacteristics of the atmosphere by a chemical, particulate matter,or biological agent. Air pollution occurs when the air containsgases, dust, fumes or odour in harmful amounts. That is, amountswhich could be harmful to the health or comfort of humans andanimals or which could cause damage to plants and materials. Theatmosphere is a complex, dynamic natural gaseous system that isessential to support life on planet Earth. Stratospheric ozonedepletion due to air pollution has long been recognized as a threatto human health as well as to the Earth's ecosystems.Worldwide air pollution is responsible for large numbers of deaths and cases of respiratory disease. While major stationarysources are often identified with air pollution, the greatest source of emissions is actually mobile sources, mainly automobiles. Gasessuch as carbon dioxide, which contribute to global warming, haverecently gained recognition as pollutants by climate scientists, whilethey also recognize that carbon dioxide is essential for plant lifethrough photosynthesis.“ Air Pollution “ can be defined as the presence in the outdoor atmosphere of one or more contaminants in such quantities and of such duration as may be injurious to human, plant, or animal life, or to materials, or which may unreasonably interfere with thecomfortable enjoyment of life or property, or the conduct of business.Air is the ocean we breathe. Air supplies us with
oxygen
which is essential for our bodies to live. Air is 99.9% nitrogen,oxygen, water vapor and inert gases. Human activities can releasesubstances into the air, some of which can cause problems for humans, plants, and animals.
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Components of air:
Air
is a mixture of gases,
78% nitrogen
and
21% oxygen
with traces of water vapor, carbon dioxide, argon, and various other components. We usually model air as a uniform (no variation or fluctuation) gas with properties that are averaged from all theindividual components.GasRatio comparedto Dry Air (%)ByvolumeByweightMolecular Mass-
M -
(kg/kmol)ChemicalSymbolBoiling PointK(
o
C)Oxygen20.9523.2032.00O
2
90.2-182.95Nitrogen78.0975.4728.02N
2
77.4-195.79CarbonDioxide0.030.04644.01CO
2
194.7-78.5Hydrogen0.00005~ 02.02H
2
20.3-252.87Argon0.9331.2839.94Ar84.2-186Neon0.00180.001220.18Ne27.2-246Helium0.00050.000074.00He4.2-269Krypton0.00010.000383.8Kr119.8-153.4Xenon9 10
-6
0.00004131.29Xe165.1-108.1
2
Air Pollutants
There are many substances in the air which may impair thehealth of plants and animals (including humans), or reduce visibility.These arise both from natural processes and human activity.Substances not naturally found in the air or at greater concentrations or in different locations from usual are referred to aspollutantsThe combustion of gasolineand other hydrocarbon fuels inautomobiles, trucks, and jet airplanes produces several primarypollutants: nitrogen oxides, gaseous hydrocarbons, and carbonmonoxide, as well as large quantities of particulates, chiefly lead. Inthe presence of sunlight, nitrogen oxides combine withhydrocarbons to form a secondary class of pollutants, thephotochemical oxidants, among themozoneand the eye-stingingperoxyacetylnitrate (PAN). Nitrogen oxides also react with oxygenin the air to form nitrogen dioxide, a foul-smelling brown gas. Inurban areas like Los Angeles where transportation is the maincause of air pollution, nitrogen dioxide tints the air, blending withother contaminants and the atmospheric water vapor to producebrownsmog
.
Sources of air pollution
Sources of air pollution refer to the various locations,activities or factors which are responsible for the releasing of pollutants in the atmosphere. These sources can be classified intotwo major categories which are:
"Stationary Sources" as smoke stacks of power plants,manufacturing facilities, municipal waste incinerators.
Burningwood,fireplaces,stoves,furnacesandincinerators.
Oil refining, and industrial activity in general.
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Air Pollution
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