ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING

Technical Paper: Chapter 2

POLLUTION: AIR ENVIRONMENT

Luchavez, Joshua Raymund

Magalona, Mafel

Majadillas, Mark Dizon

Mayor, John Hydrick

INTRODUCTION:

Air pollution is a major concern of new civilized world, which has a serious toxicological impact
on human health and the environment. It has a number of different emission sources, but motor
vehicles and industrial processes contribute the major part of air pollution. According to the World
Health Organization, six major air pollutants include particle pollution, ground-level ozone, carbon
monoxide, sulfur oxides, nitrogen oxides, and lead. Long and short term exposure to air suspended
toxicants has a different toxicological impact on human including respiratory and cardiovascular
diseases, neuropsychiatric complications, the eyes irritation, skin diseases, and long-term chronic
diseases such as cancer. Several reports have revealed the direct association between exposure to the
poor air quality and increasing rate of morbidity and mortality mostly due to cardiovascular and
respiratory diseases. Air pollution is considered as the major environmental risk factor in the incidence
and progression of some diseases such as asthma, lung cancer, ventricular hypertrophy, Alzheimer's and
Parkinson's diseases, psychological complications, autism, retinopathy, fetal growth, and low birth
weight.

DEFINITION

 Air pollution can be defined as the presence of toxic chemicals or compounds (including those of
biological origin) in the air, at levels that pose a health risk. In an even broader sense, air
pollution means the presence of chemicals or compounds in the air which are usually not
present and which lower the quality of the air or cause detrimental changes to the quality of life
(such as the damaging of the ozone layer or causing global warming).
  Air pollution, release into the atmosphere of various gases, finely divided solids, or finely
dispersed liquid aerosols at rates that exceed the natural capacity of the environment to
dissipate and dilute or absorb them. These substances may reach concentrations in the air that
cause undesirable health, economic, or aesthetic effects.

What Causes Air Pollution?

“Most air pollution comes from energy use and production,” says John Walke, director of the
Clean Air Project, part of the Climate and Clean Energy program at NRDC. “Burning fossil fuels releases
gases and chemicals into the air.” And in an especially destructive feedback loop, air pollution not only
contributes to climate change but is also exacerbated by it. “Air pollution in the form of carbon dioxide
and methane raises the earth’s temperature,” Walke says. “Another type of air pollution is then
worsened by that increased heat: Smog forms when the weather is warmer and there’s more ultraviolet
radiation.” Climate change also increases the production of allergenic air pollutants including mold
(thanks to damp conditions caused by extreme weather and increased flooding) and pollen (due to a
longer pollen season and more pollen production).

Major Air Pollutants

Criteria pollutants

Clean, dry air consists primarily of nitrogen and oxygen—78 percent and 21 percent

respectively, by volume. The remaining 1 percent is a mixture of other gases, mostly argon (0.9 percent),
along with trace (very small) amounts of carbon dioxide, methane, hydrogen, helium, and more. Water
vapour is also a normal, though quite variable, component of the atmosphere, normally ranging from
0.01 to 4 percent by volume; under very humid conditions the moisture content of air may be as high as
5 percent.

There are six major air pollutants that have been designated by the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) as “criteria” pollutants—criteria meaning that the concentrations of these
pollutants in the atmosphere are useful as indicators of overall air quality. The sources, acceptable
concentrations, and effects of the criteria pollutants are summarized in the table.
Criteria air pollutants

maximum
acceptable environmental human health
pollutant common sources
concentration in risks risks
the atmosphere

exacerbates
symptoms of heart
disease, such as
chest pain; may
carbon automobile 35 ppm (1-hour
contributes to smog cause vision
monoxide emissions, fires, period); 9 ppm (8-
formation problems and
(CO) industrial processes hour period)
reduce physical
and mental
capabilities in
healthy people

automobile
nitrogen emissions, damage to foliage; inflammation and
0.053 ppm (1-year
oxides (NO electricity contributes to smog irritation of
period)
and NO2) generation, formation breathing passages
industrial processes

sulfur electricity 0.03 ppm (1-year major cause of breathing

dioxide generation, fossil- period); 0.14 ppm haze; contributes to difficulties,
(SO2) fuel combustion, (24-hour period) acid rain formation, particularly for
industrial processes, which subsequently people with
automobile damages foliage, asthma and heart
emissions buildings, and disease
monuments; reacts
to form particulate
Criteria air pollutants

maximum
acceptable environmental human health
pollutant common sources
concentration in risks risks
the atmosphere

matter

interferes with the

nitrogen oxides
ability of certain
(NOx) and volatile
plants to respire,
organic compounds
leading to reduced lung
(VOCs) from
increased function; irritation
industrial and 0.075 ppm (8-hour
ozone (O3) susceptibility to and inflammation
automobile period)
other of breathing
emissions, gasoline
environmental passages
vapours, chemical
stressors (e.g.,
solvents, and
disease, harsh
electrical utilities
weather)

particulate sources of primary 150 μg/m3 (24- contributes to irritation of

matter particles include hour period for formation of haze breathing
fires, smokestacks, particles <10 μm); as well as acid rain, passages,
construction sites, 35 μg/m3 (24-hour which changes the aggravation of
and unpaved roads; period for particles pH balance of asthma, irregular
sources of <2.5 μm) waterways and heartbeat
secondary particles damages foliage,
include reactions buildings, and
between gaseous monuments
chemicals emitted
by power plants and
 Criteria air pollutants

maximum
acceptable environmental human health
pollutant common sources
concentration in risks risks
the atmosphere

automobiles

adverse effects
upon multiple
loss of biodiversity, bodily systems;
0.15 μg/m3 (rolling
metal processing, decreased may contribute to
three-month
waste incineration, reproduction, learning disabilities
lead (Pb) average); 1.5
fossil-fuel neurological when young
μg/m3 (quarterly
combustion problems in children are
average)
vertebrates exposed;
cardiovascular
effects in adults

Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

The gaseous criteria air pollutants of primary concern in urban settings include sulfur dioxide,
nitrogen dioxide, and carbon monoxide; these are emitted directly into the air from fossil fuels such
as fuel oil, gasoline, and natural gas that are burned in power plants, automobiles, and other
combustion sources. Ozone (a key component of smog) is also a gaseous pollutant; it forms in the
atmosphere via complex chemical reactions occurring between nitrogen dioxide and various volatile
organic compounds (e.g., gasoline vapours).

Airborne suspensions of extremely small solid or liquid particles called “particulates” (e.g., soot,
dust, smokes, fumes, mists), especially those less than 10 micrometres (μm; millionths of a metre) in
size, are significant air pollutants because of their very harmful effects on human health. They are
emitted by various industrial processes, coal- or oil-burning power plants, residential heating systems,
and automobiles. Lead fumes (airborne particulates less than 0.5 μm in size) are particularly toxic and
are an important pollutant of many diesel fuels.

Except for lead, criteria pollutants are emitted in industrialized countries at very high rates,
typically measured in millions of tons per year. All except ozone are discharged directly into the
atmosphere from a wide variety of sources. They are regulated primarily by establishing ambient air
quality standards, which are maximum acceptable concentrations of each criteria pollutant in the
atmosphere, regardless of its origin. The six criteria pollutants are described in turn below.

Fine particulates

Very small fragments of solid materials or liquid droplets suspended in air are

called particulates. Except for airborne lead, which is treated as a separate category, they are
characterized on the basis of size and phase (i.e., solid or liquid) rather than by chemical composition.
For example, solid particulates between roughly 1 and 100 μm in diameter are called dust particles,
whereas airborne solids less than 1 μm in diameter are called fumes.

Carbon monoxide

Carbon monoxide is an odourless, invisible gas formed as a result of incomplete combustion. It is

the most abundant of the criteria pollutants. Gasoline-powered highway vehicles are the primary
source, although residential heating systems and certain industrial processes also emit significant
amounts of this gas. Power plants emit relatively little carbon monoxide because they are carefully
designed and operated to maximize combustion efficiency. Exposure to carbon monoxide can be acutely
harmful since it readily displaces oxygen in the bloodstream, leading to asphyxiation at high enough
concentrations and exposure times.

Sulfur dioxide

A colourless gas with a sharp, choking odour, sulfur dioxide is formed during the combustion
of coal or oil that contains sulfur as an impurity. Most sulfur dioxide emissions come from power-
generating plants; very little comes from mobile sources. This pungent gas can cause eye and throat
irritation and harm lung tissue when inhaled.
 Sulfur dioxide also reacts with oxygen and water vapour in the air, forming a mist of sulfuric
acid that reaches the ground as a component of acid rain. Acid rain is believed to have harmed or
destroyed fish and plant life in many thousands of lakes and streams in parts of Europe, the
northeastern United States, southeastern Canada, and parts of China. It also causes corrosion of metals
and deterioration of the exposed surfaces of buildings and public monuments.

Nitrogen dioxide

Of the several forms of nitrogen oxides, nitrogen dioxide—a pungent, irritating gas—is of most
concern. It is known to cause pulmonary edema, an accumulation of excessive fluid in the lungs.
Nitrogen dioxide also reacts in the atmosphere to form nitric acid, contributing to the problem of acid
rain. In addition, nitrogen dioxide plays a role in the formation of photochemical smog, a reddish
brown haze that often is seen in many urban areas and that is created by sunlight-promoted reactions in
the lower atmosphere.

Nitrogen oxides are formed when combustion temperatures are high enough to cause
molecular nitrogen in the air to react with oxygen. Stationary sources such as coal-burning power plants
are major contributors of this pollutant, although gasoline engines and other mobile sources are also
significant.

Ozone

A key component of photochemical smog, ozone is formed by a complex reaction between

nitrogen dioxide and hydrocarbons in the presence of sunlight. It is considered to be a criteria pollutant
in the troposphere—the lowermost layer of the atmosphere—but not in the upper atmosphere, where
it occurs naturally and serves to block harmful ultraviolet rays from the Sun. Because nitrogen dioxide
and hydrocarbons are emitted in significant quantities by motor vehicles, photochemical smog is
common in cities such as Los Angeles, where sunshine is ample and highway traffic is heavy. Certain
geographic features, such as mountains that impede air movement, and weather conditions, such
as temperature inversions in the troposphere, contribute to the trapping of air pollutants and the
formation of photochemical smog.

Lead
 Inhaled lead particulates in the form of fumes and dusts are particularly harmful to children, in
whom even slightly elevated levels of lead in the blood can cause learning disabilities, seizures, or even
death (see lead poisoning). Sources of airborne lead particulates include oil refining, smelting, and other
industrial activities. In the past, combustion of gasoline containing a lead-based antiknock additive
called tetraethyl lead was a major source of lead particulates. In many countries there is now a complete
ban on the use of lead in gasoline. In the United States, lead concentrations in outdoor air decreased
more than 90 percent after the use of leaded gasoline was restricted in the mid-1970s and then
completely banned in 1996.

Air toxics

Hundreds of specific substances are considered hazardous when present in trace amounts in the
air. These pollutants are called air toxics. Many of them cause genetic mutations or cancer; some cause
other types of health problems, such as adverse effects on brain tissue or fetal development. Although
the total emissions and the number of sources of air toxics are small compared with those for criteria
pollutants, these pollutants can pose an immediate health risk to exposed individuals and can cause
other environmental problems.

Most air toxics are organic chemicals, comprising molecules that contain carbon, hydrogen, and

other atoms. Many are volatile organic compounds (VOCs), organic compounds that readily evaporate.
VOCs include pure hydrocarbons, partially oxidized hydrocarbons, and organic compounds
containing chlorine, sulfur, or nitrogen. They are widely used as fuels (e.g., propane and gasoline),
as paint thinners and solvents, and in the production of plastics. In addition to contributing to air toxicity
and urban smog, some VOC emissions act as greenhouse gases and, in so doing, contribute to global
warming. Some other air toxics are metals or compounds of metals—for example, mercury, arsenic,
and cadmium.

Important air toxics, their sources, and their environmental effects are summarized in the table.

Important hazardous air pollutants (air toxics)

Air toxic Common sources Human health risks

Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

Important hazardous air pollutants (air toxics)
Air toxic Common sources
volcanoes, weathering of rocks
and minerals containing
arsenic, industrial processes
arsenic such as metal smelting,
burning wood that has been
treated with arsenic
compounds
natural deposits, building
asbestos
materials
burning coal and oil, vehicle
benzene exhaust, industrial solvents,
tobacco smoke
burning coal and oil, tobacco
beryllium
smoke, natural occurrence in
compounds
soil
burning fossil fuels,
cadmium
incineration of waste, smelting
compounds
of zinc, lead, and copper
Human health risks
acute effects include gastrointestinal disorders,
headaches, hypotension, shock, and death;
chronic effects include dermatitis, irritation of
mucous membranes, gastrointestinal disorders,
and lung cancer
chronic effects include asbestosis (lung
disease), pulmonary hypertension, lung cancer,
and mesothelioma
acute effects include dizziness, drowsiness,
unconsciousness, and irritation of skin and
mucous membranes; chronic effects include
blood disorders including aplastic anemia,
adverse effects on fetal development, and
leukemia
acute effects include inflammation and swelling
of the lungs; chronic effects include chronic
beryllium disease (development of
noncancerous lesions in the lungs)
acute effects include lung irritation; chronic
effects include various kidney disorders, sperm-
count reduction, and lung cancer
Important hazardous air pollutants (air toxics)

Air toxic Common sources Human health risks

papermaking, drinking water, acute and chronic effects include irritation of

chlorine
swimming pools mucous membranes and respiratory tract

chronic effects include conjunctivitis,

coke oven
coke ovens dermatitis, lesions of respiratory and digestive
emissions
systems, and various cancers

acute effects include headache, nausea, eye

cyanide automobile exhaust, chemical and skin irritation, and death; chronic effects
compounds processing, waste incineration include central nervous system disorders and
thyroid disorders

acute effects include irritation of eyes and

building materials and home
respiratory tract and inflammation of mouth,
furnishings, power plants,
esophagus, and stomach if ingested; chronic
formaldehyde incineration of waste,
effects include lesions in respiratory tract,
automobile exhaust, tobacco
menstrual disorders, and lung and
smoke
nasopharyngeal cancer

acute effects include gastrointestinal disorders

battery manufacturing, paints and death; chronic effects include anemia,
lead compounds and ceramic glazes, metal neurological disorders, reduced sperm count,
products and fetal effects including low birth weight and
mental impairment

mercury paint manufactured prior to acute effects include central nervous system
compounds 1990–91, batteries, industrial effects including irritability, slowed sensory and
processes, dental amalgam motor nerve function, blindness, and deafness
Important hazardous air pollutants (air toxics)
Air toxic Common sources
fillings, fish products
nickel processing, fossil-fuel
nickel
burning, sewage sludge
compounds
incineration
ambient air (radon, uranium),
radionucleides
drinking water (uranium),
(radon, radium,
uranium mines and processing
uranium)
facilities, phosphate fertilizers
drinking water and ambient
selenium
air, some plastics and paints,
compounds
pharmaceutical production
vinyl chloride manufacture of polyvinyl
chloride (PVC), which is used in
pipes, furniture, and
automobiles
Human health risks
(depending on compound); chronic effects
include a variety of central nervous system
effects including erethism, insomnia, deafness,
and blurred vision and kidney damage
acute effects include lung and kidney damage
(anecdotal reports) and gastrointestinal
disorders; chronic effects include dermatitis
and asthma
chronic effects include lung, bone, and nasal
cancer
acute effects include irritation of the
respiratory and gastrointestinal tracts; chronic
effects include loss of hair and tooth decay and
discoloration
acute effects imclude central nervous system
issues including dizziness, drowsiness,
headaches, loss of consciousness, and
inhibition of blood clotting; chronic effects
include, rarely, vinyl chloride disease, in which
changes occur in the bones and skin of the
fingers and sensitivity to cold is increased, and
 Important hazardous air pollutants (air toxics)

Air toxic Common sources Human health risks

liver cancer

Air toxics may be released in sudden and catastrophic accidents rather than steadily and
gradually from many sources. For example, in the Bhopal disaster of 1984, an accidental release of
methyl isocyanate at a Union Carbide pesticide factory in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh state, India,
immediately killed at least 3,000 people, eventually caused the deaths of an estimated 15,000 to 25,000
people over the following quarter-century, and injured hundreds of thousands more. The risk of
accidental release of very hazardous substances into the air is generally higher for people living in
industrialized urban areas. Hundreds of such incidents occur each year, though none has been as severe
as the Bhopal event.

Other than in cases of occupational exposure or accidental release, health threats from air toxics
are greatest for people who live near large industrial facilities or in congested and polluted urban areas.
Most major sources of air toxics are so-called point sources—that is, they have a specific location. Point
sources include chemical plants, steel mills, oil refineries, and municipal waste incinerators. Hazardous
air pollutants may be released when equipment leaks or when material is transferred, or they may be
emitted from smokestacks. Municipal waste incinerators, for example, can emit hazardous levels
of dioxins, formaldehyde, and other organic substances, as well as metals such as arsenic, beryllium,
lead, and mercury. Nevertheless, proper combustion along with appropriate air pollution control devices
can reduce emissions of these substances to acceptable levels.

Hazardous air pollutants also come from “area” sources, which are many smaller sources that
release pollutants into the outdoor air in a defined area. Such sources include commercial dry-
cleaning facilities, gasoline stations, small metal-plating operations, and woodstoves. Emission of air
toxics from area sources are also regulated under some circumstances.

Small area sources account for about 25 percent of all emissions of air toxics. Major point
sources account for another 20 percent. The rest—more than half of hazardous air-pollutant emissions
—come from motor vehicles. For example, benzene, a component of gasoline, is released as unburned
fuel or as fuel vapours, and formaldehyde is one of the by-products of incomplete combustion. Newer
cars, however, have emission control devices that significantly reduce the release of air toxics.

Greenhouse gases

Global warming is recognized by almost all atmospheric scientists as a significant environmental

problem caused by an increase in levels of certain trace gases in the atmosphere since the beginning of
the Industrial Revolution in the mid-18th century. These gases, collectively called greenhouse gases,
include carbon dioxide, organic chemicals called chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), methane, nitrous
oxide, ozone, and many others. Carbon dioxide, although not the most potent of the greenhouse gases,
is the most important because of the huge volumes emitted into the air by combustion of fossil
fuels (e.g., gasoline, oil, coal).

ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS OF AIR POLLUTION

Smog and soot

These two are the most prevalent types of air pollution. Smog, or “ground-level ozone,” as it is
more wonkily called, occurs when emissions from combusting fossil fuels react with sunlight. Soot, or
“particulate matter,” is made up of tiny particles of chemicals, soil, smoke, dust, or allergens, in the form
of gas or solids, that are carried in the air. The EPA’s “Plain English Guide to the Clean Air Act” states, “In
many parts of the United States, pollution has reduced the distance and clarity of what we see by 70
percent.” The sources of smog and soot are similar. “Both come from cars and trucks, factories, power
plants, incinerators, engines—anything that combusts fossil fuels such as coal, gas, or natural gas,”
Walke says. The tiniest airborne particles in soot—whether they’re in the form of gas or solids—are
especially dangerous because they can penetrate the lungs and bloodstream and worsen bronchitis,
lead to heart attacks, and even hasten death.

Smog can irritate the eyes and throat and also damage the lungs—especially of people who
work or exercise outside, children, and senior citizens. It’s even worse for people who have asthma or
allergies—these extra pollutants only intensify their symptoms and can trigger asthma attacks.
Hazardous air pollutants

These are either deadly or have severe health risks even in small amounts. Almost 200 are regulated by
law; some of the most common are mercury, lead, dioxins, and benzene. “These are also most often
emitted during gas or coal combustion, incinerating, or in the case of benzene, found in gasoline,” Walke
says. Benzene, classified as a carcinogen by the EPA, can cause eye, skin, and lung irritation in the short
term and blood disorders in the long term. Dioxins, more typically found in food but also present in
small amounts in the air, can affect the liver in the short term and harm the immune, nervous, and
endocrine systems, as well as reproductive functions. Lead in large amounts can damage children’s
brains and kidneys, and even in small amounts it can affect children’s IQ and ability to learn. Mercury
affects the central nervous system.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, or PAHs, are toxic components of traffic exhaust and wildfire smoke.
In large amounts, they have been linked to eye and lung irritation, blood and liver issues, and even
cancer. In one recent study, the children of mothers who’d had higher PAH exposure during pregnancy
had slower brain processing speeds and worse symptoms of ADHD.

Greenhouse gases

By trapping the earth’s heat in the atmosphere, greenhouse gases lead to warmer temperatures and all
the hallmarks of climate change: rising sea levels, more extreme weather, heat-related deaths, and
increasing transmission of infectious diseases like Lyme. According to a 2014 EPA study, carbon dioxide
was responsible for 81 percent of the country’s total greenhouse gas emissions, and methane made up
11 percent. “Carbon dioxide comes from combusting fossil fuels, and methane comes from natural and
industrial sources, including the large amounts that are released during oil and gas drilling,” Walke says.
“We emit far larger amounts of carbon dioxide, but methane is significantly more potent, so it’s also
very destructive.” Another class of greenhouse gases, hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), are thousands of
times more powerful than carbon dioxide in their ability to trap heat. In October 2016, more than 140
countries reached an agreement to reduce the use of these chemicals—which are used in air
conditioners and refrigerators—and find greener alternatives over time. David Doniger, senior strategic
director of NRDC’s Climate and Clean Energy program, writes, “NRDC estimates that the agreed HFC
phase-down will avoid the equivalent of more than 80 billion tons of CO 2 over the next 35 years.”

Pollen and mold

Mold and allergens from trees, weeds, and grass are also carried in the air, are exacerbated by climate
change, and can be hazardous to health. They are not regulated by the government and are less directly
connected to human actions, but they can be considered air pollution. “When homes, schools, or
businesses get water damage, mold can grow and can produce allergenic airborne pollutants,” Knowlton
says. “Mold exposure can precipitate asthma attacks or an allergic response, and some molds can even
produce toxins that would be dangerous for anyone to inhale.”

Pollen allergies are worsening because of climate change. “Lab and field studies are showing that the
more carbon dioxide pollen-producing plants—especially ragweed—are grown in, the bigger they grow
and the more pollen they produce,” Knowlton says. “Climate change also extends the pollen production
season, and some studies are beginning to suggest that ragweed pollen itself might be becoming a more
potent allergen.” That means more people will suffer runny noses, fevers, itchy eyes, and other
symptoms.

AIR POLLUTION CONTROLS

Collection of Polutants

Collection of pollutants for treatment is often the most serious problem in air pollution control.
Automobile exhaust is a notorious polluter mainly because the effluent (exhaust) is so difficult to trap
and treat. If automobile exhaust could be channeled to a central treatment facility, treatment could be
more efficient in controlling each individual car. Recycling of exhaust gases is one means of control.
Although automobiles could not meet 1990 exhaust emission standards only by recycling exhaust and
blow-by gases, this method proved a valuable start to automobile emission controls. Many stationary
industries recycle exhaust gases, usually CO and volatile organic compounds, as fuel for the process,
since even CO releases heat when burned to COz.

Cooling
 The exhaust gases to be treated are sometimes too hot for the control equipment, and must
first be cooled. Cooling may also drop the temperature below the condensation point of some
pollutants, so that they may be collected as liquids. Dilution, quenching, and heat exchange

Treatment

Selection of the correct treatment device requires matching the characteristics of the pollutant
with features of the control device. Pollutant particles vary in size over many orders of magnitude, from
ideal gas molecules to macroscopic particles several millimeters in diameter. One device will not be
effective and efficient for all pollutants, or even for all pollutants coming from the same stack. The
chemical behavior of pollutants may also dictate selection of a control process. The various air pollution
control devices are conveniently divided into those that control particulate matter and those that
control gaseous pollutants.

Cyclones

The cyclone is a popular, economical, and effective means of controlling particulates. Cyclones
alone are generally not adequate to meet stringent air pollution control regulations, but serve as
precleaners for control devices like fabric filters or electrostatic precipitators.

Fabric Filters

Fabric filters used for controlling particulate matter (Figs. 20-4 and 20-7) operate like a vacuum
cleaner. Dirty gas is blown or sucked through a fabric filter bag. The fabric bag collects the dust., which is
removed periodically by shaking the bag. Fabric filters can be very efficient collectors for even
submicrometer-sized particles and are widely used in industrial applications, although they may be
sensitive to high temperatures and humidity.

Wet Collectors

The spray tower or scrubber pictured in Figs. 20-4 and 20-8 can remove larger particles
effectively. More efficient scrubbers promote the contact between air and water by violent action in a
narrow throat section into which the water is introduced. Generally, the more violent the encounter,
hence the smaller the gas bubbles or water droplets, the more effective the scrubbing

Electrostatic Precipitators
 Electrostatic precipitators are widely used to trap fine particulate matter in applications where
a large amount of gas needs treatment and where use of a wet scrubber is not appropriate. Coal-
burning electric generating plants, primary and secondary smelters, and incinerators often use
electrostatic precipitators. In an electrostatic precipitator, particles are removed when the duty gas
stream passes across high-voltage wires, usually carrying a large negative DC voltage.

AIR POLLUTION LAW

As with water pollution, a complex system of laws and regulations governs the use of air
pollution abatement technologies. In this chapter, the evolution of air pollution law is described, from its
roots in common law through to the passage of federal statutory and administrative initiatives.
Problems encountered by regulatory agencies and polluters are addressed with particular emphasis on
the impacts the system may or may not have on future economic development.

Tort Law

A tort is an injury incurred by one or more individuals. Careless accidents and exposure to
harmful airborne chemicals are the types of wrong included under this branch of common law. A
polluter could be held responsible for the damage to human health under the three broad categories of
tort liability, negligence, and strict liability. Intentional liability requires proof that somebody did a
wrong to another party on purpose. This proof is especially complicated in the case of damages from air
pollution. The fact that a “wrong” actually occurred must fist be established, a process that may rely on
direct statistical evidence or strong inference, such as the results of laboratory tests on rats.

Additionally, intent to do the ‘’wrong” must be established, which involves producing evidence
in the form of written documents or direct testimony from the accused individual or group of
individuals. Such evidence is not easily obtained. If intentional liability can be proven to the satisfaction
of the courts, actur damages as well as punitive damages can be awarded to the injured plaintiff.
Negligence may involve mere inattention by the air polluter who allowed the injury to occur. Proof in
the courtroom focuses on the lack of reasonable care taken on the defendant’s part. Examples of such
neglect in air pollution include failure to inspect the operation and maintenance of electrostatic
precipitators, or the failure to design and size an adequate abatement technology. Again, damages can
be awarded to the plaintiff.
Property Law

Property law, on the other hand, focuses on the theories of nuisance and property rights;
nuisance is based on the interference with the use or enjoyment of property, and property rights is
based on actual invasion of the property. Property law is founded on ancient actions between land
owners and involves such considerations as property damage and trespassing. A plaintiff basing a case
on property law takes chances, rolls the dice, and hopes the court will rule favorably as it balances social
utility against individual property rights.

Statutory Law

Federal statutory law controlling air pollution began with the 1963 and 1967 Clean Air Acts.
Although these laws provided broad clean air goals and research money, they did not apply air pollution
controls throughout the entire United States, but only in particularly dirty communities. In 1970 the
Clean Air Act was amended to cover the entire United States, and the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) was created to promulgate clean air regulations and to enforce the Act. In 1977, provisions
were added to the Clean Air Act to protect very clean areas (“protection against significant
deterioration”), to enforce against areas that were not in compliance, and to extend the compliance
dates for automobile emission standards. In 1990, amendments focused on toxic air pollutants and
control of all vehicular emissions. The 1970 amendments, however, are the basis for existing federal
clean air legislation.

National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS)

The EPA is empowered to determine allowable ambient concentrations of those air

contaminants that are pollutants throughout the United States; these are the National Ambient Air
Quality Standards (NAAQS) and historically have been the focus of the nationwide strategy to protect air
quality. The primary NAAQS are intended to protect human health, the secondary NAAQS to “protect
welfare.” The latter levels are actually determined as those needed to protect vegetation.

Regulation of Emissions

Under Section 111 of the Clean Air Act, EPA has the authority to set emission standards (called
“performance standards” in the Clean Air Act) only for new or mkedly modified sources of the criteria
pollutants. The states may set performance standards for existing sources and have the authority to
enforce EPA’s new source performance standards (NSPS). EPAhas also delegated to certain states (e.g.,
Alabama) the authority to develop their own NSPS. A priority list of industries for NSPS that are to be set
has been in place since 1971; new technology can also motivate revision of the NSPS. Categories of
industrial facilities that emit these listed pollutants must use removal technologies if the facility emits 10
tons per year of any single hazardous substance or 25 tons per year of any combination of hazardous
substances. Categories of industrial sources, taken from the list of hundreds, include: Industrial external
combustion boilers Printing and publishing, waste oil combustion Gasoline marketing Glass
manufacturing Each “major source,” as defined by the 10 or 25 todyear limit, must achieve a maximum
achievable control technology (MACT) for emissions. On a case-by-case basis, an SIP could require a
facility to install control equipment, change an industrial or commercial process, substitute materials in
the production process, change work practices, and train and certify operators and workers.

Under Section 112 of the Clean Air Act, EPA has the authority to set national emission, or
performance, standards for hazardous air pollutants (NESHAPS) for all sources of those pollutants. The
new Clean Air Act required that EPA develop a “list of substances” to be regulated. Substances can be
added to the list and removed from the list as a result of ongoing research. The list currently contains
about 170 pollutants. Some of the compounds included are shown in Table 21-3. Some of these
compounds are commonly used substances, e.g., ethylene glycol (anti-freeze), styrene (a plastic
constituent), and methanol (“wood alcohol”).

REFERENCES:

https://www.nrdc.org/stories/air-pollution-everything-you-n eed-know

https://www.britannica.com/science/air-pollution

https://www.environmentalpollutioncenters.org/air/

Environmental Engineering, Fourth Edition by Ruth F. Weiner and Robin Matthews, 2003