Key Terms:

1. Filtration
A treatment for drinking water that involves passing impure water through screens to
filter out floating debris.
2. Chlorination
A treatment for drinking water in which small amounts of chlorine are added to kill
bacteria.
3. Fractional distillation
A method for separating the components of air
4. Catalytic converters
Present in car exhausts in some countries to remove pollutant gases and convert them
into non-pollutant gases
5. Rust
Iron forms rust when it is exposed to oxygen and water. Hydrated Iron (III) Oxide.
6. Fertilisers
Substances added to the soil to supply nutrients that are essential for the growth of
plants.

Water
Test for water: (not pure)
- Anhydrous Copper (II) Sulfate (White -> Blue)
- Anhydrous Cobalt Chloride (Blue -> Pink)
*Commonly use cobalt chloride paper instead of anhydrous solid

Test for pure water:

- Boiling point 100°C at 1 atmospheric pressure
- Freeze at 0°C

Treatment of drinking water:

1. Filtration
Passing impure water through screens to filter out floating debris.
2. Coagulation
A coagulant is added to make small suspended particles stick together (e.g. iron (III)
sulphate)
3. Floatation
Air is blown through the water in floatation tanks, to make the coagulated particles float
to the top, then they are skimmed off.
4. Water is passed through sand filter
5. Charcoal might be added to remove bad tastes and smell
6. Chlorination
Small amounts of chlorine gas are added to kill bacteria
7. Fluoratination - Fight tooth decay
8. Water is pumped to the storage reservoir, ready for pumping to homes.
Uses of water:
Industry:
- Solvent
- Coolant
- Cleaning
- Chemical reactant (hydration of ethene)

Home:
- Cooking
- Cleaning
- Drinking

Air
Air is a mixture.
Composition of clean dry air:
- 78% nitrogen
- 21% oxygen
- 1% argon (0.9%), carbon dioxide, small amounts of other noble gases (helium, neon,
krypton & xenon)
- Water vapour and pollutants might be included too

Fractional Distillation of liquid air:

1. Air is pumped into the plant, and filtered to remove the dust particles
2. Water vapour, carbon dioxide, and pollutants are removed
3. Air is cooled until water vapour condenses to water
4. Passed over beds of adsorbent beads to trap the carbon dioxide
5. Air is forced into a small space, compressed, makes it hot. Then cooled with recycling
air.
6. Cold, compressed air passed through and enters a larger space, expands rapidly,
becoming very cold
7. Step 5 & 6 are repeated several times and the temperature gets colder
 8. Gases are now condensed to liquid and pumped into the fractionating column, which is
then slowly warmed up and boil off one by one.
9. Nitrogen, Argon, Oxygen, Krypton, Xenon

Air pollution
Pollutant Source Pollution Problems Prevention

Carbon monoxide Incomplete combustion Combines with (car engines)

(toxic because it is of carbon-containing haemoglobin hence - install catalytic
colourless & substances (fossil fuels)
depriving cells of oxygen converters in cars
odourless)
Causes dizziness, (for CO & NO2)
headache, death

Sulfur dioxide Combustion of fossil
fuels which contain
sulfur compounds
(factories/ power plant)
Produced by burning
coal to produce energy
for electricity
Causes acid rain; Waste gas treated with
Breathing difficulties, slaked lime (calcium
irritation of respiratory hydroxide)
system
Flue gas desulfurisation
Install catalytic converter

Oxides of nitrogen Oxygen and nitrogen
from air react under high
temperature of car
engines
*Produced through
reaction in air, not from car
engines
Causes acid rain and Install catalytic
photochemical smog; converters in cars
Breathing difficulties,
irritation of respiratory
system

Lead compounds Leaded petrol Brain damage Use unleaded petrol

Kidneys & nervous
system in adult
Toxic

Catalytic converters
First reaction:
2NO2 -> N2 + 2O2
OR
2NO -> N2 + O2

Second reaction:
2CO + O2-> 2CO2

Redox reaction:
2NO + 2CO -> N2 + 2CO2
Reduction
Oxidation

Catalytic converters remove pollutant gases and convert them into non-pollutant gases.
Catalysts present contain platinum, rhodium and palladium. They are coated onto a ceramic
honeycomb or ceramic beads (to increase surface pressure), for absorbing harmful gases
(Nitrogen oxides & Carbon monoxides) and turning into nitrogen, oxygen and carbon dioxide.