AIR POLLUTION chemical or physical changes brought about by either natural processes or human activities resulting in air quality

y degradation.

OVER THE LAST 20 YEARS AIR QUALITY HAS IMPROVED IN DEVELOPED COUNTRIES & BECOME WORSE IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES (10xs higher in mega cities) 147 million metric tons of air pollution (not CO2 or dust) is released by the U.S./yr.
Natural sources of air pollution volcanoes, dust storms, sea spray, viruses, bacteria, pollen, spores trees & vegetation (which emit VOCs). Methane (2/3 ) from decaying vegetation & guts of termites & ruminant animals.

Anthropogenic sources alter & overload natural systems. Although most particulates come from natural causes, in some cities 90% come from human activities. Primary pollutants directly released from a source into the air in a harmful form.
Secondary pollutants modified to a hazardous form after they enter the air (acid rain or smog) or are formed by chemical reactions as components of the air mix & interact. Example: NOx

Publications National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS)

The Clean Air Act, which was last amended in 1990, requires EPA to set National Ambient Air Quality Standards for pollutants considered harmful to public health and the environment. The Clean Air Act established two types of national air quality standards.
Primary standards set limits to protect public health, including the health of "sensitive" populations such as asthmatics, children, and the elderly. Secondary standards set limits to protect public welfare, including protection against decreased visibility, damage to animals, crops, vegetation, and buildings. The EPA Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards (OAQPS) has set National Ambient Air Quality Standards for six principal pollutants, which are called "criteria" pollutants. Units of measure for the standards are parts per million (ppm) by volume, milligrams per cubic meter of air (mg/m3), and micrograms per cubic meter of air (g/m3).

Ambient air air all around us.

Criteria or conventional pollutants contribute the largest volume of air-quality degradation & are considered the most serious of all air pollutants. 1970 Clean Air Act designated 7.

Ozone Particulate Matter Carbon Monoxide Nitrogen Oxides Sulfur Dioxide Lead VOCs volatile organic chemicals

Understanding the AQI The purpose of the AQI is to help you understand what local air quality means to your health. To make it easier to understand, the AQI is divided into six categories: Each category corresponds to a different level of health concern. The six levels of health concern and what they mean are: "Good" The AQI value for your community is between 0 and 50. Air quality is considered satisfactory, and air pollution poses little or no risk. = GREEN "Moderate" The AQI for your community is between 51 and 100. Air quality is acceptable; however, for some pollutants there may be a moderate health concern for a very small number of people. For example, people who are unusually sensitive to ozone may experience respiratory symptoms. = YELLOW "Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups" When AQI values are between 101 and 150, members of sensitive groups may experience health effects. This means they are likely to be affected at lower levels than the general public. For example, people with lung disease are at greater risk from exposure to ozone, while people with either lung disease or heart disease are at greater risk from exposure to particle pollution. The general public is not likely to be affected when the AQI is in this range. = ORANGE "Unhealthy" Everyone may begin to experience health effects when AQI values are between 151 and 200. Members of sensitive groups may experience more serious health effects. = RED "Very Unhealthy" AQI values between 201 and 300 trigger a health alert, meaning everyone may experience more serious health effects. = PURPLE "Hazardous" AQI values over 300 trigger health warnings of emergency conditions. The entire population is more likely to be affected. = MAROON

Formation of SMOG = Ozone

NO + VOC ---------- NO2

NO2 + UV ------------ NO + O (nitric oxide + atomic oxygen O + O2 ------------------ O3 (ozone) NO2 + VOC -------------- PAN, etc. (peroxyacetyl nitrate) NET RESULTS NO + VOC + O2 + UV -------- O3 + PAN, & other oxidants

Ozone - Good Up High, Bad Nearby!

Ozone is a gas composed of three atoms of oxygen. Ozone occurs both in the Earth's upper atmosphere and at ground level. Ozone can be good or bad, depending on where it is found: Good Ozone. Ozone occurs naturally in the Earth's upper atmosphere-6 to 30 miles above the Earth's surface-where it forms a protective layer that shields us from the sun's harmful ultraviolet rays. This beneficial ozone is gradually being destroyed by manmade chemicals. An area where the protective "ozone layer" has been significantly depleted-for example, over the North or South pole-is sometimes called "the ozone hole." Bad Ozone. In the Earth's lower atmosphere, near ground level, ozone is formed when pollutants emitted by cars, power plants, industrial boilers, refineries, chemical plants, and other sources react chemically in the presence of sunlight. Ozone at ground level is a harmful air pollutant.

Climate, topography, & physical processes in the atmosphere plant an important role in transport, concentration, dispersal & removal of many air pollutants. Temperature Inversions when a stable layer of warmer air overlays cooler air, reversing the normal temperature decline with increasing height.

GRAND CANYON

Visibility 390 km

Visibility 40 km

Stratosphere Ozone Formation

1. O2 + UV ----- 2O

2. O + O2 ------- O3
3. O3 + O ---- 2O2 OR 3. O3 + UV ---- O + O2

GENERAL FACTS ON OZONE Ozone is located mainly in the stratosphere 8 30 mi. (13 48 km) . Ozone amounts are small; there are only a few molecules of zone in a million air molecules at most. Ozone is measured in Dobson Units. If you bring all ozone above a certain location to the ground & measured the height of the ozone, it would equal 300 Dobson Units (D.U.) which is equal to 3 millimeters in height. Less than 200 D.U.s is considered a HOLE. Ozone filters out biologically damaging UV light. Loss of ozone could cause:
1. Increase in skin cancer & cataracts. 2. Decrease in crop yield. 3. Breakdown of the immune system. 4. Decrease in phytoplankton.

5. More solar radiation warming the troposphere & cooling the stratosphere.

1. CFCs + sunlight --- Cl released 2. Cl + O3 ----- ClO + O2

3. ClO + O ----- Cl + O2
It takes CFCs many years to ascend to the stratosphere & once theyre there they can last from 50 100 years. One chlorine molecule has the ability to destroy 10,000 or more ozone molecules. http://www.atm.ch.cam.ac.uk/tour/part3.html http://www.shsu.edu/%7Echemistry/ESC440/psc.gi

The following are international agreements dealing with the ozone depletion problem:
A. Montreal Protocol (1987) 50% cut-back in CFCs & Halons from 1986 levels. B. Agreement in London (1990) 100% phase-out by 2000 of CFCs & Halons. C. Agreement in Copenhagen (1992) U.S.A. & others Acceleration of phase-out 100% phase-out by 1996 of CFCs & Halons.

Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) is an optical sensor to measure the albedo of the earth's atmosphere at six narrow spectral bands. The total ozone content is interrelated with changes of solar radiation in the near ultraviolet wavelengths so that the spatial distribution of the total ozone can be inferred by observing several near UV bands. In addition, the TOMS observation data can be used to make quantitative estimates of sulfur dioxide gases in the near UV band.

Fugitive emissions those that do not go through a smoke stack. Examples dust from soil erosion, strip mining, rock crushing, & building construction & destruction. Leaks around valves & pipe joints from oil refineries & chemical plants.

Unconventional Or Non-criteria Air Pollutants considered especially toxic or hazardous & are regulated by the EPA. (HAPs)
Asbestos, benzene, beryllium, mercury, polycyhlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) & vinyl chloride. Most of these materials have no natural source in the environment.
PCBs and Chemistry PCBs or polychlorinated biphenyls are a group of chemicals consisting of 209 individual compounds. PCBs were widely used as a fire preventive and insulator in the manufacture of transformers and capacitors because of their ability to withstand exceptionally high temperatures. PCBs were banned by the EPA in 1979, and are classified as a probable human carcinogen by numerous national and international health-protective organizations, such as the EPA, The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (an arm of the U.S Public Health Service) and the World Health Organization. Research also links PCB exposure to developmental problems. PCBs build up (bioaccumulate) in the environment, increasing in concentration as you move up the food chain.

Aesthetic degradation any undesirable changes in the physical characteristics or chemistry of of the atmosphere.
Noise, odor, light pollution. Some are not harmful to health but degrade the quality of of our lives.

Urban heat island

A city is built mainly of concrete, asphalt, bricks and stones. As air temperature at a certain place depends to a large extent on the surface character, the temperature in a city is higher than in a non-urban area. The urban heat island is also caused by large number of habitants and anthropogenic heat emission.

Heat Island map of the New York The hottest surfaces, overlaided in red! (35 K) Source: System for World Surveillance, Inc.

Clean Air Act 1963: Federal grants were given to states to control air pollution. States were responsible for enforcement. Clean Air Act 1970:

Identified criteria pollutants & divided them into primary & secondary standards. Air Pollution Standards Index set maximum total loads in the atmosphere. (They didnt regulate individual industries.)
Clean Air Act 1990 1. 2. 3. Acid Rain regulated the amounts of SOx & NOx. Urban Smog required tailpipe emissions to decrease & alternate fuels to be used in high smog areas. Toxic air pollutants: 188 air toxins listed. Required largest emitters to install BEST AVAILABLE TECHNOLOGY (BAT) to reduce emissions.

4.
5. 6. 7.

Ozone protections. CFCs phased out.

Marketing pollution rights. VOCs Target valves & equipment to decrease releases. Clean Air Act 1997: Ambient ozone lowered, PM lowered to 2.5 from 10

Indoor Air Pollution:Information from EPA website:http://www.epa.gov/iaq/pubs/insidest.html#ref1 #1 problem in 1st world countries is smoke from tobacco products. #1 problem in 3rd world countries is smoke from indoor cooking. Visit the website to find out about:

Radon: 2nd leading cause of lung cancer.

Environmental Tobacco Smoke Biologicals Formaldehyde Pesticides Asbestos Lead

Sick Building Syndrome: Term that refers to a set of symptoms that affect some number of building occupants during the time they spend in the building and diminish or go away during periods when they leave the building. Cannot be traced to specific pollutants or sources within the building.

THE END