Acid Rain Essays (1229 words) - Environmental Chemistry, Smog

Acid Rain Pollution comes in various forms. Whether it's toxic waste, CFC's, or sewage, they are all hazardous, to the earth. These can deplete the earth and it's inhabitants of resources, causing a harmful change. A product of pollution is acid rain. We shall see that acidification is harmful to all forms of life. Acid rain is any form of precipitation that is polluted by sulphur dioxide (SO2), and nitrogen oxides (NOX). This acid precipitation can be in the form of rain, snow, sleet, fog, or cloud vapors. The acidity of substances dissolved in water are measured by their pH levels. Normal precipitation pH levels fall between 5.0-5.6.2 When levels fall below these numbers, then the precipitation is said to be acidic. There are two ways in which acid deposition can form. The first way occurs when nitrogen oxides and sulphur dioxide land on the Earth's surface, and interact with frost or dew. The second way takes place due to the oxidation of nitrogen oxides or sulphur dioxide gases that are released into the air.3 Since it may take up to several days for the gases to be altered into their acid counter-parts, the pollutants can travel miles away from their original source. Emissions of (SO2) are responsible for the majority of the acid deposition, which falls to Earth. When we burn coal, we are releasing (SO2), into the air, since coal is slight made up of sulphur. Volcanic eruptions can add a great deal of sulphur into the atmosphere. Everyday organic decay adds sulphur into the air as well. (SO2) can hit the Earth's surface in dry forms or wet forms, by undergoing the following reactions: (SO2 + H20 *** H2SO3) (SO2 + ?O2 *** SO3 + H2SO4)2 Human activity is the major cause for nitrogen oxides' presence in our atmosphere, such as forest fires and the combustion of oil, coal, and gas. The other causes are due to nature. Lightning, volcanic action, and bacteria in soil are just to name a few. The following chemical reactions show how acids of nitrogen form: (NO2 + ?O2 *** NO2) (2NO2 + H2O *** HNO2 + HNO3) (NO2 + OH *** HNO3)2 Acid rain can affect plant life directly when the surface of leaves and needles come into contact with acid vapor or fog. This causes a reduction in the tree's ability to withstand the cold. A direct result would be the tree's incapability of reproduction. It can also harm plant life indirectly, by the acidification of soils. Acid rain can cause soil to loose nutrients such as calcium, potassium, and magnesium. In very acid conditions, aluminum becomes soluble, and is released from the soil. At high enough concentrations, aluminum can cause damage to roots. Acid rain causes a nutrient imbalance, in soil. Although it is true that nitrogen promotes forest growth, plant life also needs other nutrients. Precipitation polluted by nitrogen can contain heavy metals, such as mercury, cadmium, and lead. This process is known as nitrogen saturation.1 These too, can cause damage to tree roots. Besides trees, plants are also affected by acid rain. Reductions in pH levels can cause seed germination to be inhibited. Plant structures become weak, due to the loss of nutrients to the plant's tissues.4 Flowering of certain plants may not occur due to lack of essential minerals. Marine life is also greatly affect by acid rain. Acid water can leach high levels of aluminum from the bedrock. Rocks that contain great amounts of calcium or magnesium can act as a neutralizer. Those rocks and soils that lack some sort of buffers can cause grave damage to marine fish and plants. There are two ways in which aluminum can harm aquatic environments. It can cause a fish to suffocate, because aluminum precipitates in gills, thus interfering in the transport of oxygen. Secondly, fish produce mucus to combat the aluminum, in their gills. The mucus then builds up a clogs the fish's gills.5 In middle latitudes many bodies of water experience what is called "acid shock."4 Over the winter acid deposits can build up on snow. As the snow melts, the acids are released. Most fish can survive shock, but their eggs cannot adapt to acidification. When there is a change in the chemistry of water, the ecology of the water begins to change. The number and variety of species are altered. At a pH level of 6.0 certain types of zooplankton and green algae begin to disappear. The loss of green plants allows more UV light to penetrate to further depths, so certain

The eNotes Blog Reading Round-Up January

Reading Round-Up January We asked everyone in the office to talk about their favorite books from the last month. Take a look at our favorite reads from January, and let us know in the comments which books youll be adding to your to-read list. From nonfiction to comedy to graphic novel, theres something for everyone here! Washington Black by Esi Edugyan Page count: 339 Genre: Historical Fiction Publish date: 2018 Washington Black, narrated by an enslaved 11-year-old boy named Washington â€Å"Wash† Black, begins on a sugar plantation in Barbados. After witnessing unspeakable brutality on the plantation, Wash is able to escape on a hot-air balloon with the assistance of the master’s younger brother. His escape is the start of a lifelong adventure around the world that exposes Wash to a whole new realm of science and discovery. Its a deeply heartfelt story that leaves the reader with a new perspective from which to see the world and a realization that â€Å"everything has value. Or if not value, at least merits investigation.† - Heather, Customer Service Less by Andrew Sean Greer Page count: 273 Genre: Fiction Publish date: 2017 This January, I read Andrew Sean Greer’s Less, a Pulitzer-prize winning novel full of wit, heart, and humor. This cleverly crafted novel stars a man named Arthur Less as he decides whether to attend his ex-boyfriend’s wedding. Fearing the awkwardness of attending and unwilling to admit defeat by declining, Less devises a plan to skip town by accepting invitations to literary events around the world- what could go wrong? Well, your publisher could drop your new novel, the person you’re interviewing could be violently ill, your jokes could not translate, and your frenemy could be waiting to pounce. Tragic as that sounds, Less is a comedy. From the â€Å"evenings with Arthur Less† to the delightfully overconfident way he speaks German, I was laughing out loud from the start. And underneath the humor, Greer’s novel explores an all-too-common fear: growing old, being alone, and wanting to be loved. Part satire, part love story, and all heart, Less should be the next book you pick up. - Wes, Managing Editor Middlesex by Jeffery Eugenides Page count: 529 Genre: Fiction Publish date: 2002 Middlesex is a book that had been on my radar for a while. When I stumbled across a copy of it at Goodwill, I had to see why it was worthy of Oprah’s praise and a Pulitzer. In my opinion, Jeffery Eugenides’s writing style is absolutely captivating. Embellished in striking metaphors and witty remarks, Eugenides’s novel gracefully transforms a multi-generational family saga into a modern-day Greek drama. The narrator and protagonist, Cal Stephanides, invites readers along an intimate journey of self-exploration through the moral dilemmas and twists of fate that have shaped his identity. This story is an intoxicating hybrid of genre and culture that parallels Cal’s own experience as a hermaphrodite, a hybrid of two genders. Overall, Middlesex is a thoughtful read and powerful reminder that we have the ability to choose who we want to be, regardless of where we’ve come from. - Savannah, Social Media Manager Tribe by Sebastian Junger Page count: 182 Genre: Nonfiction Publish date: 2016 If you’ve followed along with some of our previous book recommendation blogs, you won’t be surprised to learn that I usually stick with fiction. This month, however, I stumbled across Tribe and ended up loving it. Simply put, Junger explains how modern society- in exchange for technological and medicinal advances- has removed our ability to bond in the egalitarian, close-knit communities in which humans evolve to thrive. The book is jam-packed with research and always takes an objective stance, so I finished it not with an opinion of how we should or should not live as people, but instead with a better understanding of why chronic loneliness and mental illness have become so prevalent in today’s society. - Kate, Marketing Coordinator Where’d You Go, Bernadette By Marie Semple Page count: 330 Genre: Fiction Publish date: 2012 After reading Democracy Hacked: Political Turmoil and Information Warfare in the Digital Age and Smoke Gets in Your Eyes: And Other Lessons from the Crematory, I needed something a bit light(er) and not non-fiction, as you can image. So, I decided to pick up Whered You Go, Bernadette  by Marie Semple after seeing it on the Local Authors shelf at our friendly local bookstore  The Elliott Bay Book Company. Whered You Go, Bernadette  is a comedy novel set in Seattle and published in 2012, about Bernadette Fox, a witty and slightly agoraphobic architect, who goes missing after her husband tries to get her committed to a facility. It is narrated by Bernadettes 15-year-old daughter, Bee, as she tries to cobble together the moving parts that lead up to Bernadettes disappearance. I realize this summary sounds a bit bleaker than the actual plot- but this book is equal parts sweet and amusing. Semple, who is a Seattle resident and was a writer for Arrested Development, perfectly captures the laugh-out-loud (and deserved) snark toward Seattle drivers, mega-tech corporations like Microsoft, and PTA parents with maybe a little too much time on their hands. It was an enjoyable read and I really look forward to the movie coming out later this year, starring Cate Blanchett(!) as Bernadette. - Samantha, Head of Marketing The Prince and the Dressmaker by Jen Wang Page count: 288 Genre: Graphic Novel, YA Publish date: 2018 The Prince and the Dressmaker is a coming-of-age story about identity, friendship, hard work, and beautiful dresses. It’s also possibly the sweetest love story I’ve ever read- I was reaching for the tissues by the end of Frances and Prince Sebastian’s tale. Not to mention that Jen Wang’s art is some of the most sumptuous I’ve ever seen in a graphic novel: you can almost feel the fabric of Lady Crystallia’s gowns and taste the French pastries. Grab a copy of this book, cozy up with a cup of tea, and prepare to feel your feelings. - Jules, Editor