Air

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Air Air Pollution

• AP Environmental Science
• Chapter 17

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Space view of Earths atmosphere
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COMPOSTION OF ATMOSPHERE

• What is Air
• Major Gases
• N2
• O2
• Ar
• CO2

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MINOR COMPONENTS

• Water vapor
• Very significant in weather
• Also influences heating of atmosphere

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MINOR COMPONENTS

• Aerosols
• Tiny particles suspended in atmosphere
• Soot, sea salt, ash, microorganisms
• Serve as surfaces for condensation, also reflect
  sunlight

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OTHER GASES (cont.)

• Ozone (O3)
• Formation?
• Function?
• Destruction?

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Layers of atmosphere
Thermosphere
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LAYERS OF THE ATMOSPHERE

• Troposphere
• Weather layer
• Temp decreases with elevation (ave. 6.5C per
  1000m)
• Stratosphere
• Contains ozone layer
• Increase temp with elevation
• Mesosphere
• Coldest layer
• Decrease temp with elevation
• Thermosphere
• Difficult to measure temp, but increases with
  elevation
• Little gases, moving fast

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BOUNDARIES OF THE ATMOSPHERE

• Tropopause
• Stratopause
• Mesopause
• What do they have in common?

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Ionosphere

• Lower layer of the thermosphere
• Solar radiation causes atoms to turn into ions
  and free electrons
• Electrons can reflect radio waves back to earth

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Exosphere

• Atmosphere blends into space

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Humans altering BGC cycles

• Carbon
• Added through burning of fossil fuels
• release 25 as much CO2 as rest of nature
• Potential to warm troposphere alter climate
• Nitrogen
• add 3x natural amt of nitrogen
• Most return as nitric acids, alter natural pH
  biologic life
• Sulfur
• add 2x natural amt of sulfur
• Most return as sulfuric acids alter pH and bio
  life

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Tonights HW

• Read Sec 17-1 through end of 17-3
• Complete the notes for those sections
• Visit and quiz yourself on
• http//www.usd.edu/esci/exams/atmosph.html

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Indoor Air Pollution

• Levels inside are much higher than outside
• Mortality rates 93 vs. 7
• Why?
• Highest Risk
• Smokers
• Children lt 5yrs
• Elderly
• Sick
• Sick Building Syndrome
• Newer buildings
• Poor air exchange
• Chemicals released from new products

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Indoor Pollutants

• Cigarette Smoke
• Formaldehyde
• Sources
• effects
• Radon Gas
• Sources
• effects
• Asbestos
• what is it? sources??
• effects

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Air Pollution Organisms

• Humans
• Defense Mechanisms
• Nose (hairs)
• Upper Respiratory Tract (cilia, mucus)
• Sneezing/coughing
• Overexposure

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Air Pollution Organisms

• Humans
• Defense Mechanisms
• Nose (hairs)
• Upper Respiratory Tract (cilia, mucus)
• Sneezing/coughing
• Overexposure
• Plants and Aquatic Systems
• Soil depletion

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Air Pollution Organisms

• Humans
• Defense Mechanisms
• Nose (hairs)
• Upper Respiratory Tract (cilia, mucus)
• Sneezing/coughing
• Overexposure
• Plants and Aquatic Systems
• Soil depletion
• Materials
• Surface erosion corrosion

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Solutions?

• What have we done so far?
• Clean Air Act
• What else could we do??
• Focus on prevention
• Increase C.A.F.E.
• Regulate emission of small engines
• Doing more to reduce CO2