Flashcards
C1
Cards in this deck (39)
- 1what gases are the atmosphere mainly made up of?Nitrogen, Oxygen and Argon, water vapor, carbon dioxide and other gases
- 2what percentages of nitrogen, oxygen and argon are there in the atmosphere?nitrogen - 78%
oxygen - 21%
argon - 1% - 3what is released into the atmosphere by human activity?-gases
-particulates - 4name an environmental process that can add gases and particulates to our atmospherevolcanic eruptions
- 5how was the Earths early atmosphere formed and what did it mainly consist of?it was formed by volcanic eruptions and mainly consisted of carbon dioxide and water
- 6how were oceans formed when the Earth cooled?the water vapor condensed
- 7how did the evolution of photosynthesizing organisms change the atmosphere?they added oxygen and removed carbon dioxide
- 8as well as photosynthesis how else was CO2 removed from the atmosphere and what did the CO2 then form?the carbon dioxide was removed by dissolving in the oceans, this then formed sedimentary rocks and this lead to the formation of fossil fuels
- 9what have humans added to the atmosphere to change its composition?-carbon monoxide
-nitrogen oxides
-sulfur dioxide
-carbon dioxide (extra)
-particulates - 10what can human released pollutants do to humans? (give an example)carbon monoxide reduces the amount of oxygen that the blood can carry
- 11how can human released pollutants affect animals? (give an example)Sulfur dioxide causes acid rain
(fish die, indirectly affect humans) - 12how are the concentrations of pollutants measured in the air?by using PPB (parts per billion) or PPM (parts per million)
- 13why is it important to repeat measurements of pollutant concentration?the concentration could increase/decrease at different points in the day (more cars producing pollutants in the day than at night) and by repeating the measurement you can calculate a mean, a good estimate of the true value
- 14what particles are elements made from?atoms
- 15how do molecules form?atoms join together
- 16does each element has a unique atom?yes
- 17how do compounds form?when two or more atoms chemically combine
- 18what happens to a reactant to form a product?they are rearranged by separation and then being joined in a different way
- 19what does it mean when someone says that mass is conserved in a chemical reaction?no atoms are created or destroyed and therefore the mass of the product is the same as the mass of the reactants
- 20what is coal mainly made up of?carbon dioxide
- 21what fuels are mainly compounds of hydrogen and carbon?-petrol
-diesel fuel
-fuel oil - 22when fuels burn what combines with atoms of oxygen to produce carbon dioxide and/or water?carbon and/or hydrogen
- 23what happens when a fuel reacts with oxygen?oxidation
- 24what is a loss of oxygen an example of and what does this mean?it is an example of reduction and this means that combustion reactions involve oxidation
- 25what is oxidation?when a substance gains oxygen
- 26why do fuels burn more rapidly in pure oxygen than in air?because there are more oxygen for it to react with
- 27can oxygen be obtained from the atmosphere and what can it be used to support?yes. it can be used to support combustion
- 28why is sulfur dioxide produced is a fuel containing sulfur is burnt?the sulfur reacts with the oxygen
- 29what compounds are formed when burning fossil fuels?-carbon dioxide
-sulfur dioxide
-carbon monoxide and carbon particulates (incomplete burning)
-nitrogen oxides (oxygen + nitrogen in engines) - 30what are the chemical formulas for -carbon monoxide -carbon dioxide -sulfur dioxide -nitrogen monoxide -nitrogen dioxide -water?-CO
-CO2
-SO2
-NO
-NO2
-H2O - 31how is nitrogen monoxide formed?by combustion of fuels in the air
- 32what is nitrogen oxide oxidized into?nitrogen dioxide
- 33where do -particulate carbon -sulfur dioxide -carbon dioxide go after combustion?-particulate carbon is deposited on surfaces
-sulfur dioxide react with water and oxygen to produce acid rain
-carbon dioxide is used in photosynthesis or is dissolved in the sea - 34how can we reduce pollution from burning fossil fuels in power stations?-use less electricity
-remove sulfur dioxide from flue gasses emitted by coal burning power stations - 35how is the acid gas, sulfur dioxide removed from glue gases?-using an alkaline slurry (e.f. a spray of calcium oxide and water)
-sea water - 36what is the only way of producing less carbon dioxide?burn less fossil fuels
- 37how can atmospheric pollution caused by exhaust emissions be reduced?-burning less fuel (more efficient engines)
-using low sulfur fuels
-using catalytic converters
-make more people use public transport
-having legal limits of exhaust emissions - 38what does a catalytic converter do?it reduces nitrogen monoxide to just nitrogen by loss of oxygen, and carbon monoxide to carbon dioxide by gain of oxygen
- 39what other things can we use as alternatives to fossil fuels, what are their problems?-electricity (must be produced renewably)
-biofuels (they use up valuable farm land)