Air pollution

Question 1

London-Great smog

Answer 1

• smoke particles, carbon dioxide, hydrochloric acid, fluorine, sulphur dioxide
• contributed to 4000 to 12000 deaths
• creation of air pollution control legislation

Question 2

Air pollution

Answer 2

• number one cause of early death
• automobile exhaust is largest contributor in North America
• outsourcing manufacturing

Question 3

smog

Answer 3

four main pollutants:

-particulate matter, ozone, nitric oxides, sulphur oxides

Question 4

coal burning compounds released to the air

Answer 4

-sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, particulate matter, mercury

Question 5

sulfur dioxide

Answer 5

• form small acidic particulates
• absorbed into human lungs and passed into the blood stream
• acid rain
• emission controls=smokestack scrubbers

Question 6

nitrogen oxides

Answer 6

• ground level ozone or smog
• burn lung tissue, exacerbate asthma, chronic respiratory diseases
• emission controls=catalytic reduction technology

Question 7

particulate matter

Answer 7

• soot or fly ash
• chronic bronchitis, aggravated asthma, premature death, haze
• emission controls=baghouses

Question 8

mercury

Answer 8

• fish contaminate

- emission controls=carbon injection combined with baghouses

Question 9

Acute lung injury

Answer 9

• Oxidative burden
• Airway reactivity
• Pulmonary edema
• Cell proliferation

Question 10

oxidative burden

Answer 10

• ozone, NO2, tobacco smoke, lung immune system cells generate ROS
• Cause cellular damage

Question 11

airway reactivity

Answer 11

• trigger bronchoconstriction, limiting oxygen uptake

- problematic with asthma

Question 12

pulmonary edema

Answer 12

• cellular damage causes leaking of fluid into alveolar spaces
• less O2 exchange can trigger heart attacks

Question 13

cell proliferation

Answer 13

• type II epithelial cells proliferate and eventually transform into type I cells
• excessive cell division lead to an increase in mutations

Question 14

Chronic lung injury

Answer 14

• COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder)
• fibrosis
• asthma
• cancer

Question 15

COPD

Answer 15

• emphysema=destruction of the alveolar sacs
• bronchitis=constant inflammation of bronchi and excessive mucous deposition
• increase in lung infections

Question 16

fibrosis

Answer 16

• inflammation increased deposition of collagen in damaged lungs
• lungs less elastic and depresses oxygen exchange

Question 17

asthma

Answer 17

-recurrent bronchoconstriction

Question 18

cancer

Answer 18

• direct DNA mutations from oxidative damage

- indirect DNA mutations from excessive cell division to replace damaged cells

Question 19

airborne particulate matter

Answer 19

• heterogeneous calls of compounds
• classified according to size
• toxicants can absorb onto the surface of particles

Question 20

Particulate matter and other pollutants causes

Answer 20

• lung irritation-increase permeability
• susceptibility to viral and bacterial pathogens-pneumonia in vulnerable persons
• aggravates the severity of chronic lung diseases-loss of airway function
• inflammation-release of chemicals that impact heart function
• changes in blood chemistry-clots and heart attacks

Question 21

Ozone

Answer 21

• hardest pollutant to control
• most acutely toxic
• NO2 released in morning traffic undergoes photolysis and creates ozone
• directly oxidize cellular components
• emergency respiratory admissions at hospital related to ozone exposure

Question 22

nitrogen dioxide pollution

Answer 22

• automobile exhaust
• source of surface ozone
• lung irritant
• NO2 hydrolyzes to nitrous and nitric acid cause chemical pneumonitis and pulmonary edema
• acute toxicity
• comes from fresh silage, agriculture
• coughing, shortness of breath, type I cell damage, pulmonary edema, death

Question 23

sulfur dioxide pollution

Answer 23

• emitted from vehicles
• irritant of respiratory tract
• hydrated to form sulphurous acid
• causes bronchoconstriciton and reduced airway flow
• bad for asthmatics
• absorbed primarily in nasal passages and bronchi

Question 24

acid rain

Answer 24

• S is oxidized by O2 during the burning process to make SO2
• SO2 can be oxidized by O (produced by UV light and O2)
• SO3 is readily hydrated to make H2SO4

Question 25

-Asbestos

Answer 25

• silicate material in fibre form
• insulation, fire retardant materials
• consumed by lung macrophages, asbestos fibres can not leave the lung
• inflammation response, high turnover of alveolar cells
• long lag time to cancer from exposure
• cancer=mesothelioma
• banned in Canada but still exported

Question 26

Smoking

Answer 26

• thousands of toxicants
• particulate matter
• arsenic
• bezene
• cadmium
• cause of lung and throat cancer

Question 27

Government regulation of air pollutants

Answer 27

• particulate matter annual and 24-hour, and ozone

- guidelines not enforced limits

Question 28

air pollution point sources in Manitoba

Answer 28

• hydroelectric capacity generated from hydro
• only two fossil fuel generating plants
• two major mining smelters (no longer functioning)