Chemistry of the Atmosphere(p1/2)

Question 1

what was earth early atmosphere like?

Answer 1

involved increased volcanic activity producing
- mostly carbon dioxide
-water vapor
-some methane and nitrogen

Question 2

what happened when the earth started cooling down?

Answer 2

the water vapor had condensed forming water, which carbon dioxide had dissolved with to form carbon precipitates and then sediments

Question 3

what exactly happened on earth around 2.7BILLION years ago?

Answer 3

green plans and algae began to photosynthesis, increasing the amount of oxygen to form organisms. Then once they died, the plants sank to the seabed and were compress to form sedimentary rocks (coal, limestone) an oil

Question 4

what sedimentary rocks were formed in earth early atmosphere?

Answer 4

Coal: from dead plants

Limestone: a source of calcium carbonate, for marine shells

Question 5

how old is the earth

Answer 5

4.6 billion years old

Question 6

what are greenhouse gases?

Answer 6

water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane

Question 7

what is the green house effect?

Answer 7

radiation from sun passes through atmosphere and earth.
-Then energy is reflected back to space and is absorbed by earth to then be reflected.
-some of the energy will make it back to space, whilst a majority of energy will be absorbed by greenhouse gases
-then these molecule will reemit energy, so the absorption process is repeated
-This traps the energy, making the atmosphere warm and stable.

Question 8

what are the causes of global warming?

Answer 8

-increased carbon dioxide emission [via burning fossil fuels, and deforestation that reduces photosynthesis]

-increases methane emissions [via farm animals (cows) produce methane daily, and lots of waste decomposes]

Question 9

what is climate change?

Answer 9

effects of global warming

Question 10

what is the definition of weather?

Answer 10

short term atmospheric conditions

Question 11

what is climate?

Answer 11

typical weather condition in entire region for long time

Question 12

what are the consequences of global warming?

Answer 12

• droughts, floods, and hurricanes become more severe and common
  -the sea level rises as water in the ocean warms up. so water then expands, increasing its volume. resulting in flooding and submersion of entire islands.
  -Biodiversity decreases, as animals not adapted to change in rainfall patterns and temperature

Question 13

what is a carbon footprint

Answer 13

total amount of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases emitted over a events, service or products lifecycle

Question 14

what are the benefits of calculating a carbon footprint?

Answer 14

-identify how environmentally something is
-find most polluting activities
[so can reduce emissions]

Question 15

what are some factors which make carbon footprints hard to measure?

Answer 15

• how raw materials are sourced
• the manufacturing process
• how something is disposed

Question 16

hat are the general ways of reducing carbon footprint?

Answer 16

recycling product rather than re-using it
- using a renewable energy source
- using more efficient manufacturing process

Question 17

what are the method that reduce carbon footprints?

Answer 17

-using renewable energy sources: wind, solar, nuclear (are expensive)
-use more efficient manufacturing process: so uses less energy, so less decomposition, so less methane
- Government add new laws and taxes on how many green house gases emitted (although make economy suffer, so international agreements harder )
-carbon capture technology: captures carbon dioxide from fossil fuels and stores it deep underground

Question 18

what is complete combustion?

Answer 18

hydrogen + oxygen [lots] -> water + carbon dioxide

Question 19

what is incomplete combustion?

Answer 19

when there isn’t enough oxygen available. resulting in a production of particulates and carbon monoxide

Question 20

how are particulates harmful?

Answer 20

-cause respiratory problems
- reflect sunlight back into space creating global warming

Question 21

how is carbon monoxide harmful?

Answer 21

when breathed in it diffuses into the blood and binds with the heamaglobin. meaningless oxygen is transported around the body. resulting in fainting, coma and death. {also is colourless and odourless, so is hard to detect]

Question 22

how is sulphur dioxide formed and why is it harmful?

Answer 22

it is formed from impurity’s in fossil fuels that is then oxidised.

this can damage the lungs if breathed and mix with the clouds to form dilute sulphuric acid to make acid rain

Question 23

how is nitrogen oxide formed and why is it harmful?

Answer 23

when nitrogen is oxidised at the high temperature inside an engine

this can damage the lungs if breathed and mix with the clouds to form dilute nitric acid to make acid rain

Question 24

what are the consequences of acid rain?

Answer 24

damages certain building status, corrodes metal, damages plants and makes soil more acidic.