Across
- 3. a colorless, odorless gas produced by burning carbon and organic compounds and by respiration formed during complete combustion.
- 8. the “good ozone;” the ozone layer; located approximately 20-50 kilometers above the earth's surface; is important because it prevents most of the high-energy ultraviolet solar radiation from reaching the earth's surface.
- 10. Under 1972 and 1974 OECD recommendations that the polluter should bear the costs of pollution prevention and control measures. This is decided by public authorities to ensure that the environment is in an acceptable state. e.g. Palestine, Ohio train derailment incident 2023 had to be cleaned up and paid for by the train company, Norfolk Southern freight train carrying hazardous materials.
- 13. a stable, nonflammable, moderately toxic gases or liquids which have typically been used as refrigerants and as aerosol propellants.
- 14. a mixture of pollutants and particulates, including ground level ozone, that is formed when nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) react to sunlight, creating a brown haze above cities. It tends to occur more often in summer, because that is when we have the most sunlight.
- 16. used in fire extinguishers, but now known to damage the ozone layer. Halons are made from halogens group 17 on the periodic table contain similar properties. All halons contain bromine and other halogens.
- 17. COP refers to the 197 nations that agreed to an environmental pact (UNFCCC- United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in 1992.
- 22. a large, long lasting rotating low pressure system located over the north and south poles. It weakens in the summer and strengthens in the winter.
- 23. are fluorinated gases such as HCFCs and HCFs and were replacement chemicals for CFCs.
- 27. a colorless pungent toxic gas formed by burning sulfur in the air.
- 29. a mixture of smoke and fog; smog intensifies atmospheric pollution.
- 31. a material in the air that can have adverse effects on humans and the ecosystem. The substance can be solid particles, liquid droplets, or gases. A pollutant can be of natural origin or man-made. Pollutants are classified as primary or secondary.
- 32. atmospheric pollution deposited as acidic material in the absence of moisture as dust, gas, smoke, or other aerosols (small, microscopic particles in the air).
- 33. RangeTransboundaryAirPollution (Lrtap) created a framework for controlling and reducing acid deposition and air pollution in Europe. This was the first air pollution on a regional basis. 51 parties and eight protocols were introduced.
- 36. (CAA) in 1970 the act and its amendments to this act in 1990 worked towards developing an agreement between the USA and Canada to reduce air pollution and acid deposition. This act placed permanent caps (limits) on SO2 emissions between 1990 and 2017. NOx emissions declined 50% during this period.
- 37. created in the 1990’s as a substitute for HCFCs; used for the same purpose as CFCs and HCFCs.
- 38. created in the 1980’s as a substitute for CFCs; used as refrigerants and in other products… still bad for the atmosphere.
- 39. a gradual increase in the overall temperature of the earth’s atmosphere generally attributed to the greenhouse effect caused by increased levels of carbon dioxide, chlorofluorocarbons, and other pollutants.
- 41. the ability of a surface to reflect light, White surfaces have a high albedo.
- 42. (NOx) a generic term for the various nitrogen oxides produced during combustion (present in car exhausts). They are believed to aggravate asthmatic conditions, react with the oxygen in the air to produce ozone, which is also an irritant and eventually form nitric acid when dissolved in water. NOx includes NO and NO2.
- 44. nitrogen from the atmosphere reacts with oxygen in high temperatures in vehicle engines to form nitrogen monoxide gases and is released into the atmosphere. Nitrogen monoxide reacts with oxygen and water in the atmosphere to form nitric acid (HNO3)
- 45. an air pollutant emitted directly from a source into the air from natural processes and human activities.
- 46. (VOCs) compounds that have a high vapor pressure and low water solubility. Many VOCs are emitted as gases from certain solids or liquids including paints, paint strippers, cleaning supplies, pesticides, building material and produced in the manufacture of pharmaceuticals, and refrigerants.
- 47. an area where the average concentration of ozone is below 100 Dobson Units
- 48. a colorless, odorless flammable gas that is the main constituent of natural gas.
- 50. a colorless, odorless toxic flammable gas formed by incomplete combustion of carbon.
- 51. designed to remove sulfur content from a fuel source before it is burnt by coal washing, bio-desulfurisation, and low sulfur fuels (ULSD)
- 52. an air pollutant that forms when pollutants react in the atmosphere e.g. smog
- 53. (NO) a colorless, toxic gas from combustion processes. Also known as nitric oxide. NO is used in the manufacture of nitric acid (ammonia (NH3) with oxygen releasing NO and water). Nitrogen compound derived from nitric acid is used to create fertilizers, explosives, and other useful substances.
Down
- 1. gaseous compound made of carbon, chlorine, & fluorine (and sometimes hydrogen); used as refrigerants, cleaning solvents, and aerosol propellants and in the manufacture of plastic foams, and that are believed to be a major cause of stratospheric ozone depletion
- 2. a chemical substance used in the production of energy or pressurized gas that is subsequently used to disperse fluids like in aerosol cans (freon, paint, hairspray).
- 4. a measure of the air quality which governments use to assess how polluted the air is or how polluted the air is expected to become. (AQI)
- 5. devices that use an electric charge to remove particulates (solid particles and liquid droplets) from the gases emitted in industrial smoke.
- 6. also referred to as tropospheric ozone is the “bad ozone;” a harmful air pollutant that is formed when emissions from everyday items combine with other pollutants and “cook” in the heat and sunlight; created by chemical reactions between oxides of nitrogen (NOx) and volatile organic compounds (VOC) in the presence of sunlight.
- 7. designed to help industrial facilities dramatically reduce the contaminants they release into the environment. There are two types, wet and dry. They can remove from exhaust steams PM, acidic gases and VOCs.
- 9. a mix of air pollutants that deposit from the atmosphere as acidic wet deposition with a pH <5.6 or acidic dry deposition.
- 11. an area of a stream or aquifer containing degraded water resulting from migration of a pollutant. These plumes occur in oceans as well when drilling accidents happen. Like, Deep Horizon oil plume.
- 12. atmospheric pollution deposited as an acid by precipitation (rain, snow, or fog).
- 15. solid particles or liquid droplets that are suspended in the air. Generally, these come from any type of burning or dust generating activities. Also known as air particulates, atmospheric aerosol particles, atmospheric particulate matter, particulate matter or suspended particulate matter. All of these are termed particulate matter (PM).
- 18. particulate matter of diameter of 10 micrometres or smaller. The particles can be inhaled. The number next to the PM indicates the size of the particulate matter being measured, e.g. PM1 is 1 micrometre in diameter or smaller.
- 19. a theoretical approach to managing climate change by reflecting some of the insolation (incoming solar radiation). This would prevent energy from entering the atmosphere and would therefore limit the amount of energy trapped by greenhouse gases. SRM would effectively act as an artificial reflective shield to provide regional or global cooling.
- 20. gradual thinning of Earth's ozone layer in the upper atmosphere caused by the release of chemical compounds containing gaseous chlorine or bromine from industry and other human activities. The thinning is most pronounced in the polar regions, especially over Antarctica. The figure below is an illustration of the process.
- 21. gasses that contribute to the warming of our atmosphere and Earth’s surface by absorbing infrared radiation. Main gases include: carbon dioxide, water vapor, methane, nitrous oxide, and now also F- gases.
- 24. In 1992. an international treaty which extended the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate change that commits state parties to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, based on scientific consensus that global warming is occurring and that human-made CO2 emissions are driving it.
- 25. PSCs stratospheric clouds that form over the poles in winter at altitudes of between 15,000 metres and 25,000 metres. One of the main types of PSC is mostly made up of supercooled droplets of water and nitric acie.
- 26. also known as the “Earth Summit”, in 1992, was a global conference dealing with climate change biodiversity forestry and recommended a list of sustainable development practices called Agenda 21
- 28. a chemical process for the removal of sulfur from a material; FGD. This involves either the removal of sulfur using a wet scrubbing process, spray dry scrubbing, wet sulfuric acid process, SNOX (removes sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides and particulates .
- 29. fossil fuels contain sulfur compounds. When fossil fuels are burned, SO2 gas reacts with water and oxygen in the atmosphere to form sulfuric acid (H2SO4).
- 30. (suggested by Rowland-Molina) - In 1974 chemist Frank Sherwood Rowland of the University of California, Irvine and his postdoctoral student, Mario J. Molina, suggested that long-lived organic halogen compounds, such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), could reach the stratosphere where they would be dissociated by UV light, releasing chlorine atoms… so, they were the first to realize that chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) could destroy ozone
- 34. a reddish brown pungent, poisonous/highly toxic, acidic gas that is corrosive and strongly oxidising. It is formed through oxidation of NO from combustion burned at high temperatures.. but can also be an air pollutant and is a constituent of untreated automobile exhaust. It is responsible for the color of smog.
- 35. devices fitted to vehicle engines to reduce air pollution designed to lower NOx emissions from exhaust systems.
- 40. In 1987, this was created to reduce CFC use. This was a global agreement where the world realized that pollution in one country could damage the whole planet. It aimed to reduce CFC emissions by 50% by 2000. Failure to do so carried heavy financial penalties. 191 countries signed an agreement to stop using CFCs by 1995. Kigali Amendment 2019 added F-gases to its list of controlled substances.
- 43. also referred to as the Paris Accord. In 2015, International treaty on climate change.
- 49. O3, a colorless, odorless gas found naturally in the stratosphere and formed from oxygen by UV light