PHOTOCHEMICAL SMOG

IntroductionCausesEffects on the EnvironmentMajor EventsSolutions

Introduction
Photochemical smog is a very serious problem in South African and most
other major cities around the world.

Causes 
The industrial revolution has been a great cause of the increase in pollutants
in the atmosphere over the last three centuries. Most of the pollution was
created from the burning of coal in space heating (boilers), cooking and
transportation. Under suitable conditions, the smoke and sulphur dioxide
produced can combine to form Industrial Smog. Today, Industrial smog is far
less common, but the burning of fossil fuels such as Petroleum can create
another atmospheric problem known as photochemical smog.

This condition developes when Primary Pollutants(Oxides of Nitrogen and

volatile organic compounds created from fossil fuel combustion) combine
under the influence of sunlight to give off a mixture of many different and
hazardous chemicals know as Secondary Pollutants.

These conditions mainly occur in large cities eg: Johannesburg, Cape Town,
Vancouver.

Major Chemical Pollutants in Photochemical Smog:

Sources and Environmental Effects
Chemical Sources The Environmental Other Information
Effects
Nitrogen - Burning of oil, coal, - decreased visibility - all combustion account
Oxides (NO gas in both vehivles and due to the yellowish for only about 5% of
and NO2) industry color of NO2 NO2 in the atmosphere,
- bacteria in soil - NO2 can be a cause most is created from
- forest fires of heart and lung operations involving NO
 - volcanic eruptions problems - amounts are likely to
- lightning - NO2 can stop plant continue rising as time goes
growth on
- less resistance to
disease
- Can be a cause of
the spread of cancer
Unstable Living - the evaporation of - eye problems - the effects of VOC's are
Compounds solvents eg: Polystyrene - respiratory dependant on the type of
(VOC's) - the evaporation of problems chemical
fuels eg: Petrol or - some are - samples have shown that
parafin carcinogenic there are over 600 different
- the burning of fossil - visibility problems VOC's in the atmosphere
fuels eg: most vehicles due to a blue-brown - amounts are likely to
haze continue rising as time goes
by
Ozone (O3) - created as a result of- breathing problems - amounts of 1.0 molecule
photolysis of NO2 - coughing, per million can decrease
- sometimes results wheezing photosynthesis by up to
from ozone destuction - eye problems 50%
- Less crop yeilds - people with asthma and
- stunts plant growth breathing problems are
- causes damage influenced the most
plastic - can only be formed during
- breaks down daylight hours
rubber
- harsh smell
Peroxyacetyl -formed by the reaction - eye problems - was not detected until it
Nitrates (PAN) of NO2 with VOC's (can - very poisonous to was recognized in smog
be formed naturally in plants - more poisonous to plants
some environments) - breathing problems than ozone
- causes damage to
proteins

Development of Photochemical Smog

Certain conditions are required in order to create photochemical smog

1. A constant source of nitrogen oxides, mostly obtainable from Industrial

activities; Transportation; created through burning of fossil fuels.
2. The time of day is also a very important factor when concidering the
amount of photochemical smog.
o Early morning traffic increases the emissions of both nitrogen
oxide and VOC's as people drive to work.
 o Later in the morning, traffic dies down and the nitrogen oxides and
volatile organic compunds start to react forming nitrogen dioxide
increasing it's concentration
o As the sunlight becomes stronger later in the day, the nitrogen
dioxide is broken down and it's by-products are formed.
o At the same time, some of the nitrogen dioxide can react with
unstable organic compounds to produce compounds such as
PAN.
o As the sun goes down, the creation of ozone is halted. The ozone
that remains is consumed by several other reactions
3. Some environmental factors can affect production of photochemical
smog.
o Pecipitation can decrease photochemical smog as the pollutants
are washed out of the atmosphere by rainfall
o Winds can blow photochemical snog away replacing it with fresh
air. However problems may arise in other areas
o Temperature changes can change dramatically the severity of the
pollution
4. Topography is another important factor influencing the severity of
photochemical smog. Settlements in valleys are much more
susceptable, because hills and mountains allow pollutants to rise.
Valleys are also places in which relatively strong temperature changes
occur.

Effects on the Environment 

Photochemical smog has devastating effects on the environment. The
production of the smog is especially apparent in the summer months, as the
high temperatures support the formation of photochemical smog.
Photochemical smog kills many kinds of animals and plants, because they are
not adapted to breathing photochemical smog. The table above gives all the
effects of photochemical smog.

Major Events 
There have been no major events as yet because this is an ongoing process
and is also a newly discovered problem.
Solutions 
There a few solutions to this problem, the first one is to decrease harmful
emissions such as those from car exhausts (carbon monoxide) and other
gases contributing to the formation of photochemical smog. You can do this
by using one car to take one's entire family to their place of work, or you could
use a form of transport that does not have harmful emissions such as a
bicycle.

Smog

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Originally, the term smog  was coined to describe the mixture of smoke and fog that
lowered visibility and led to respiratory problems in industrial cities. More recently, the
term has come to mean any decrease in air quality whether associated with reduced
visibility or a noticeable impact on human health. Smog occurs when emissions of gases
and particles from industrial or transportation sources are trapped by the local
meteorology so the concentrations rise and chemical reactions occur. It is common to
distinguish between two types of smog: London smog and Los Angeles smog.

London, or sulphurous, smog was noted following the introduction of coal into cities. It
is most prevalent in the fall or winter when cool conditions naturally produce a thick
surface fog. This fog mixes with the smoke and gases from burning coal to produce a
dark, thick, acrid sulphurous atmosphere. Normally, the unpolluted fog would disperse
during the day and be reformed at night. However, the presence of smoke particles
makes the fog so thick that sunlight cannot penetrate it and so only a major change in
meteorology can disperse it. The smog has been shown to contribute to an
A thick cloud of smog covering Santiago, Chile. (

AP/Wide World Photos. Reproduced by permission.

increased death rate, primarily due to respiratory problems. The most notable example of this
kind of smog occurred in London, from December 4 to 10, 1954, when some four thousand
deaths in excess of normal averages resulted. A similar episode in Donora, Pennsylvania, in 1948
involved approximately twenty excess deaths. Most jurisdictions have instituted control
measures to prevent this level of disaster from happening again. They have moved industries out
of cities, demanded lower industrial emissions, and increased the heights of smokestacks so
emissions are not trapped by local meteorology. These approaches have been largely successful,
at least in controlling the most extreme events.

Los Angeles, or photochemical, smog first became apparent in the late 1940s in warm
sunny cities that did not have significant coal-burning industries. It is a daytime
phenomenon characterized by a white haze and contains oxidants, such as ozone, that
cause eyes to water, breathing to become labored, and plants to be damaged. It results
from the action of sunlight on the combination of hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides
(NO x ), known as precursor gases. These are emitted from combustion sources to
produce a range of oxidized products and oxidants. These compounds have been shown
to produce respiratory and cardiac problems in individuals sensitive to pollution, and
the damage inflicted on crops can cause significant decreases in yield. In most cities, the
automobile is the primary contributor of smog's precursor gases. As the name would
suggest, the most notable example of this type of smog occurs in Los Angeles, California,
but it has also been experienced in a large number of cities where the weather is dry,
sunlight is plentiful, and there are many automobiles or petroleum industries (e.g.,
Houston, Athens, and Mexico City.)

The control of photochemical smog is more difficult than for sulphurous smog because
the compounds responsible for human and crop impacts are not directly emitted, but
produced by chemistry in the atmosphere. Thus, greater knowledge on the emissions of
gases, their reactions in the atmosphere, and their lifetime is needed. Most jurisdictions
continue to focus their control strategies on reducing ozone concentrations, although
particle concentrations are receiving increasing attention. Because smog results from
the sunlight-initiated chemistry of hydrocarbons and nitrous oxides, the most common
approach to smog control is to decrease the emission of these compounds at their
source. Lower volatility gasolines and systems to capture gasoline vapors are used to
reduce hydrocarbon emissions while tailpipe controls (catalytic converters) reduce
emissions of both hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides. The emission control systems of
the twenty-first century mean that a car typically emits 70 percent less nitrogen oxides
and 80 to 90 percent less hydrocarbons than the uncontrolled cars of the 1960s. The
expected improvement in air quality, as a result of increasing controls, is estimated by
using computer models of the atmosphere and its chemistry.

SEE
ALSO A IR P OLLUTION ; A STHMA ; D ONORA, P ENNSYLVANIA ; H EALTH, H UMAN ; O ZONE .

Bibliography

Brimblecombe, Peter. (1987). The Big Smoke: A History of Air Pollution in London

since Medieval Times. London: Methuen.
Turco, Richard. (1997). Earth under Siege. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Internet Resources

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. "Air Quality Index: A Guide to Air Quality and
Your Health." Available from http://www.epa.gov/airnow/aqibroch .

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. "National Air Pollutant Emission Trends, 1900–
1998." Available from http://www.epa.gov/ttn .

Donald R. Hastie

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