Acid Rain

What is Acid Rain ??

Acid Rain - is the rainwater containing chemical pollutants that are release by burning fossil fuels such as coal and oil.
Acid deposition, or acid rain as it is commonly occurs when emissions of sulphur dioxide (SO2) and oxides of nitrogen (NOx) react in the atmosphere with water, oxygen, and oxidants to form various acidic compounds.

Acid Rain Formation

Formation of Acid Rain

Formation of Sulphuric Acid (H2SO4)

2SO2(g) + O2(g)
SO3(g) + H2O(l)

2SO3(g)
H2SO4(aq)

Formation of Nitric Acid (HNO3) 2NO(g) + O2(g) 2NO2(g) 4HNO3(aq)

4NO2(g) + 2H2O(l) + O2(g)

What is the pH of Acid Rain

pH of Acid Rain

Acid rain has a pH of 5.0 or less.

Effects of Acid Rain

Effects of Acid Rain on buildings monuments

Acid Rain Effects on Buildings

Acids have a corrosive effect on limestone or marble buildings or sculptures. Sulphur dioxide plus water makes sulphurous acid SO2 + H2O --> H2SO3 Sulphur trioxide plus water makes sulphuric acid SO3 + H2O --> H2SO4 The sulphuric acid then further reacts with the limestone in a neutralization reaction. Limestone: CaCO3 + H2SO4 --> CaSO4 + H2CO3 H2CO3 --> CO2 gas + H2O The calcium sulphate is soluble in water and hence the limestone dissolves and crumbles.

What does Acid Rain do to the Rocks ??

Example of Rock What happens to the rock in acid? Little or no change Little or no change

Granite Sandstone with a silica cement Sandstone with a carbonate cement Limestone Chalk

Falls apart as the cement reacts with the acid Fizzes and disappears Fizzes and disappears

Effects of Acid Rain

According to Adam, this angel "stands in a small graveyard in Mirfield, West Yorkshire, England"

Effects of Acid Rain

1908

1968

The corrosive effects of acid rain on sculptures of Europe.

Acid Rain Effects On Statues Philadelphia

This huge statue of Christ sits atop of a high pedestal located in a Catholic cemetery and it cannot escape the damaging effects of Acid Rain.

Think about it
The statue has been eaten away by acid rain. What type of rock could it be made from?

The statue is likely made from the limestone. Chalk is a bit too soft for making statues.

Effects of Acid Rain on plants

Acid Rain Effects on Plants

As acid rain falls on trees, it can make them lose their leaves, damage their bark, and stunt their growth. By damaging these parts of the tree, it makes them vulnerable to disease, extreme weather, and insects. Acid falling on a forests soil is also harmful because it disrupts soil nutrients, kills microorganisms in the soil, and can sometimes cause a calcium deficiency. Trees at high altitudes are also susceptible to problems induced by acidic cloud cover as the moisture in the clouds blankets them.

What Causes Acid Rain

What Causes Acid Rain??

1. Carbon dioxide: Carbon dioxide is released by burning coal, oil, and natural gas. If you inhale carbon dioxide, then since it is toxic, it can cause you to have to breathe more than usual, unconsciousness, and other serious health problems.

2. Carbon monoxide: Carbon monoxide is released by burning gasoline, oil, and wood. When carbon monoxide enters your body, it goes into the bloodstream.

When this happens, it will slow down the delivery of oxygen to the rest of the body, causing dizziness, headaches, and fatigue.

3. Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs): CFCs are the chemicals that are used in industry, refrigeration, air conditioning systems, and consumer products. Whenever CFCs are released into the air, they reduce the stratospheric ozone layer. The stratospheric ozone layer protects Earths surface from the harmful rays of the sun.

4. Hazardous air pollutants (HAPS): HAPS are released into the air by sources such as chemical plants, dry cleaners, printing plants, and motor vehicles (cars, trucks, buses, and planes). HAPS can cause serious health problems like cancer, birth defects, nervous system problems, and deaths that are all due to people accidentally letting them go into the air.

5. Lead: Lead is released by house and car paint as well as the manufacturing of lead batteries, fishing lures, certain parts of bullets, some ceramic ware, water pipes, and fixtures. In young children, lead can cause nervous system damage and learning problems.

6. Nitrogen oxides:

Nitrogen Oxides are released into the air by burning fuels such as gasoline and coal.
When nitrogen oxides combine with VOCs, they can cause breathing difficulty in people who have asthma, coughs in children, and general illness in your respiratory system.

7. Ozone: Ozone is released by motor vehicles, industries, burning coal, gasoline, and other fossil fuels, and in the chemicals that are in hairspray and paints. When ozone is close to the ground (ground level ozone) it can cause chest pain, irritated respiratory tract, or persistent cough, can make you unable to take deep breaths, and can make you more likely to get lung infections.

8. Particulate matter (PM): PM, little particles of pollution, is released by cars, trucks, and buses that are burning diesel fuel, fertilizers, pesticides, road construction, steel making, mining, and turning on fire places and wood stoves. When PMs mix with air particles and get breathed in by something, they get stuck in the lung tissue and cause increased respiratory disease and lung damage.

9. Sulfur dioxides:

Sulfur dioxides are released by burning coal, paper production, and melting metal.
Sulfur dioxide can harm vegetation, harm metals, and cause lung problems, which include breathing problems and permanent lung damage.

10.

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs):

VOCs are released into the air by burning gasoline, wood, coal, or natural gas, solvents, paints, glues, and other products that are used at work or at home.

How Acid Rain Affects Our World ??

Acid rain affects some rocks. Limestone slowly crumbles away if acid rain falls on it. Sandstone is dissolved slowly by acid rain. Some rocks, such as granite are not affected. Acid rain also affects some metals. It corrodes them this means acid rain eats the metal away. Out of iron, zinc, lead, the metal that is corroded fastest is zinc, the second fastest is iron, while lead is not corroded at all.

How Acid Rain Affects Our World ??

Acid rain also affects living things. Evergreen trees can loose their leaves and die. In lakes and rivers, too much acid can prevent the fishes eggs from hatching, or it can kill insects so small fish have nothing to eat; either way the fish die out.

How to Stop Acid Rain

Think about it
Every time you turn on a light switch or the television set without really needing to, you're indirectly contributing to the acid rain problem.

How to Stop Acid Rain ??

1. Reducing the use of fossil fuels by using more public transport and practicing carpooling and using less of cars but more of walking and bicycles. 2. Using fossil fuels of low sulphur contents 3. Extracting sulphur from the existing fossil fuels before using them. However, this method might not be very feasible, as it is very costly to do so, especially at a large scale. 4. Using pollution control equipment such as catalytic converters in vehicles and scrubbers in factories and power stations and also using the method of desulphurisation.

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