Scribd Logo
Upload

Welcome to Scribd!

  • 17 views

    Lecture - 6

    Uploaded by

    Aziz Ahmed Khan
    This document discusses air pollution, its causes, and methods of control. It defines air pollution as harmful chemicals in the atmosphere from both natural and human sources. Major pollutants include carbon oxides, hydrocarbons, sulfur and nitrogen oxides, particulate matter, ozone, and others. Pollution occurs through incomplete combustion, vehicle emissions, and industrial activities. It causes health issues like respiratory illness and death. Solutions proposed include improving fuel efficiency, adding emissions capture technology, using cleaner fuels, and taxing polluters. Developing nations face severe air quality issues from population growth and lack of controls.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

    Lecture - 6

    Uploaded by

    Aziz Ahmed Khan
    17 views41 pages
    This document discusses air pollution, its causes, and methods of control. It defines air pollution as harmful chemicals in the atmosphere from both natural and human sources. Major pollutants include carbon oxides, hydrocarbons, sulfur and nitrogen oxides, particulate matter, ozone, and others. Pollution occurs through incomplete combustion, vehicle emissions, and industrial activities. It causes health issues like respiratory illness and death. Solutions proposed include improving fuel efficiency, adding emissions capture technology, using cleaner fuels, and taxing polluters. Developing nations face severe air quality issues from population growth and lack of controls.

    Copyright

    © © All Rights Reserved

    Available Formats

    PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

    Did you find this document useful?

    Is this content inappropriate?

    This document discusses air pollution, its causes, and methods of control. It defines air pollution as harmful chemicals in the atmosphere from both natural and human sources. Major pollutants include carbon oxides, hydrocarbons, sulfur and nitrogen oxides, particulate matter, ozone, and others. Pollution occurs through incomplete combustion, vehicle emissions, and industrial activities. It causes health issues like respiratory illness and death. Solutions proposed include improving fuel efficiency, adding emissions capture technology, using cleaner fuels, and taxing polluters. Developing nations face severe air quality issues from population growth and lack of controls.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    17 views41 pages

    Lecture - 6

    Uploaded by

    Aziz Ahmed Khan
    This document discusses air pollution, its causes, and methods of control. It defines air pollution as harmful chemicals in the atmosphere from both natural and human sources. Major pollutants include carbon oxides, hydrocarbons, sulfur and nitrogen oxides, particulate matter, ozone, and others. Pollution occurs through incomplete combustion, vehicle emissions, and industrial activities. It causes health issues like respiratory illness and death. Solutions proposed include improving fuel efficiency, adding emissions capture technology, using cleaner fuels, and taxing polluters. Developing nations face severe air quality issues from population growth and lack of controls.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    of 41

    AIR POLLUTION:

    CAUSES & CONTROL


    BY
    DR. MUHAMMAD ANWAR BAIG
    VICE PRINCIPAL
    IESE, NUST, RAWALPINDI
    CANTT.
    The Atmosphere
    • Performs several important functions.
    Protects us from;
    – sun’s UV rays, x-rays, lethal amounts of
    cosmic rays
    • Without this life will cease to exist.
    • The interaction between the earth and
    sun is responsible for earth’s climate
    and weather.
    How climate is caused?
    • Heating and cooling of the air
    • Horizontal movements of the air due to
    earth’s rotation
    • Distance from the sun
    • The passage that sun’s energy has to
    pass to reach the earth’s surface
    Green House
    Effect

    Forest Decline Acid Rain

    Atmospheric Trace
    Gases

    Global Warming Photochemical


    Smog
    Ozone Hole
    What is air pollution?
    Defined as the presence of chemicals in the atmosphere
    in quantities and duration that are harmful to human
    health and the environment
    Types of air pollutants
    • Primary pollutants - products of natural events (like
    fires and volcanic eruptions) and human activities
    added directly to the air
    • Secondary pollutants - formed by interaction of
    primary pollutants with each other or with normal
    components of the air
    The air pollution problem

    • Air pollutants are likely to stay near the


    earth due to gravity
    • air pollutants accumulate as an air mass
    moves across the region
    • Air pollution is not just an aesthetic
    problem but it is also a health problem
    • Death occurs in the elderly and the very
    young
    Classes of air pollutants
    Carbon oxides -- carbon monoxide
    (CO), carbon dioxide (CO2)
    • --CO responsible for half the fatal poisonings
    in the US each year
    • --The result of incomplete combustion of
    fossil fuels or other organic matter. Major
    source of CO -- transportation.
    • --CO mimics oxygen and can bind to the
    hemoglobin in blood and prevent it from
    carrying oxygen
    Carbon Oxides (CO, CO2)
    cont..
    • Fuel efficiency reduced ```CO
    – Cigarette smoking releases CO
    – Exposure to air containing 0.001% of CO for
    several hours can cause death
    – Can cause headache, drowsiness, and blurred
    vision
    – Natural processes can convert CO to other
    harmless gases like CO2
    • Carbon dioxide contribute to Global Warming
    Hydrocarbons (HC)
    • Internal combustion engine, fuel suppliers,
    refineries, and other industries release HC.
    • Cause oily film after the rain, some injure
    respiratory tract, others cause cancer
    • Methane contribute to global warming, others
    contribute to Photochemical smog
    • Modifications to automobile engines have
    reduced HC.
    – Recycling some gases, using higher oxygen
    conc., better fuel air mixture, use of valves to
    prevent escape of gases, catalytic converters
    Sulfur oxides -- sulfur dioxide
    (SO2), sulfur trioxide (SO3)
    • Produced when sulfur in fossil fuels is
    released by burning
    • When inhaled corrodes the lung
    tissue - An irritant to respiratory tissue
    • React with water to form acid.
    • Can attach to particles and form
    sulfur containing acids..
    Nitrogen oxides
    -- nitric oxide (NO), nitrogen dioxide
    (NO2), and nitrous oxide (N2O)
    • Transportation and stationary
    sources such as power plants
    • Cause respiratory distress
    • Combine with other air pollutants to
    form smog
    • A source of acid rain
    Suspended particulate matter
    • -- solid particles (dust, asbestos, soil) and
    liquid particles (sulfuric acid, PCBs, other
    pesticides)
    • Anything small enough to be carried by
    the wind
    • In US, particulate air pollution contributes
    to deaths of 60,000/yr
    • Volatile organic compounds -- large
    group of compounds ranging from
    coolants in air conditioners, methane,
    benzene
    Type of air pollutants
    • Primary pollutant -- a chemical that has
    been added directly to the air by human
    activities
    • Secondary pollutant -- a compound
    produced when primary pollutants
    react with each other or with other
    components of the air
    • Photochemical smog -- a mixture of
    primary and secondary pollutants
    • produced when nitrogen oxides from
    motor vehicles interact with sunlight
    • result -- ozone and smaller amounts of
    many other gases
    Ozone O3
    • --- a photochemical oxidant
    • good in the stratosphere -- blocks out UV
    rays of the sun
    • bad close to earth -- has a devastating effect
    on crops and humans
    • ozone is the pollutant whose health standard
    is most frequently exceeded in urban areas
    of the US
    • affects eyes and respiratory system;
    damages cells in lungs and airways,
    inducing cellular fluids to seep into lungs;
    more susceptible to bacterial infection;
    breathing becomes shallow and painful
    Photochemical smog

    • NO + HC + O2 + Sunlight ---->
    Ozone
    • Ozone + other air pollutants ----
    > 100 different secondary
    pollutants ( Peroxyacyl nitrates
    (PANs for example)
    Phenomenon of Thermal
    Inversion
    • Air near the ground is colder than the
    air at higher levels.
    • Pollutants are trapped.
    • Usually persist only a few hours.
    Some times, however, can last for
    days.
    • Cities located in valleys
    (Kathmandu), near the coast, or on
    the leeward side of the mountains.
    London killer fog - 1952
    • London was covered with fog
    • failed to mix with air
    • Four thousand people died in few
    weeks
    • More than 50% of the people got
    affected.
    • These were related to SO2
    Controlling Air Pollutants
    • Smaller more fuel efficient
    automobiles release less emission
    • Smoke stacks with electrostatic
    precipitators, fabric filters, wet
    scrubbers, or other technologies
    remove particulate matter.
    • Particulates can also be controlled
    by sprinkling water
    Controlling air pollutants
    contd..
    • Several methods exist for
    removing SO2 but the best option
    is to introduce low-sulfur fuel such
    as natural gas or non-fossil fuel
    energy options such as solar
    energy
    • Sulfur can also be removed from
    coal as in Coal Gasification
    Controlling Air Pollutants
    Contd..
    • Reduction of combustion temperatures
    in automobiles reduces the formation
    of nitrogen oxides.
    • Modification of furnaces and engines to
    provide more complete combustion
    controls production of both CO & HCs.
    ( Catalytic afterburners used after the
    emission or the catalytic converters to
    treat auto-exhaust)
    Taxing Polluters
    • Sweden taxes on carbon monoxide
    and sulfur dioxide emissions
    • Since the amount of these
    pollutants vary with the type of fuel
    this encourages the users to go for
    cleaner fuels.
    Air Pollution in Developing
    Countries
    • Old vehicles with no pollution control devices
    • Less priority on environment
    • Dominance of very small number of cities
    • Mexico city: The fourth largest city in the world
    with the worst air quality. ( This is in an elevated
    valley )
    – 3 million motor vehicles and thousands of
    businesses which spew 4.4 million tons of
    pollutants
    – In 1990, replacing old buses, taxis, delivery
    trucks, and cars with cleaner vehicles and by
    switching to unleaded gasoline.
    – Businesses that violate laws were closed.
    Indoor Air Pollution
    • Some pollutants may be several times higher
    inside the buildings
    • Urban residents spent 90% of their time
    indoor
    • Health effects of indoor pollutants resemble
    common cold, influenza, or upset of
    stomachs, they are often not recognized. (Sick
    Building Syndrome )
    Indoor air pollution
    • Sick building syndrome -- when occupants of a
    building suffer persistant symptoms associated with
    certain pollutants
    • More dangerous problems: asbestos, carbon monoxide,
    formaldehyde, radon, tobacco smoke.
    • More common in newer buildings because of lower air
    exchange, windows that don't open, and gases given off
    by new carpeting and furniture
    • Radon Colorless, tasteless radioactive gas. Threat of
    dying is greater. Capable of seeping through the ground
    and entering the buildings. This gets diluted in outdoors.
    Harms only when ingested. Smoking increases risk. Radon
    concentrations can be reduced by sealing concrete floors.
    Air Quality and Health
    • In developing countries 0.5 – 1.0 million
    people die as a result of exposure to urban
    air pollution
    • 30 – 40 % of asthma
    • 20 – 30 % all respiratory diseases
    • Average compound growth rate of vehicles
    is 12 % a year (0.8 million - 5 million in two
    decades)
    • Rickshaws - > two times, Motor cycles – 7
    times
    Sources of Air Pollution in Pakistan
    Vehicles

    Trans
    boundary
    Pollution
    Natural Dust

    Stone
    Crushers
    Brick Kilns

    Industry

    Garbage
    Burning
    Domestic
    Burning
    Trend in Population & Vehicle
    Growth (Karachi)
    Population Vehicles (million)
    (million) • 0.88
    • 1.006
    • 1995 - 8.465
    • 1.135
    • 2000 10.032 • 1.432
    • 2003 11.819
    • 2005 12.10 • 72 % diesel (60 %
    Trucks, 27 % Buses,
    11 % Passenger
    wagons)
    • 28 % Petrol
    TSP Load in Major Cities
    City point TSP (ug/m3)
    • Yateem Khana – Lhr • 996
    • Satellite Town – Qta • 778
    • Attock Refinary- Rwp • 500
    • Kohat Adda – Pesh • 530
    • I/9 – Islamabad • 490
    • Civic Center - Kchi • 410
    (WHO limit is 150 – 230
    in 24 hrs)
    PM10 (particles measuring 10
    microns or less)
    City point PM10 (ug/m3)
    • Yateem Khana – Lhr • 368
    • Satellite Town – Qta • 331
    • Attock Refinary- Rwp • 276
    • Kohat Adda – Pesh • 350
    • I/9 – Islamabad • 280
    • Civic Center - Kchi • 302
    (WHO limit is 150 in 24
    hrs)
    Oxides of Nitrogen
    City point NOx (ppb)
    • Yateem Khana – Lhr • 60.7
    • Meezan Chowk – Qta • 60
    • Faizabad - Rwp • 40
    • Bus Stand – Pesh • 47
    • Polyclinic – • 39
    Islamabad • 52
    • Garden Road - Kchi (WHO/USEPA limit is
    53 ppb in 24 hrs)
    Sulfur di-Oxide
    City point SO2 (ppb)
    • Yateem Khana – Lhr • 53
    • Meezan Chowk – Qta • 46
    • Faizabad - Rwp • 31
    • Bus Stand – Pesh • 43
    • Polyclinic – • 35
    Islamabad • 44
    • Garden Road - Kchi (WHO/USEPA limit is
    53 ppb in 24 hrs)
    Surface Ozone
    City point O3 (ppb)
    • Yateem Khana – Lhr • 8.5 - 49
    • Meezan Chowk – Qta • 11.7 - 44
    • Faizabad - Rwp • 3.3 - 42
    • Bus Stand – Pesh • 4 – 49.5
    • Polyclinic – • 6.2 - 38
    Islamabad • 6 - 48
    • Garden Road - Kchi
    Carbon Monoxide
    City point CO (ppb)
    • Yateem Khana – Lhr • 1.3 - 12
    • Meezan Chowk – Qta • 3 - 14
    • Faizabad - Rwp • 1.6 - 8
    • Bus Stand – Pesh • 2 – 10
    • Polyclinic – • 1.5 - 6
    Islamabad • 1.6 - 13
    • Garden Road - Kchi
    Hydrocarbon (methane & non
    methane)
    City point CH (ppm)
    • Yateem Khana – Lhr • 0.45 – 2.8
    • Meezan Chowk – Qta • 0.2 – 1.6
    • Faizabad - Rwp • 0.3 – 2.8
    • Bus Stand – Pesh • 0.2 - 3
    • Polyclinic – • 0.4 – 2.2
    Islamabad • 0.25 – 3
    • Garden Road - Kchi
    Lead Level

    City point Lead (ug/m3)


    • Yateem Khana – Lhr • 3.7 - 5
    • Meezan Chowk – Qta • 3.5 – 5.7
    • Faizabad - Rwp • 3.5 - 5
    • Bus Stand – Pesh • 4 – 5.2
    • Polyclinic – • 2-3
    Islamabad • 4 – 5.5
    • Garden Road - Kchi (USEPA limit 1.5)
    QUALITY OF FUEL OIL

    Pakistan Other Countries


    of Region
    • Sulphur in Diesel oil 0.5% 0.05-0.5%
    • Sulphur in Furnace oil 3% 0.5-1%
    What is Greenhouse Effect

    • Greenhouse effect is a warming of the lower atmosphere and


    surface of a planet by a complex process involving sunlight,
    gases, and particles in the atmosphere The amounts of heat-
    trapping atmospheric gases, called greenhouse gases, have
    greatly increased since the mid-1800's, due to industrial
    revolution

    • The greenhouse effect is so named because the atmosphere


    acts much like the glass roof and walls of a greenhouse,
    trapping heat from the sun.

    • Since the late 1800's, the temperature of the earth's surface


    has also risen
    Noise Level
    City point dB
    • Yateem Khana – Lhr • 95
    • Meezan Chowk – Qta • 85
    • Faizabad - Rwp • 93
    • Bus Stand – Pesh • 92
    • Polyclinic – • 84.7
    Islamabad • 99
    • Garden Road – Kchi
    • 80 dB
    • NEQS

    You might also like