B.

Tech (Environmental Studies)

AIR POLLUTION

Unit 5
Environmental Pollution

Prepared by; Dr Naresh Kumar Sahoo

Department: Chemistry
Subject: Environmental Studies (CHM1002)
Definition
Air pollution: presence of one or more contaminants in such quantities and

of such durations which tend to be injurious to human, animal or

plant life, or property, or which unreasonably interferes with the

comfortable enjoyment of life or property or conduct of business.

 Major Classes of air pollutants
2SO2 (g) + O2 (g) + 2H2O (l) → 2H2SO4 (aq)
➢ Primary pollutants CO2 (g)+H2O(l)-→H2CO3(aq)
➢ Secondary pollutants 2NO2(g)+H2O(l)-→HNO2(aq)+HNO3(aq)

Primary air pollutant

Pollutants that are emitted
directly from identifiable Secondary pollutants
sources are produced both by Pollutants that are formed by atmospheric
natural and anthropogenic chemical combination among the primary
events. pollutants and others
SO2, NOx , CO, CO2 and other toxic pollutants
Table 1: Sources, Health and Welfare Effects for Criteria Pollutants.
Pollutant Description Sources Health Effects Welfare Effects
Carbon Monoxide Colorless, odorless gas Motor vehicle exhaust, indoor Headaches, reduced mental alertness, Contribute to the formation of smog.
(CO) sources include kerosene or wood heart attack, cardiovascular diseases,
burning stoves. impaired fetal development, death.

Sulfur Dioxide Colorless gas that dissolves in Coal-fired power plants, petroleum Eye irritation, wheezing, chest tightness, Contribute to the formation of acid rain,
(SO2) water vapor to form acid, and refineries, manufacture of sulfuric shortness of breath, lung damage. visibility impairment, plant and water
interact with other gases and acid and smelting of ores containing damage, aesthetic damage.
particles in the air. sulfur.

Nitrogen Dioxide Reddish brown, highly Motor vehicles, electric utilities, and Susceptibility to respiratory infections, Contribute to the formation of smog, acid
(NO2) reactive gas. other industrial, commercial, and irritation of the lung and respiratory rain, water quality deterioration, global
residential sources that burn fuels. symptoms (e.g., cough, chest pain, warming, and visibility impairment.
difficulty breathing).

Ozone (O3) Gaseous pollutant when it is Vehicle exhaust and certain other Eye and throat irritation, coughing, Plant and ecosystem damage.
formed in the troposphere. fumes. Formed from other air respiratory tract problems, asthma, lung
pollutants in the presence of damage.
sunlight.

Lead (Pb) Metallic element Metal refineries, lead smelters, Anemia, high blood pressure, brain and Affects animals and plants, affects
battery manufacturers, iron and steel kidney damage, neurological disorders, aquatic ecosystems.
producers. cancer, lowered IQ.

Particulate Matter Very small particles of soot, Diesel engines, power plants, Eye irritation, asthma, bronchitis, lung Visibility impairment, atmospheric
(PM) dust, or other matter, including industries, windblown dust, wood damage, cancer, heavy metal deposition, aesthetic damage.
tiny droplets of liquids. stoves. poisoning, cardiovascular effects.
i) Gaseous air pollutant
ii) Particulate mater (Dust)
 Particulate mater
Besides technical names PM10 and PM2.5, the popular names of
particulate
• Mist: Aerosol consisting of liquid droplets Sulfuric acid mist
• Dust: solid particles produced from larger particles by grinding
them down
• Smoke: solid particles or a mixture of solid, Cigarette smoke
• Fume: Generally means the same as smoke but often applies
Zinc/lead fumes specifically to aerosols produced by condensation
of hot vapors of metals.
• Fog: Aerosol consisting of water droplets
Air Quality Index (AQI) Values
 National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS)-2009

It was notified on 16-11-2009 by government of India. Some of

the important air quality parameters are mentioned in the table

Pollutant parameter unit Averaging Concentration in

ambient air
Industrial/residential
area

Sulfur dioxide µg/m3 24 hourly 80

Nitrogen dioxide µg/m3 24 hourly 80
Particulate PM10 µg/m3 24 hourly 100
Particulate PM2.5 µg/m3 24 hourly 60
Carbon monoxide µg/m3 8 hourly 2000
ozone µg/m3 8 hourly 100
Air pollution control:
 Control of Particulate matter
Pollution Removal Particle efficien Design parameters
control mechanism size cy
methods removal
Gravity Gravity >50 µ >50%
settling -
chamber
Cyclone Centrifugal forces >5 µ >85%
separator and gravity -
Bag filter Interception, < 0.1 µ >99% Air to cloth or filtering
impaction and ratio
diffusion 0.5 to 5 m/minute
Electrostatic Electrostatic forces < 0.1 µ >99%
precipitator of attraction
(ESP)
 Settling Chambers
Principle: Suddenly increase in flow cross sectional area of the influent dust laden air from a to A at constant
flow rate, the horizontal velocity of the particulate matter drop down from V to v when it enter in to the
settling chamber (with high cross sectional area) from a pipe (small cross sectional area) thus the horizontal
momentum of the Particulate matter floating in the air decreases and the gravitational force over come the
horizontal momentum, as a result the particulate matter move down ward due to gravity and settled in the
bottom, and clean air exhausted in the out pipe of the settling chamber
Application many tray in settling chamber increases the settling area also reduces the vertical distance
facilitate settling efficiently and quickly

Large particles drop out of the

gas and are recollected in
hoppers
Figure: Settling chambers
Cyclone Separator
Fabric filters, or baghouses,
remove dust from a gas
stream by passing the stream
through a porous fabric. The
fabric filter is efficient at
removing fine particles and
can exceed efficiencies of 99
percent in most applications.
Efficiency of ESP (ƞ) = 1- exp(- Aw/Q)
Ƞ = 0 to 1
A = Collector plate area in m2
w = particulate velocity
Q = Gas flow in m3/sec
 Numerical on bag filter

Q- A bag house is to be constructed using bags of 0.25 m diameter and

6 m long. It is to receive 15 m3/s of air. Assuming the filtration rate of
2.2 m/min. Determine the no bags required in the bag house.

Ans:-Total filtration area required= gas flow rate /filtration rate=

15x60 m3/min/2.2 m/min= 409.1 m2

Area of one bag = pi*D*H= 3.14*0.25*6 =4.71 m2

No of bags required in bag house= 409.1/4.71 =86.8 that is 87 bags

 Efficiency of ESP (ƞ) = 1- exp(- Aw/Q)
Numerical on ESP Ƞ = 0 to 1
A = Collector plate area in m2
w = particulate velocity
Q = Gas flow in m3/sec

Compute the plate area of ESP handling a flow of 3600 m 3/min. If the
particulate velocity is taken as 0.15 m/s, and efficiency of ESP as 99 %
ƞ) = 1- exp(- Aw/Q)
(

0.99 = 1- exp (0.15*A/3600/60)

A = Area of plate =1842.1 m2

Control of gaseous pollutants from stationary sources

 The most common method for controlling gaseous pollutants is the

addition of add-on control devices to recover or destroy a pollutant.
 There are four commonly used control technologies for gaseous
pollutants:
 Absorption,
 Adsorption,
 Condensation, and
 Incineration (combustion)
 Absorption

Absorption: involves transfer of pollutant

from gas stream to liquid stream. Examples
are removal of ammonia by water, hydrogen
sulphide by sodium hydroxide etc.
The
 Absorption is a process in which a gaseous pollutant is dissolved
in a liquid.
Absorbers are often referred to as scrubbers,

Typical Packed Column Diagram

In general, absorbers can achieve removal efficiencies grater than 95 percent.

One potential problem with absorption is the generation of waste-water, which converts an air pollution problem
to a water pollution
 Adsorption
Adsorption involves transfer of pollutant from gas or liquid stream to
solid surfaces having desirable surface properties.

 The most common industrial

adsorbents are;

 Activated carbon

 Silica gel

 Alumina,

 because they have enormous

surface areas per unit weight.
Incineration
 Incineration, also known as combustion, is most used to control the
emissions of organic compounds from process industries.
 This control technique refers to the rapid oxidation of a substance through
the combination of oxygen with a combustible material in the presence of
heat.
 When combustion is complete, the gaseous stream is converted to
carbon dioxide and water vapor.
 Equipment used to control waste gases by combustion can be divided in
three categories:
 Direct combustion or flaring,
 Thermal incineration and
 Catalytic incineration.
 3T= Temperature, Time, and turbulence