Acid Rain and your community

By: Ester Boals,

Jennifer Kelley& Kelsie Warner

Just what is Acid Rain?

Acid Rain is the term used to describe the ways in

which acid precipitates out of the

atmosphere.

Acid Rain is more accurately termed acid

deposition.

There are two types of acid deposition: wet and

dry.

The types of wet deposition are: acidic

rain, fog, and snow.

The types of dry deposition are: acidic gases

and particles.

The contributors

Factories give off sulfur dioxide and nitric oxide.

The exhaust from the car contains a lot of nitric oxide.

The making of Acid Rain

Atmospheric gases + H2O(g) + O2(g) + chemicals H2SO4(g) + HNO3(g)

Atmospheric gases react with water, oxygen, and other chemicals the produce the components of acid rain: sulfuric acid and nitric acid. Sunlight acts as a catalyst to increases the rate of most of these reactions.

The reactions…• The making of Nitric acid:

N2(g) + O2(g) 2NO(g)

2NO(g) + ½ O2(g) NO2

3NO2(g) + H2O 2HNO3(aq) + NO(g)

• The making of Sulfuric acid:

SO2(g) SO3(g) H2SO4 (aq)

lightning

O2 H2O

Effects of Acid Rain

http://ncert.nic.in/sites/learning%20basket/energy10class/combustion%20engine1.htm

Water and Aquatic Animals

• Lakes and streams become acidic when the natural buffers in the water and surrounding soil cannot neutralize the acid rain.

• A low buffering capacity allows aluminum, which is toxic to many aquatic organisms, to leach into the water.

http://www.epa.gov/acidrain/effects/surface_water.html

Plants and Forests• Acid rain causes slower

growth, injury, and death to plants.

• Acid rain damages the leaves of plants, leaches important nutrients (calcium, potassium, and magnesium) from the soil, and increases the level of toxic aluminum in the soil.

http://cache.eb.com/eb/image?id=72754&rendTypeId=4

http://www.newsroom.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/display.cgi?id=257

Limestone• Acid rain can cause the

corrosion of metals and the deterioration of stones like limestone.

• Reaction with limestone (calcium carbonate)– CaCO3 + H2SO4

CaSO4 + H2CO3– The calcium sulfate is

soluble in water which causes the stone to crumble.

http://www.micro.utexas.edu/courses/levin/bio304/ecosystems/rheims.statue.gif

Copper

• Copper naturally oxidizes to form a protective coating that protects the metal from corrosion

• Acid rain can cause copper to corrode before this coating can form

http://www.professionalroofing.net/article.aspx?A_ID=526

Effects on Human Health• Acid rain itself is not

harmful to humans, but the pollutants that cause it are

• The sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide can cause respiratory problems such as asthma and bronchitis

http://www.cartoonstock.com/lowres/shr0714l.jpg

Clean Air Act In 1970 Congress created the Clean Air Act

as well as the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to reduce air pollution.

In 1990 the act was revised and introduced changes to reduce acid pollution.

The EPA sets limits on the amount of air pollution that can come from sources like chemical plants, utilities, and steel mills. There are monetary penalties for plants that exceed their limit of SO2 and NO.

The Good News

http://www.epa.gov/airtrends/econ-emissions.html

Bibliography http://www.policyalmanac.org/environment/ar

chive/acid_rain.shtml http://www.chemistry.wustl.edu/~edudev/

LabTutorials/Water/FreshWater/acidrain.html http://www.epa.gov/acidrain/what/index.html http://www.elmhurst.edu/~chm/vchembook/

196buildings.html http://www.epa.gov/air/caa/peg/

understand.html http://www.epa.gov/acidrain/effects/index.html