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Lecture 7

The document discusses acid rain, including its history, causes from sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide emissions, effects on forests, streams, and buildings, and potential human health impacts. Acid rain occurs when fossil fuels are burned and emission controls are not in place, causing precipitation with a pH below 5.2 that can damage ecosystems and structures over long distances.

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farihakanwal2021
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15 views

Lecture 7

The document discusses acid rain, including its history, causes from sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide emissions, effects on forests, streams, and buildings, and potential human health impacts. Acid rain occurs when fossil fuels are burned and emission controls are not in place, causing precipitation with a pH below 5.2 that can damage ecosystems and structures over long distances.

Uploaded by

farihakanwal2021
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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11/09/23

LECTURE # 07
Acid Rain
ACID RAIN
 Acid rain, also called acid precipitation or acid deposition, precipitation possessing a pH of
about 5.2 or below primarily produced from the emission of sulfur dioxide (SO2) and
nitrogen oxides (NOx; the combination of NO and NO2) from human activities, mostly the
combustion of fossil fuels. In acid-sensitive landscapes, acid deposition can reduce the pH of
surface waters and lower biodiversity. It weakens trees and increases their susceptibility to
damage from other stressors, such as drought, extreme cold, and pests. In acid-sensitive areas,
acid rain also depletes soil of important plant nutrients and buffers, such as calcium and
magnesium, and can release aluminum, bound to soil particles and rock, in its toxic dissolved
form. Acid rain contributes to the corrosion of surfaces exposed to air pollution and is
responsible for the deterioration of limestone and marble buildings and monuments.
HISTORY OF ACID RAIN
 The phrase acid rain was first used in 1852 by Scottish chemist Robert Angus Smith during
his investigation of rainwater chemistry near industrial cities in England and Scotland.
 The phenomenon became an important part of his book Air and Rain: The Beginnings of a
Chemical Climatology (1872).
 It was not until the late 1960s and early 1970s, however, that acid rain was recognized as a
regional environmental issue affecting large areas of western Europe and eastern
North America.
 Acid rain also occurs in Asia and parts of Africa, South America, and Australia. As a global
environmental issue, it is frequently overshadowed by climate change. Although the problem
of acid rain has been significantly reduced in some areas, it remains an important
environmental issue within and downwind from major industrial and industrial agricultural
regions worldwide.
CHEMISTRY OF ACID
DEPOSITION
 Acid rain is a popular expression for the more scientific term acid deposition, which
refers to the many ways in which acidity can move from the atmosphere to Earth’s
surface.
 Acid deposition includes acidic rain as well as other forms of acidic wet deposition—
such as snow, sleet, hail, and fog (or cloud water).
 Acid deposition also includes the dry deposition of acidic particles and gases, which
can affect landscapes during dry periods. Thus, acid deposition is capable of affecting
landscapes and the living things that reside within them even when precipitation is
not occurring.
 Acidity is a measure of the concentration of hydrogen ions (H+) in a solution. The pH scale
measures whether a solution is acidic or basic. Substances are considered acidic below a pH of 7,
and each unit of pH below 7 is 10 times more acidic, or has 10 times more H +, than the unit above
it.
 Normal rainwater is weakly acidic because of the absorption of carbon dioxide (CO2) from the
atmosphere—a process that produces carbonic acid—and from organic acids generated from
biological activity.
 In addition, volcanic activity can produce sulfuric acid (H2SO4), nitric acid (HNO3), and
hydrochloric acid (HCl) depending on the emissions associated with specific volcanoes.
 Other natural sources of acidification include the production of nitrogen oxides from the
conversion of atmospheric molecular nitrogen (N2) by lightning and the conversion of organic
nitrogen by wildfires. However, the geographic extent of any given natural source of acidification
is small, and in most cases it lowers the pH of precipitation to no more than about 5.2.
 Where fossil fuel consumption is large and emission controls are not in place to reduce
SO2 and NOx emissions, acid deposition will occur in areas downwind of emission sources,
often hundreds to thousands of kilometres away.
 In such areas the pH of precipitation can average 4.0 to 4.5 annually, and the pH of individual
rain events can sometimes drop below 3.0.
 In addition, cloud water and fog in polluted areas may be many times more acidic than rain
falling over the same region.
NITROGEN CYCLE
SULPHUR CYCLE
EFFECTS OF ACID RAIN
Forests:
 Acidic rain leeches aluminum from the soil. This is often harmful to plants and animals and is
thought to be one of the main causes of the death of trees, which is common in forests affected
by acid rain.
 The acidic rainwater may also strip essential nutrients from the soil, again harming plants and
trees that rely on them.
 At high altitudes, trees may be exposed to fogs and clouds of acid rain, which strip nutrients
directly from leaves, weakening them and making them less able to carry out photosynthesis.
It may also reduce their resistance to freezing and to disease. Some soils, which are naturally
alkaline, may buffer the acidic influence, in which case they can be resistant to the effects.
Streams, rivers, and lakes:
 Waterways including streams, rivers, and lakes are particularly vulnerable to the effects of acid
rain.
 When the acidity of a steam or lake falls below that of natural rainwater, 5.6, many species
struggle. A few fish can survive below pH 5 and if the pH falls as low as 4, most life will have
been lost and a lake will be considered dead.
 In between, most species will die but a few acid-tolerant species may survive. However, this is
likely to skew the ecology of the system dramatically. As with soils, not all lakes and
waterways are vulnerable. Those on alkaline soils and rocks can buffer the acidity and resist its
effects.
Plants and crops:
 Crops and plants will be affected in exactly the same way as trees and forests if acid rain
removes nutrients for soils or leeches aluminum, which can damage their growth. Typical effects
include stunted growth.
Buildings and man-made structures:
 Acid rain can both cause and accelerate the corrosion and destruction of many building materials
including stone and metal.
 Much of the erosion and damage to city structures during the 20th century may be linked to acid
rain. Some of the materials used to construct older or ancient buildings have proved to be the
most vulnerable, and major monuments such as the Taj Mahal in India, Cologne Cathedral in
Germany, the Colosseum in Italy, and Westminster Abbey in the United Kingdom have all
suffered material damage as a result of acid rain.
 Human health: Acid rain can be injurious to human health if inhaled directly. The most serious
widespread problem is from acidic fog that can cause respiratory problems if inhaled. People
with asthma or those who are already weak are particularly vulnerable.

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