Академический Документы
Профессиональный Документы
Культура Документы
The atmosphere is a layer of air containing mixture of several gases. This mixture composition
varies according to time and place.
The composition of water vapour varies from 0-5%, depending on the humidity of air.
These are separated by first liquefying the air and then separating the components of liquid air by
fractional distillation.
becomes colder. This cold air is returned to the compressor, and on its way, it helps to cool more
incoming air. This process of compression and expansion is continued until the temperature
drops to -200oC (73K). At this temperature, all the gases except neon and helium would have
been liquefied.
6. The liquid air is pale blue because of the presence of liquid oxygen. It is passed into a
fractionating tower, where it is slowly warmed up. This first gas to boil off is nitrogen (-196 oC).
7. When all the nitrogen has been given off, the temperature rises to -186 oC and argon gas is boiled
off.
8. Oxygen is next, at -183oC. The gases are boiled off separately and are collected and stored under
pressure in cylinders.
A known volume of air is passed through tube with burning copper powder and oxygen in air will
react with hot copper powder to produce black copper oxide:
If oxygen is depleted, the readings on both syringes will be steady and the reaction has
completed. Hence, to find the volume of oxygen in air collected in syringe:
For instance, the initial volume of air in one syringe is 80cm 3 and the final volume is 64cm3.
Hence, the percentage volume of O2 in air is:
Oxygen
A. Respiration
Oxygen is essential for all plant and animal life on earth. The process by which living organisms produce
energy from their food is called respiration. Oxygen is essential for this process:
the dissolved oxygen is then taken to the cells in all parts of our body
B. Combustion/Burning
3 things are required for combustion
1. fuel
2. heat
3. oxygen
MOST substances react with O2 to in exothermic reaction, which is called combustion. If flames
are produced during combustion, its called burning.
ALL carbon compounds burn in O2 to produce CO2 while ALL hydrogen containing compounds
burn in O2 to produce H2O.
When adequate supply of oxygen is available during burning, it will create a complete
combustion. If otherwise, the combustion is incomplete.
When air hole is closed, air cannot enter supplying oxygen, and hence soot (unburnt carbon) and
CO is produced from incomplete hydrocarbon gas combustion.
As a result, flame is yellow due to glowing specks of hot soot in heat and the flame is not hot.
When air hole is opened, air supplies plenty of oxygen, allowing complete combustion.
Uses of Oxugen
As rocket fuel
In oxygen tanks for deep sea divers and mountain climbers to provide oxygen
Most metals, except silver and gold, combine directly with oxygen to form metal oxides.
non-metals like carbon, sulphur and phosphorus burn in oxygen to form acidic oxides
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Many elements burn in oxygen with colored flames to produce the corresponding oxide.
Across the periodic table, the properties of the oxides of these elements change from basic to acidic in
nature (metals to non-metals)
Element
Reaction
Product
potassium
12
sodium
4Na + O2 -->
2Na2O
11
magnesiu
m
2Mg + O2 -->
2MgO
iron
insoluble
copper
copper(II)
oxide
insoluble
sodium
oxide
Equation
2Cu + O2 -->
2CuO
pH in
solution
Non-metal oxides
Element
Reaction
Product
Equation
pH in
solution
P4 + 5O2 -->
P4O10
sulphur
S + O2 --> 2O2
pungent gas
carbon
carbon
dioxide
C + O2 --> CO2
Prevention:
- Install catalytic converters in cars
- Reduce number of cars on road
- Create efficient engines in cars to ensure complete hydrocarbon combustion
- volcanic eruptions
Hazards:
- Lung irritant
- eye irritant
- acid rain
Prevention:
- Prevent using fuels containing sulphur impurities, e.g. coal
- Reduce the sulphur impurities inside fossil fuels
- Spray exhaust gases from factories with water/hydrated CaO/alkalis to absorb sulphur dioxide before its
released into the atmosphere
- Add CaO to soil and rivers to neutralize acid rain
3) oxides of nitrogen, NO
Comes from:
- Lightning activity
- forest fires
- internal combustion engines (as nitrogen oxides are formed by oxygen and nitrogen under high
temperature) --> Poisonous oxides of nitrogen are also formed from the electrical spark which passes
through the air/petrol mixture.
- power stations
Hazards:
- Eutrophication
- lung damage
- acid rain
Prevention:
- Install catalytic converters in cars
- Design car engines which run at lower temperatures
Notes: Reactions of oxides of sulphur and nitrogen
The oxides of sulphur and nitrogen are acidic gases and are water-soluble. They dissolve to form acid
rain.The main source of these pollutant gases is from the burning of fuels, especially those in petrol and
diesel engines.
All oils and fuels contain sulphur, and when they are burnt, sulphur dioxide gas is formed. In power
stations, large quantities of this gas are produced, which dissolve in water in the atmosphere to form
sulphurous acid (sulphuric acid)
SO2 (g) + H2O (l) --> H2SO3 (aq)
4) Methane
Comes from:
- Decomposition of vegetable matter
- rice field
- cattle ranching
- natural gas
- mines
Hazards:
- highly flammable
- greenhouse gas
Prevention:
- Cattle and other ruminant animals should be given improved diet
- Animal manure and rotting vegetation can be used as biomass fuel
5) Unburnt hydrocarbons
Comes from:
- Internal combustion engines
- Because of the limited supply of air inside the engines some of it remains unburnt and escapes
as gaseous hydrocarbons.
Hazards:
- Carcinogenic
- forms photochemical smog
- can act as greenhouse gases contributing to global warming.
Prevention:
- Install catalytic converters in cars
- Reduce number of cars on road
- Create efficient engines in cars to ensure complete hydrocarbon combustion
6) Ozone
Comes from:
- It is formed when an electrical spark passes through air. This is because it reacts with the UV radiation
in sunlight to produce a 'photochemical smog'.
- It is an allotrope (two/three different forms of a pure element) of oxygen having structural formula O3
having characteristic odour.
- High up in the atmosphere ozone is beneficial as it helps to filter out high levels of UV radiation
Hazards
- It reacts with unburnt hydrocarbons to form photochemical smog that causes headache, eye, nose and
throat irritation.
- It corrodes and kills plants and trees
Prevention
- Dont use CFCs/replace it with HCFCs which destroys faster.
Hazards:
- irritate lungs, causing bronchitis and other lung-related diseases.
8) Lead compounds
Comes from:
- Combustion of leaded petrol in car engines
- lead compounds are added to petrol to make it heavier so that it does not ignite too soon.
Hazards:
- when breathed in can build up inside the body and are toxic and poisonous
- Causes lead poisoning which leads to brain damage.
- Carbon dioxide is produced mainly by respiration. Here, sugars such as glucose are converted into
- Carbon dioxide is also produced by combustion of fuels, in factories, and in the home
- The carbon dioxide is then absorbed by plants, by photosynthesis. Energy is absorbed (endothermic)
from the sun, and used to build up simple sugars.
Photosynthesis equation:
- Animals eat plants, and in turn, they themselves get eaten by other animals. So the carbon originally in
the atmosphere ends up in every living plant and animal. Upon death, the carbon is released by bacteries
and fungi, to return to the atmosphere as carbon dioxide.
The cycle is then repeated.