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Prepared By:
Manoj kumar Pandey(064/BCE/234)
Nabin Ghimere(064/BCE/236)
Nabin Kumar Raunier (064/BCE/237
Nijjal Shrestha(064/BCE/238)
Presented by:
Manoj kumar Pandey(064/BCE/234)
Nabin Ghimere(064/BCE/236)
Nabin Kumar Raunier (064/BCE/237
Nijjal Shrestha(064/BCE/238)


Objective of the Presentation
To know about air pollutant causing acid rain.
To discuss problem of acid rain.
To get idea about chemical process involved during
formation of acid rain in atmosphere.
To know about effect of acid rain which may be
positive or negative.
To be familiar with process of reduction of acid rain
and its problem.


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Presentation Outline
Importance of rain water
Introduction to rain
Introduction to acid rain
Chemical process involved in acid rain
Formation Of Acid Rain
Causes of Acid Rain
Affected Areas
Problem
Effect of Acid Rain (Positive and Negative)
Conclusions
Recommendations

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upp

Fig: Rain at Ason, Kathmandu
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Acid rain is easy and familiar term because
We are often familiar with rain water
We are often familiar with air pollution
produced from various source
Acid rain
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Importance of Rain Water
Agriculture crop Production.
Development of trees in forest.
Supply adequate quantity of water to the public.
Increase the level of water which can be important for
irrigation, Hydropower generation.
For the growth of every living organism in the earth.
Maintains Temperature of earth.
Maintains ecosystem.
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Fig: Increase in crop production due
To rain
Fig: Tropical Rain Forest
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Introduction to Rain Water
Rain is liquid precipitation due to condensation of
atmospheric water vapor into drops of water heavy
enough to fall, often making it to the surface.
The normal rain is acidic with the p
H
of about 5.6.
This is due to equilibrium of rain water and acidic gas
present in air such as CO2, SO2, NO3 etc.
Within p
H
of 5- 7 the rain is harmless.
The below p
H
of 5 is called as acid rain which is not
desirable.
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Acid Rain
Acid rain is a rain or any other form of precipitation that is
unusually acidic, meaning that it possesses elevated levels
of hydrogen ions (low pH).
It can have harmful effects on plants, aquatic animals, and
infrastructure through the process of wet deposition.
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In the gas phase sulfur dioxide is oxidized by reaction with
the hydroxyl radical via an intermolecular reaction:
SO
2
+ OH HOSO
2
which is followed by:
HOSO
2
+ O
2
HO
2
+ SO
3

In the presence of water, sulfur trioxide (SO
3
) is converted
rapidly to sulfuric acid:
SO
3
(g) + H
2
O (l) H
2
SO
4


Nitrogen dioxide reacts with OH to form nitric acid:
NO
2
+ OH HNO
3

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Fig: Chemical Process involved in formation of acid rain in atmosphere
Formation Of Acid Rain
Acid rain occurs within, and downwind of, areas of major
emission of sulfur dioxide(SO2), and oxide of Nitrogen
(NO
x
).
SO2 and NO
x
are transformed into sulfate or nitrate
particles and by combining with water vapor, into mild
sulfuric acid or Nitric acid.
These acids then return to earth as dew, drizzle, fog, sheet,
snow and rain.
Pollutant material that comes down as rain are known as
wet diposition.
Material reaching down by gravity is known as dry
diposition.
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Processes involved in acid deposition (note that only SO
2
and No
x
)

play a significant role in
acid rain).
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Causes of Acid Rain
Natural Sources
Emissions from volcanoes
From biological processes that occur on the land, in wetlands,
and in the oceans
Nitric acid in rain water produced by electrical activity in the
atmosphere such as lightning.
The principal cause of acid rain is from Human sources
Industrial factories, power-generating plants.
Sulfur dioxide and oxides of nitrogen are released during the
fuel burning process (i.e. combustion).
Vehicular emission.

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Causes of Acid Rain
SO
2
: 70%
NO
x
: 30%
X = 1 or 2
Source: EPA National Quality emission trends report, 1993
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Some major air pollutants causing
acid rain are given below
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The coal-fired Gavin Power Plant in Cheshire, Ohio
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Before flue gas desulfurization was installed,
the emissions from this power plant in New
Mexico contained excessive amounts
of sulfur dioxide.
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Air pollution due to Vehicular
Emission
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Affected Areas
Industrial acid rain is a substantial problem in China,
Eastern Europe, Canada and Russia and areas down-wind
from them.
Acid rain from power plants in the Midwest United States
has also harmed the forests of upstate New York and New
England.
This shows that the effects of acid rain can spread over a
large area, far from the source of the pollution.
There are also other affected areas around the earth.
In fact due to pollution whole earth is being affected by
acid rain.

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Problem
Modern Basic
Needs of People
Electricity i.e.
Electrical Energy
Transportation for
Movement of
People
Industrial Product
Such as construction
Product, Mechanical
Product
Effect
Effect
Effect
Continuous
Burning of
fossil fuel
and Coal
Burning Of
Harmful
Industrial
Raw
Materials
Use of
Petroleum
Product
Emission
of CO2,
SOx,
NOx
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Effect of Acid Rain (Positive and
Negative)
The acids are corrosive chemicals that react with other
chemical giving hydrogen atoms.
In fact acid in acid rain react chemically with any object
they contact.
Acid rain has been linked to wide spread environmental
damage, including soil and plant degradation depleted life
in lakes and streams, and erosion of human- made
structure.
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Effect of acid rain contd
Geochemical effect (Effect on soil)
Acid rain dissolves and washes away nutrients needed by
plants.
Acids can also dissolve toxic such as aluminum, mercury
etc.
Some soils are quite alkaline which can neutralize acid
diposition.
The ability of soils to neutralize some or all of the acidity of
acid rainwater is called buffering capacity..
Soils neutralize the acid directly and have the highest
buffering capacity.
H
+
+CaCO
3
Ca
2+
+ HCO
3
-
Granite soils and volcanic rocks are not good at
neutralizing acid and may cause acedic soil.
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Fig: Effect of acid rain on soil
Effect on Trees
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Removal of useful nutrients from
the soil
Acid slows down growth of plant,
especially trees.
Decrease the ability of making
food by photosynthesis by eating
waxy coating on leaves.
Weakened trees are more
vulnerable to infectants, droughts
and temperature effect.

Spruce and fir forests at higher
elevation, where the trees laterally
touches acid clouds seems to be
most at risk.
Acid rain has been blamed for the
decline of spruce forest on higher
ridge of Appalachian mountain in
eastern United States.
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Effect On Water bodies and life of
water bodies
Acidity in the water bodies affect the ecosystem of water
bodies.
Soft bodied animals like leeches, snails, and crayfish die
with a very little change in acidity, which is often an
indicator of acidification.
Acidification of freshwater greatly affects fish
populations.
Acid rain is extremely detrimental to amphibian
populations. Most amphibians lay their eggs in small,
shallow ponds which receive most of their water from
rainfall.
A very small amount of acidic rainfall would kill any
embryos in these small ponds.

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Effect On Water bodies contd

How does acid kill the fish? One way is mobilizing
metals
When all base cations are striped from soils
Acid now reacts with metals e.g. aluminum
Normally aluminum is immobile
below pH 5 - mobile aluminum
Fish breath in the water
Aluminum comes out of solution
Clogs gills - suffocate


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Effect on man made Structure
Acid rain accelerates weathering in metal
and stone structures
Eg. Parthenon in Athens, Greece; Taj
Mahal in Agra, India
Source: http://www.lauraknauth.com/photos/france/thinker.jpg
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Fig: Parthenon in Athens
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Effect on Human Health
Acid rain does not directly affect human health.
The acid in the rainwater is too dilute to have direct adverse
effects.
However, the particulates responsible for acid rain (sulfur
dioxide and nitrogen oxides) do have an adverse effect.
Increased amounts of fine particulate matter in the air do
contribute to heart and lung problems including asthma
and bronchitis.
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Acid Rain and global warming
Acid rain have surprising effect on global warming and
may be beneficial.
Scientist believe that acid pollution delayed onset
global warming in the middle 20
th
century.


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Conclusion
Human
Activity
Alter composition of air
New composition of
air containing
mixture of SOx and
NOx produces
acidic solution in
atmosphere
Dry and wet deposition of acid rain
Deplete ecosystem, forest,
human health, structure,
sculpture, water resource,
forest etc.
Concludes
Acid Rain as Main
Problem of
Environment today
This phenomenon should be reduced as far as possible to make environment free
from acid pollution.
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Recommendations
Sulphur dioxide can be removed from power stations chimneys
but this process is expensive.
Use renewable energy like,hydropower wind power, solar panels,
tidal power, HEP schemes and geothermal energy.
Fit catalytic converters to vehicle exhausts which remove the
nitrogen oxides.
Limit the number of vehicles on the roads and increase public
transport.
Use cleaner fuels
Coal that contains less sulphur
"Washing" the coal to reduce sulphur content
Natural Gas
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Question???
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