Deck 4: The Air We Breathe

Question 1

Which of the following is not necessary for a thermal inversion?

A) an enclosed section of land where lateral movement of air is hindered
B) an abundant supply of SO₂
C) a layer of colder air beneath a layer of warmer air
D) an absence of rain or other precipitation

Answer 1

an abundant supply of SO₂

Question 2

The atmospheric layer in which is found the air we breathe is

A) troposphere.
B) mesophere.
C) stratosphere.
D) thermosphere.

Answer 2

troposphere.

Question 3

Which pollutant is related to the following sources: sea salt, automobile and truck exhaust, volcanoes, electric power plants?

A) lead
B) sulfur dioxide
C) carbon monoxide
D) particulates

Answer 3

particulates

Question 4

Which is not a method for removing particulates and aerosol pollutants from the atmosphere?

A) rain and snow
B) electrostatic precipitation
C) scrubbing
D) distillation

Question 5

Aerosols enhance smog by

A) concentrating pollutants.
B) producing the fog part of smog.
C) providing a reaction medium for the production of secondary pollutants such as H₂SO₄.
D) all of the above

Question 6

Which is not a practical way to control hydrocarbon emissions?

A) design spouts on gasoline pumps to prevent gasoline leaks
B) use catalytic converters in automobiles
C) install an oxygen sensor in car engines
D) cut down trees emitting hydrocarbons in the atmosphere

Question 7

Major particulate emissions come from

A) volcanic eruptions.
B) nitrogen fixation.
C) acid rain.
D) home heating.

Question 8

A polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbon capable of causing cancer is

A) HCFC-134a.
B) perchloroethylene.
C) asbestos.
D) benzo(alpha)pyrene.

Question 9

What type of very reactive chemical species participates in the formation of photochemical smog?

A) free radicals
B) strong acids
C) weakly bonded materials such as those that contain hydrogen bonds
D) substances that contain coordinate-covalent bonds

Question 10

Which is not necessary for photochemical smog?

A) sulfur dioxide
B) sunlight
C) free radicals
D) nitrogen dioxide

Question 11

Sulfur dioxide is given off by burning

A) some coal.
B) some petroleum.
C) some wood.
D) all of the above

Question 12

Which of the following is not considered an air pollutant?

A) water vapor
B) ozone
C) nitric oxide
D) sulfur dioxide

Question 13

The primary source of carbon monoxide (CO) is

A) the automobile.
B) any burning process in the presence of a plentiful supply of air.
C) from carbon dioxide.
D) electrical power plants.

Question 14

When coal and fuel oil are burned, what two primary pollutants are formed?

A) SO₂ and CO₂
B) HNO₃ and H₂SO₄
C) CO and O₃
D) hydrocarbons and NO₂

Question 15

The primary source of global SO₂ in the atmosphere is believed to be

A) forest fires.
B) human activity.
C) volcanoes.
D) forests.

Question 16

Which is the secondary pollutant in photochemical smog?

A) ozone
B) nitrogen
C) hydrocarbon
D) nitrogen dioxide

Question 17

Which substance would be present in the greatest concentration during the morning rush hour on a smoggy day in Los Angeles?

A) NO
B) O₃
C) NO₂
D) SO₃

Question 18

Which source is responsible for the greatest NOx emissions in the United States?

A) lightning
B) biomass burning
C) fossil fuel combustion
D) microbial activity in soil

Question 19

A secondary pollutant

A) is less destructive than a primary pollutant.
B) causes destruction on buildings but not on human beings.
C) is produced by chemical reactions in the air.
D) has a shorter lifetime in the atmosphere than that of a primary pollutant.

Question 20

Which chemical would be most likely to react with sulfur dioxide and remove it from combustion gases?

A) NO, nitric oxide
B) NaCl, salt
C) CaO, lime
D) HNO_3, nitric acid

Question 21

Concerning the Clean Air Act enacted into law in 1970,

A) every industrial plant in the U. S. is in compliance with the law.
B) discharges of pollutants have tended downward since the law was enacted.
C) the law was rescinded in 1980.
D) no industrial plant in the U.S. is in compliance with the law.

Question 22

The actual pressure in an automobile tire is 49.2 lbs/in². This is a little over three times atmospheric pressure at sea level.

Question 23

Why are small particulates in the atmosphere dangerous to human beings?

A) They can enter into and lodge in very small crevices of the lungs and cause concentrated abrasive injury.
B) They grind the enamel off of teeth.
C) They absorb and concentrate other pollutants.
D) They dissolve in rivers and lakes and fill them up.

Question 24

Nitrogen and oxygen are the most abundant gases in the atmosphere.

Question 25

Convert 0.000053% to ppb.

A) 53 ppb
B) 530 ppb
C) 5300 ppb
D) 5.3 ppb

Question 26

Which atmospheric region contains the protective ozone layer?

A) troposphere
B) mesophere
C) stratosphere
D) thermosphere

Question 27

Why is carbon monoxide toxic to mammals?

A) acts as a neurotoxin
B) inhibits oxygen binding to hemoglobin
C) causes restriction of the airway
D) is very addictive

Question 28

In air pollution abatement

A) all pollutants are necessarily eradicated.
B) the amounts of pollutants are decreased.
C) some pollutants are eradicated necessarily.
D) all of the above

Question 29

What brown oxide of nitrogen is a necessary component of photochemical smog?

A) NO
B) NO₂
C) NO₃
D) N₂O₅

Question 30

Where do sulfur dioxide and sulfuric acid cause the greatest harm?

A) on the skin
B) in the stomach
C) in the respiratory tract
D) in the intestines

Question 31

Identify the pair that are allotropes.

A) pencil lead and a diamond
B) oxygen gas and nitrogen gas
C) gold and silver
D) mercury and bromine

Question 32

What effect will exposure to an ozone concentration of 0.400 ppm have on an individual?

A) none
B) healthy
C) unhealthy
D) cannot be determined

Question 33

Air with a ozone concentration of 0.0545 ppm has an air quality descriptor of "Good".

Question 34

Abatement or eradication of air pollution necessarily requires

A) an extra expenditure of energy.
B) taller stacks.
C) less industrial production.
D) movement of industrial plants to less populated parts of the country.

Question 35

Which pollutant can be removed by centrifuged separations?

A) particulates
B) sulfur dioxide
C) carbon dioxide
D) ozone

Question 36

Identify the type of pollution that is referred to as anthropogenic pollution.

A) volcanic eruption
B) forest fire
C) nuclear reactor
D) vents in Yellowstone

Question 37

Nitrogen dioxide in the air is involved in the production of which of the following air pollutants?

A) ozone
B) nitric acid
C) nitrous acid.
D) all of the above

Question 38

Using fractionation of air to produce pure samples of atmospheric gases, which of the following gases is isolated first during the warm up phase?

A) nitrogen
B) oxygen
C) argon
D) xenon

Question 39

Commercial nitrogen is produced from the air by

A) reducing the oxygen with carbon.
B) reacting the nitrogen with hydrogen to form ammonia.
C) dissolving nitrogen into a fused salt medium.
D) refrigeration of air and fractional distillation.

Question 40

Convert 0.284 ppb to a percent and express the answer in scientific notation.

A) 2.84 $\times$ 10^-8 %
B) 2.84 $\times$ 10^-10 %
C) 2.84 $\times$ 10^-9 %
D) 2.84 $\times$ 10¹⁰ %

Question 41

Industrial smog contains ________________but normally photochemical smog does not.

Question 42

Consider the image show below. Complete the following statements with the numbers given in the image.
The troposphere is labeled with the number______.

Question 43

Consider the image show below. Complete the following statements with the numbers given in the image.
The stratosphere is labeled with the number______.

Question 44

Consider the image show below. Complete the following statements with the numbers given in the image.
A temperature of -60 °C would most likely be found near the number______.

Question 45

Consider the image show below. Complete the following statements with the numbers given in the image.
The ozone layer is labeled with the number ______.

Question 46

The formula for the oxide of nitrogen produced by lightening, forest fires, and internal combustion engines is ________.

Question 47

If the concentration of NO₂ during rush hour peak in an urban area is 0.405 ppm, the percent concentration is_________%.

Question 48

The image below shows the atmosphere during a thermal inversion.