Unit 7 apes vocabulary

Acid deposition:

acid rain

Carbon monoxide:

an odorless, colorless gas formed by the incomplete combustion of fuels

Hydrocarbons:

an organic compound consisting of hydrogen and carbon found in crude oil, natural gas, and coal.

Noise pollution:

harmful or annoying levels of noise

Primary Pollutants:

Pollutants directly released into the lower atmosphere (i.e. CO from a car)

Thermal Inversion:

a layer in the atmosphere in which air temperature increases with height.

Wet scrubber:

Pushes gas through solids that bind to air pollutants using liquid

Acid Rain:

results when sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOX) are emitted into the atmosphere and transported by wind and air currents.

Clean air act:

the comprehensive federal law that regulates air emissions from stationary and mobile sources.

Lead:

Toxic metal that is released as a particulate (small particle) that lands on ground or water

Ozone:

a colorless unstable toxic gas with a pungent odor and powerful oxidizing properties, formed from oxygen by electrical discharges or ultraviolet light. It differs from normal oxygen (O2) in having three atoms in its molecule (O3).

Radon:

the chemical element of atomic number 86, a rare radioactive gas

VOCs:

compounds that have a high vapor pressure and low water solubility.

Dry Scrubber:

Pushes gas through solids that bind to air pollutants using dry medias

Anthropogenic:

pollutant or environmental change originating in human activity.

Catalytic Converter:

a device incorporated in the exhaust system of a motor vehicle, containing a catalyst for converting pollutant gases into less harmful ones.

Nitric Acid:

a colorless or pale yellow liquid acid that is corrosive and poisonous and has strong oxidizing properties, made in the laboratory by distilling nitrates with sulfuric acid.

Particulates:

small particles

Secondary Pollutants:

Formed by combined pollutants in the atmosphere (i.e. smog, acid rain)

Vapor Recovery Nozzles:

Separate tube in pump captures gases trying to escape and brings them back underground.

Carbon Dioxide:

CO2

Formaldehyde:

a colorless pungent gas in solution made by oxidizing methanol.

Photochemical Smog:

a mixture of pollutants that are formed when nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) react to sunlight, creating a brown haze above cities.

Toxic Metals:

individual metals and metal compounds that negatively affect people's health.