Carbon in the Environment Lecture Notes

Practice flashcards covering carbon-based fuels, sustainability, environmental impact, carbon dioxide properties, water hardness, and carbon allotropes.

Firewood

A fuel burned directly in fireplaces, stoves, or furnaces to produce heat for warmth, cooking, or water heating.

Charcoal

A fuel produced through carbonization of wood, burned in stoves or grills to produce heat for cooking and industrial processes.

Paraffin (Kerosene)

A fuel burned in lamps, heaters, or stoves for light and heat, also used as fuel for jet engines and rockets.

Petrol (Gasoline)

A fuel burned in internal combustion engines to power vehicles and machinery, characterized by a high octane rating.

Diesel

A fuel used in internal combustion engines with high compression ratios, making it efficient for heavy-duty applications.

Renewable Fuel

A fuel that can be replenished naturally over time, typically from natural resources like plants, trees, or waste materials.

Non-renewable Fuel

A fuel that cannot be replenished naturally over time, typically originating from finite resources like fossil fuels.

Fuel Sustainability

The ability of a fuel source to meet energy demands of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Air Pollution

The release of harmful pollutants such as particulate matter, nitrogen oxides, and sulfur dioxide during the burning of carbon-based fuels.

Acid Rain

A phenomenon where sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides from burning fuels combine with water and oxygen to damage ecosystems and infrastructure.

Charcoal Briquettes

Fuel made by crushing charcoal into a fine powder, mixing it with a binding agent like starch or clay, and pressing it into shapes.

Carbonization

The process of heating wood in a kiln or pit to high temperatures between $200$ and $300^{\circ}\text{C}$ in the absence of oxygen.

Pyrolysis

The thermal decomposition of organic material in a limited supply of oxygen, breaking it down into volatile gases, liquids, and solid char.

Dehydration

The stage of pyrolysis where water molecules ($H_2O$) are released, leaving behind a carbon-rich material.

Decarboxylation

The stage of pyrolysis where carbon dioxide ($CO_2$) is released from the organic material.

Carbon Dioxide ($CO_2$)

A colorless, odorless covalent compound with a molecular weight of $44.01\,g/mol$ and a density of $1.98\,kg/m^3$.

Greenhouse Gases (GHGs)

Gases such as carbon dioxide ($CO_2$), methane ($CH_4$), and nitrous oxide ($N_2O$) that trap heat in the atmosphere.

Hard Water

Water containing high levels of dissolved minerals, specifically calcium ($Ca$) and magnesium ($Mg$) ions, which interfere with soap lathering.

Temporary Hardness

Water hardness caused by calcium ($Ca$) and bicarbonate ($HCO_3$) ions, which can be removed by boiling.

Permanent Hardness

Water hardness caused by calcium ($Ca$) and magnesium ($Mg$) sulfates, chlorides, and nitrates, which cannot be removed by boiling.

Ion Exchange (IX)

A water softening method using a resin to exchange calcium and magnesium ions for sodium or potassium ions.

Reverse Osmosis (RO)

A softening process that uses a semipermeable membrane to remove calcium and magnesium ions from water.

Allotropy

The existence of two or more different physical forms of the same element with the same atomic number but different atomic arrangements.

Diamond

An allotrope of carbon with a face-centered cubic ($FCC$) crystal structure where each atom is bonded to four others in a rigid lattice.

Graphite

An allotrope of carbon with a hexagonal layer lattice held by weak van der Waals forces, making it soft and slippery.