suggest how sulphuric and nitric acid appear in atmosphere and how their presence is harmfull to living beings
Answers
Answer:
it will participate in many natural processes. It is responsible for the formation of nitrogen dioxide entering the atmosphere. The classic example of the formation of nitrogen oxides is by the chemical reaction of atmospheric nitrogen and oxygen during the thunderstorm.
The chemical reaction occurs in the presence of lightning to form the nitric oxide which further undergoes reaction with oxygen to form nitrogen dioxide. Oxides of sulphur and nitrogen are responsible for many natural phenomena.
Similarly, oxides of sulphur such as sulphur dioxide enter the atmosphere by natural processes such as volcanic eruptions. Moreover, oxidation of hydrogen and sulphide during organic matter decomposition process in the absence of air leads to the formation of sulphur dioxide.
Since many decades the natural processes based on oxides of sulphur and nitrogen have been taking place and there was a global balance of these gases in the earth’s atmosphere. However, lately many anthropogenic or human activities led to the increase in the amounts of the compounds more than the desired quantity.
Thus, it is causing an imbalance in the earth’s atmosphere and exerting detrimental effects. Thus the excess quantity of the gases makes it air pollutants. We will study the negative impact of oxides of sulphur and nitrogen when present in excess quantity than the permissible limit.
Oxides of Sulphur
The general term to refer to all oxides of sulphur is SOx. The major oxides of sulphur are sulphur dioxide and sulphur trioxide. Sulphur dioxide (SO2) gas has a characteristic pungent, irritating taste and odour but it is a colourless gas. Moreover, it is water soluble and forms sulphurous acid (weak acid).
Sulphur dioxide can slowly react with the oxygen present in the air to form sulphur trioxide (SO3). However, it is not a stable compound so it tends to react with water to form sulphuric acid. The oxidation process of SO2 is slow without the presence of a catalyst. However, particulate matter present in the polluted air act as the catalyst and speeds up the sulphur dioxide reaction to form sulphur trioxide.
2SO2 (g) +O2 (g) → 2SO3 (g)
Moreover, gaseous pollutants such as hydrogen peroxide and ozone can also promote the reaction.
SO2 (g) +O3 (g) → SO3 (g) + O2 (g)
SO2 (g) + H2O2 (l) → H2SO4 (aq)
The burning of sulphur-containing fossil fuel leads to the formation of oxides of sulphur. Although sulphur dioxide is the most common gas among oxides of sulphur it is highly poisonous to living organisms including plants and animals.