Air pollution and the climate Cambridge IGCSE Chemistry (9–1) revision
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In plain words
Burning fuels puts things into the air that weren't there before. Some are poisonous, some come back down as acid rain, and some wrap the Earth in a thicker blanket and warm it up. Each pollutant has a source, a harm and a fix.
Three things to know
- Carbon monoxide (toxic) and soot particles come from incomplete combustion of fuels. Sulfur dioxide comes from burning fuels that contain sulfur, and oxides of nitrogen form when nitrogen and oxygen from the air react in hot car engines. Both cause acid rain.
- Carbon dioxide and methane are greenhouse gases. More of them in the atmosphere means global warming and climate change.
- Fixes: catalytic converters on cars (2CO + 2NO → 2CO₂ + N₂), removing sulfur from fuels and from power station gases, using renewable energy, planting trees.
Tips and tricks
- For each pollutant learn three things: where it comes from, what harm it does, how it is reduced.
- Carbon monoxide is dangerous because it is toxic, not because it causes acid rain or global warming.
It lands in your notebook with its questions as flashcards.
Air pollution and the climate: 6 questions and answers
These are the quiz’s questions. Do the quiz first, then come back here for the ones that got you.
Which gas is a main cause of acid rain?
It dissolves in rain water to form an acid.
Which of these is a greenhouse gas?
Methane and carbon dioxide trap heat in the atmosphere.
How is carbon monoxide produced?
It forms when there is not enough oxygen.
How are oxides of nitrogen formed in a car engine?
The engine is hot enough for the two gases in air to combine.
What does a catalytic converter turn carbon monoxide into?
It also turns oxides of nitrogen into nitrogen.
Why is carbon monoxide dangerous?
It stops the blood carrying oxygen.
Quiz
6 questions
Tap an answer and you’ll see straight away whether it’s right, and why.
Worksheet
4 questions, 9 marks. Write your answers on paper, then check them.
Air pollution and the climate
Cambridge IGCSE Chemistry (9–1) 0971 · 9 marks · papermunch.org
Name ______________________________ Date ______________
State how carbon monoxide is formed, and why it is dangerous.[2]
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By the incomplete combustion of fuels containing carbon (not enough oxygen). It is toxic (poisonous).
Describe how burning coal leads to acid rain.[3]
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Coal contains sulfur, which burns to form sulfur dioxide. This gas dissolves in water in the air (and reacts with oxygen) to form acid, which falls as acid rain.
State what a catalytic converter does to carbon monoxide and to oxides of nitrogen.[2]
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It changes carbon monoxide into carbon dioxide, and oxides of nitrogen into nitrogen.
Name two greenhouse gases and state the effect of increasing their amounts in the atmosphere.[2]
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Carbon dioxide and methane. Global warming, leading to climate change.
Answers: Air pollution and the climate
- 1. By the incomplete combustion of fuels containing carbon (not enough oxygen). It is toxic (poisonous).
- 2. Coal contains sulfur, which burns to form sulfur dioxide. This gas dissolves in water in the air (and reacts with oxygen) to form acid, which falls as acid rain.
- 3. It changes carbon monoxide into carbon dioxide, and oxides of nitrogen into nitrogen.
- 4. Carbon dioxide and methane. Global warming, leading to climate change.