Effects Of Acid Rain

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Term Paper Title	Effects Of Acid Rain
# of Words	860
# of Pages (250 words per page double spaced)	3.44

Effects of Acid Rain

[Category]:

Science

[Paper Title]:

Effects of Acid Rain

[Text]:

How Acid Rain Develops, Spreads, and Destroys

Acid rain is environmentally damaging rainfall that occurs after fossil fuels
burn, releasing nitrogen and sulphur oxides into the atmosphere. Acid rain,
simply stated, increases the acidity level of waterways because these nitrogen
and sulphur oxides combine with the air’s normal rainfall. Acid rain is a
silent threat because its effects, although slow, are cumulative. This analysis
explains the cause, the distribution cycle, and the effects of acid rain.

Most research shows that power plants burning oil or coal are the primary
cause of acid rain. The burnt fuel is not completely expended, and some residue
enters the atmosphere. Although this residue contains several potentially toxic
elements, sulphur oxide and, to a lesser extent, nitrogen oxide are the major
problem, because they are transformed when they combine with moisture. This
chemical reaction forms sulphur dioxide and nitric acid, which then rain down to
earth.

Once fossil fuels have been burned, their usefulness is over. Unfortunately,
it is here that the acid rain problem begins. Fossil fuels contain a number of
elements that are released during combustion. Two of these, sulphur oxide and
nitrogen oxide, combine with normal moisture to produce sulphuric acid and
nitric acid. The released gases undergo a chemical change as they combine with
atmospheric ozone and water vapour. The resulting rain or snowfall is more
acidic than normal precipitation.

Acid level is measured by pH readings. The pH scale runs from 0 through 14 --
a pH of 7 is considered neutral. (Distilled water has a pH of 7.) Numbers below
7 indicate increasing alkalinity. (Household ammonia has a pH of 11.) Numbers
below 7 indicate increasing acidity. Movement in either direction on the pH
scale, however, means multiplying by 10. Lemon juice, which has a pH value of 2,
is 10 times more acidic than apples which have a pH of 3, and is 1000 times more
acidic than carrots, which have a pH of 5.

Because of carbon dioxide (an acidic substance) normally present in air,
unaffected rainfall has a pH of 5.6. At this time the pH of precipitation in the
northeastern United States and Canada is between 4.5 and 4. In Massachusetts,
rain and snowfall have an average reading of 4.1. A pH reading below 5 is
considered to be abnormally acidic, and therefore a threat to aquatic
populations.

Although it mig...

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