Acid Rain: Nitrogen Oxides & Sulfur Dioxide Flashcards

All 5 cards in this deck

How does burning a fuel that contains sulfur impurities lead to acid rain?

The sulfur impurity is oxidised to sulfur dioxide, which dissolves in rain water/clouds to form sulfuric acid.

Give two problems caused by acid rain.

It kills fish in lakes and kills trees. (It also damages buildings and causes breathing problems.)

Why are nitrogen oxides from engines described as pollutants?

They are acidic and toxic, and they lead to acid rain, which damages buildings and kills plants.

An impure hydrocarbon fuel is burned and the gases are passed through indicator solution, which shows an acidic gas. Which acidic gases are responsible?

Sulfur dioxide (from the sulfur impurity) and carbon dioxide.

How are oxides of nitrogen formed when a fuel burns in an engine?

The engine gets very hot, and at these high temperatures nitrogen and oxygen from the air drawn in react with each other.