OZONE

GREENHOUSES GASES
TYPES OF UV

Montesclaros, Judilyn G.
Morillo, Ma. Marvielyn M.
Pingul, Angelika O.
Quiambao, Joriel C.

Mrs. Fe K. Gutierrez
 OZONE

Ozone, (O3), triatomic allotrope of oxygen (a form of oxygen in which

the molecule contains three atoms instead of two as in the common form) that accounts for
the distinctive odour of the air after a thunderstorm or around electrical equipment. The
odour of ozone around electrical machines was reported as early as 1785; ozone’s chemical
constitution was established in 1872. Ozone is an irritating, pale blue gas that is explosive
and toxic, even at low concentrations. It occurs naturally in small amounts in
the Earth’s stratosphere, where it absorbs solar ultraviolet radiation, which otherwise
could cause severe damage to living organisms on the Earth’s surface. Under certain
conditions, photochemical reactions between nitrogen oxides and hydrocarbons in the
lower atmosphere can produce ozone in concentrations high enough to cause irritation of
the eyes and mucous membranes.

Ozone usually is manufactured by passing an electric discharge through a current of

oxygen or dry air. The resulting mixtures of ozone and original gases are suitable for most
industrial purposes, although purer ozone may be obtained from them by various methods;
for example, upon liquefaction, an oxygen-ozone mixture separates into two layers, of
which the denser one contains about 75 percent ozone. The extreme instability and
reactivity of concentrated ozone makes its preparation both difficult and hazardous.

Ozone is 1.5 times as dense as oxygen; at -112° C (-170° F) it condenses to a dark

blue liquid, which freezes at -251.4° C (-420° F). The gas decomposes rapidly at
temperatures above 100° C (212° F) or, in the presence of certain catalysts, at room
temperatures. Although it resembles oxygen in many respects, ozone is much more
reactive; hence, it is an extremely powerful oxidizing agent, particularly useful in
converting olefins into aldehydes, ketones, or carboxylic acids. Because it can decolorize
many substances, it is used commercially as a bleaching agent for organic compounds; as a
strong germicide it is used to sterilize drinking water as well as to remove objectionable
odours and flavours.

Ozone is technically a greenhouse gas, but ozone is helpful or harmful depending on

where it is found in the earth's atmosphere. Ozone occurs naturally at higher elevations in
the atmosphere (the stratosphere) where it forms a layer that blocks ultraviolet (UV) light,
which is harmful to plant and animal life, from reaching the earth’s surface. The protective
benefit of stratospheric ozone outweighs its contribution to the greenhouse effect and to
global warming. However, at lower elevations of the atmosphere (the troposphere), ozone
is harmful to human health. There are human-made industrial chemicals that break down
ozone in the stratosphere and create holes in the ozone layer. The United States and
countries all around the world ban and control production and use of several of these
industrial gases under the Montreal Protocol. In the United States, emissions of air
pollutants that result in ozone formation in the troposphere, or ground-level ozone, are
regulated under the Clean Air Act.

GREENHOUSE GASES

Greenhouse gases are those gases in the atmosphere that have an influence on the
earth's energy balance. They cause the so-called greenhouse effect. The best known
greenhouse gases, carbon dioxide (CO₂), methane and nitrous oxide, can be found naturally
in low concentrations in the atmosphere. However, the proportion has increased
significantly since the beginning of the last century due to various man-made sources. In
addition to these trace gases, which can only be found in very low concentrations in the
atmosphere, water vapour is probably the most important greenhouse gas. However, it
only plays a major role in relation to the natural greenhouse effect, since the absorption
capacity of water vapour in the air is directly related to temperature. Water vapour
therefore has little influence on man-made climate change.

A greenhouse gas (sometimes abbreviated GHG) is a gas that absorbs and emits
radiant energy within the thermal infrared range. Greenhouse gases cause the greenhouse
effect[1] on planets. The primary greenhouse gases in Earth's atmosphere are water vapor
(H2O), carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), and ozone (O3).
Without greenhouse gases, the average temperature of Earth's surface would be about −18
°C (0 °F),[2] rather than the present average of 15 °C (59 °F).[3][4][5] The atmospheres of
Venus, Mars and Titan also contain greenhouse gases. Human activities since the beginning
of the Industrial Revolution (around 1750) have produced a 45% increase in the
atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide, from 280 ppm in 1750 to 415 ppm in
2019.[6] This increase has occurred despite the uptake of more than half of the emissions
by various natural "sinks" involved in the carbon cycle.[7][8] The vast majority of
anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions come from combustion of fossil fuels, principally
coal, oil, and natural gas, with additional contributions coming from deforestation, changes
in land use, soil erosion and agriculture (including livestock).[9][10] The leading source of
anthropogenic methane emissions is animal agriculture, followed by fugitive emissions
from gas, oil, coal and other industry, solid waste, wastewater and rice production.

TYPES OF GREENHOUSE GASES

There are several different types of greenhouse gases. The major ones are carbon
dioxide, water vapor, methane, and nitrous oxide. All of these have molecules with three or
more atoms. The atoms are held together loosely enough that they vibrate when they
absorb heat. Eventually, the vibrating molecule will release the radiation. The radiation will
likely be absorbed by another greenhouse gas molecule. This process, which keeps heat
near the Earth’s surface, is called the greenhouse effect.

Almost all of the other gases in Earth’s atmosphere are nitrogen and oxygen. The two
atoms in these molecules are bound together tightly and unable to vibrate, so they cannot
absorb heat and contribute to the greenhouse effect.

Carbon Dioxide - CO2

Carbon dioxide (CO2) is a kind of gas. There isn't that much carbon dioxide in Earth's
atmosphere, but it is still very important. Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas. That means it
helps trap heat coming from the Sun in our atmosphere through the greenhouse effect.
Without carbon dioxide in our air, the Earth would be very cold.

Where does the carbon dioxide in our air come from? When humans and other animals
breathe, we take in oxygen and breathe out carbon dioxide. We use the oxygen to get
energy from food - this is called respiration.

Burning things also makes lots of carbon dioxide. Natural fires like forest fires make carbon
dioxide. Things that humans burn make CO2, too. The smokestacks of factories that burn
coal give off carbon dioxide. The engines of cars, trucks, and buses also pump carbon
dioxide into the air. They sometimes give off another gas, carbon monoxide, too.

Earth isn't the only place where carbon dioxide is important. Most of the atmosphere
of Venus is CO2. The atmosphere of Mars is also mostly carbon dioxide. If carbon dioxide
gets really cold, it can freeze into a solid. This kind of ice is called "dry ice". The polar ice
caps on Mars are partly made of dry ice!

Methane - CH4

Methane is a kind of gas. There is a small amount of methane in the air you breathe. A
methane molecule has carbon and hydrogen atoms in it.

Methane is a greenhouse gas. That means it helps make Earth warm. But if there was too
much methane, that could make our planet too warm.

Where does the methane in Earth's atmosphere come from? Cow burps, for one place!
Farming rice also puts methane into the air. Some methane also comes from garbage
dumps. Termites make lots of methane, too. Swamps also make methane.

Methane can burn. It is used as a fuel. It is one of the main gases in natural gas. The heat in
your home might be from natural gas. Methane is called a hydrocarbon because it has
hydrogen and carbon atoms in it.
 Molecules

Most things around us are made of groups of atoms bonded together into packages called
molecules. The atoms in a molecule are held together because they share or
exchange electrons.

Molecules are made from atoms of one or more elements. Some molecules are made of only
one type of atom. For instance, two oxygen atoms bond together to form O2, the part of
the air that we need to breath to survive. Other molecules are very large. Protein molecules,
for example, often contain hundreds of atoms.

Even large molecules are so small that you would not be able to see one molecule of a
substance. But when thousands of molecules are together, they might look like a glass of
water, a tree in the forest, or your computer screen, depending on what types of molecules
they are.

Even if a soccer ball is sitting still, the molecules within it are moving all the time. They may
be too small to see, but molecules are always moving and they will move faster as
temperature increases.

Nitrogen

There is more nitrogen gas in the air than any other kind of gas. About 4/5ths of Earth's
atmosphere is nitrogen gas! A molecule of nitrogen gas is made up of two nitrogen atoms.

There are other molecules in the atmosphere that have nitrogen atoms in them too, such
as nitric oxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2). These molecules are air pollutants. They
are made in the engines of cars and other places. They also make other kinds of air
pollution such as peroxyacetyl nitrate (PAN), a dangerous chemical in smog. They also help
make nitric acid. Nitric acid is part of acid rain.

Oxygen

Oxygen (O2) is a kind of gas. A lot of the air you breathe is oxygen. That's a good thing, since
we need oxygen to stay alive!

About 4/5ths of the air in Earth's atmosphere is nitrogen (N2). Almost all of the rest of air is
oxygen.
 DIFFERENT TYPES OF UV RADIATION

The most common form of UV radiation is sunlight, which produces three main types of
UV rays:

 UVA
 UVB
 UVC

UVA rays have the longest wavelengths, followed by UVB, and UVC rays which have the
shortest wavelengths. While UVA and UVB rays are transmitted through the
atmosphere, all UVC and some UVB rays are absorbed by the Earth’s ozone layer. So,
most of the UV rays you come in contact with are UVA with a small amount of UVB.

Like all forms of light on the EM spectrum, UV radiation is classified by wavelength.

Wavelength describes the distance between the peaks in a series of waves.

 UVB rays have a short wavelength that reaches the outer layer of your skin (the
epidermis)
 UVA rays have a longer wavelength that can penetrate the middle layer of your
skin (the dermis)