SSS: AIR 1.

HUMIDITY
- Water vapor can vary the most from
AIR place to place, from day to day, even
- Mixture of gases which make up the hour to hour
Earth’s atmosphere a. RELATIVE HUMIDITY​ - the
- The invisible gaseous substance percentage of the amount of
surrounding the earth water vapor actually present
- A mixture of mainly oxygen and in the air
nitrogen b. ABSOLUTE HUMIDITY ​- the
most useful for engineering
| AIR COMPOSITION calculations; the amount of
● Standard dry air - mainly composed water vapor in the air
of three gases regardless of temperature
○ 78% Nitrogen 2. AIR TEMPERATURE AND
○ 21% Oxygen ELEVATION
○ <1% Argon and Other Gases - The higher an object is in the
○ 0.04% Carbon Dioxide* atmosphere, the colder it gets (drop
(excluding CO2) in temperature)
● Water vapor - In the lowest levels of the
● Other constituents atmosphere, the temperature drops
3.56​°F​ for every 1000 feet, or 6.5​°C
| PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF AIR for every 1000 meters​ in elevation
● Colorless rise
● Odorless
● Tasteless
● Supports life
● Makes combustion possible
● Takes up space
● Has mass
● Can be compressed
● Exerts pressure
● Has temperature

AIR AND TEMPERATURE

➔ As air temperature increases, so
does its ability to hold water vapor
➔ Water vapor is less dense than air 3. ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE AND
➔ Consequently, when water vapor is ALTITUDE
mixed with air, the density of the - Atmospheric pressure drops as
mixture will be less than that of dry elevation increases
air

| OTHER PROPERTIES OF AIR

 - About 0.5 psia for every 1000 feet of
elevation, or 1.1kPa for every 100
meters
4. AIR DENSITY AND ELEVATION
- Air density decreases rapidly with
increasing altitude or elevation
| LAYERS OF THE ATMOSPHERE
1. TROPOSPHERE
- The lowest layer
- Where most clouds and weather
occur
- 99% water vapor is present here
- Temperature decreases (it gets
colder) as elevation increases (as
| NATURAL AIR POLLUTANTS
you rise)
2. TROPOPAUSE
- The barrier between the troposphere
and stratosphere
3. STRATOSPHERE
- Where the Ozone layer is
found
- Ozone layer absorbs
ultraviolet rays and
turns them into heat
- Temperature increases (it
gets hotter) as elevation
increases (as you rise)
4. MESOSPHERE
- The top of the mesosphere is the
coldest layer of the earth’s
atmosphere
- The air is too thin to breathe in
- Air pressure decreases as elevation
increases
- Where most meteors burn up
5. THERMOSPHERE
- Absorbs the high energy x-rays and
UV radiation from the sun
- It is the hottest layer of the
atmosphere
- But objects will feel cold because
there aren’t enough molecules for
the heat to transfer to the object
- Where the Aurora / Northern and
Southern Lights occur
- Where most satellites are found
6. EXOSPHERE
- Fades away into space
7. IONOSPHERE
- The ionized part of the earth’s upper
atmosphere
- Mesosphere + Thermosphere +
Exosphere layers (basically, some
parts of Mesosphere +
Thermosphere + some parts of
Exosphere = Ionosphere)
● Fog and mist
● Ozone
 ● Ash
● Soot
● Salt spray
● Volcanic and combustion gases
● Volatile organic sources
| ARTIFICIAL AIR POLLUTANTS
● SMOG​ - a yellowish or blackish fog
formed mainly by a mixture of
pollutants in the atmosphere which
consists of fine particles and
ground-level ozone
● Philippine Clean Air Act of 1999
RA 8749) ​- ​outlines the
government's measures to reduce
air pollution and incorporate
environmental protection into its
development plans.
● Air quality of the Philippines
○ 90 ug/Ncm​ - annual air
quality guideline value for
Total Suspended Particles
(TSP)
○ The air quality of the country
is still dirty but improving in
terms of TSP. For 2008, TSP
level is ​99ug/Ncm
○ 29%​ reduction from 2004 to
2008
● Air quality of Manila
○ 90 ug/Ncm​ - annual air
quality guideline value for
Total Suspended Particles
(TSP)
○ The air quality of the country
is still dirty but improving in
terms of TSP. For 2008, TSP
level is ​138ug/Ncm
○ 15% ​reduction from 2004 to
2008
● Based on the ​Environmental
Performance Index ​(2008), the
Philippines ranks 5th (out of 11
countries) in the ASEAN region
● ENVIRONMENTAL
PERFORMANCE INDEX (EPI) ​- a
method of quantifying and
numerically benchmarking the
environmental performance of a
country’s policies. This was
developed and designed to
supplement the environmental
targets set forth in the U.N.
Millennium Development Goals
● As of January 2008, two EPI reports
have been releases -- the Pilot 2006
EPI and the 2008 EPI
● A high EPI indicates good
environmental performance
● EPI is scored using 25 indicators for
policy sub-categories
● EPI of the Philippines
○ EP 69.4 (2006)
○ EPI 77.9 (2008)
| WHAT IS THE CORRELATION
BETWEEN AIR QUALITY AND HEALTH IN
METRO MANILA?
● There is an improvement of AQ from
2003 to 2007
● There is a significant improvement in
blood and lead levels among
children in Metro Manila since 2000
when the unleaded gasoline policy
was implemented
| ​WHAT ARE THE REASONS FOR THE
IMPROVEMENT OF AIR QUALITY IN
METRO MANILA?
● Completion of the MRT construction
along EDSA
● Implementation of the
MMDA-Unified Vehicle Reduction
Program along main thoroughfares
(color coding)
● Improved fuel quality
○ Phase-out of lead gasoline
○ Requirement of the
government that all vehicles
use diesel fuel blended with
1% CME
○ Use of 2& biodiesel blend
● Intensified emission testing prior to
LTO registration renewal through
private emission testing centers
● Formulation/revision of Emission
standards for motor vehicles
● Intensified anti-smoke belching
operations by the MMDA
● Intensified stack emission testing
program of industrial
sources/facilities within Metro Manila
● Use of alternative fuels
○ Conversion of gasoline-fed
taxis to LPG