• What is air pollution?
• Types of air pollution
• Causes of air pollution
• Consequences of air pollution
• Solutions for air pollution
• Composition of the atmosphere

We explain what air pollution is and why it occurs. Negative consequences and possible solutions.

Industrial activity by-produces gases that, when not being used, are released into the atmosphere.

What is air pollution?

Air pollution refers to the presence, in the different layers of air that make up the earth's atmosphere, from substances and forms of Energy alien to their natural constitution and that may represent a source of risks, damages and annoyances for life as we know it.

Just like him Water or the earth, the air that makes up the atmosphere also maintains a chemical and energy balance necessary to sustain the conditions that make possible the life, and whose alteration affects other important cycles, such as that of water. The presence of gaseous or solid substances in the air distorts this balance, and may have local, regional or even global consequences, such as the greenhouse effect.

From the Industrial Revolution the human being has contributed to the adulteration of the content of the atmosphere in a significant way, and to this many climatic and environmental consequences are attributed today. public health.

Types of air pollution

Pollution of the atmosphere occurs mainly due to the presence of two forms of pollutants: gaseous and suspended solids.

• Gaseous. They are simple or complex substances in various concentrations, which are released into the atmosphere as vapors and gases light, such as those released during the combustion from organic material fossil (gasoline, coal, Petroleum). These gases remain in the atmosphere and there they star chemical reactions unpredictable and uncontrolled, giving rise to toxic mists, acid rains and other phenomena. Some examples of these gases are carbon monoxide, CFC, nitrogen oxides.

• Suspended solids. These are solid materials little affected by the gravity, which can remain in the air, deteriorating its quality and can be breathed together with the air. Sometimes they are dark and large enough to see, in the form of smoke. Examples of this are volcanic ash and aerosols.

Another way to classify these polluting substances in the atmosphere would be natural (those coming from accidents and environmental effects in which man does not intervene, such as volcanoes or meteorites) and artificial (those derived from the direct or indirect action of the human being).

Causes of air pollution

Wildfires throw lots of carbon dioxide and smoke into the air.

The causes of air pollution are varied, but mainly have to do with:

• The Volcanic eruptions, which spew ash and underground gases into the air.
• Industrial activity, whose chemical reactions by-produce gases, toxic or not, which are released into the atmosphere when they are not used.
• The use of fossil fuels, such as gasoline and petroleum derivatives, to obtain electric power or vehicular mobilization.
• The use of CFC aerosols, banned for decades due to their responsibility in the destruction of the ozone layer.
• Forest fires, spewing piles of carbon dioxide and smoke into the air.

Consequences of air pollution

The main consequences of the deterioration of the atmosphere are:

• Respiratory problems. At the local level, polluted air can affect the Health of people and animals when breathed in, as it contains carcinogenic, toxic or poisonous chemicals, whose effect on the body can be lethal and even prolonged.
• Acid rains. Many organic elements react in the atmosphere with the water steam and they form variants of acid or corrosive mixtures, which then fall to the ground with the rain, in what are usually called rains.
• Water contamination. The air pollution and from the water they feed back, since when the water evaporates it can carry with it various toxic substances that later remain in the atmosphere.
• Ozone layer destruction. Many gases rise to the upper layers of the atmosphere, where the ozone layer (O3) is located, which protects us from the direct impact of the sun's rays. There, they react with this element and pierce this protective barrier.
• Greenhouse effect. The accumulation of heavy gases in the atmosphere acts as an artificial barrier that does not allow environmental heat to escape, concentrating it and causing the world's temperature to rise.

Solutions for air pollution

Clean technologies are a possible solution to air pollution.

The atmosphere can deal with a certain amount of pollutants, but not at the rate we pollute it year after year. The best solutions, then, to help it reestablish itself, aim to reduce the human impact in the air, through:

• Filters for chimneys and responsible industrial activity.
• Use alternative energies to the fossil fuels.
• Reduce or eliminate the use of CFC aerosols.
• Control burning and anticipate forest or industrial fires.
• Promote the recycling of sewage.
• Investigate technologies "Clean" or more ecological.

Composition of the atmosphere

Broadly speaking, the atmosphere is a homogeneous layer of gases that the Earth's gravity maintains around the planet, serving as a defense against the elements of space (meteors, radiation, cosmic rays, etc.) and as a support for its own (it conserves heat , allows the water cycle, provides gaseous elements, etc.).

The atmosphere is made up of various layers of air in which some elements predominate over others, as it moves away from the earth's surface and loses Pressure and temperature. These constituent elements are mainly nitrogen, oxygen, argon, carbon dioxide and water vapor (hydrogen and oxygen).