The 1st Student Conference Content and English Language Integrated Learning

CLIL 2016 Zenica, B&H, June 2016

Dedi Arijana The sources of air pollution

Mainski fakultet,
Fakultetska 1, 72000 Zenica
Zenica, Bosnia and Herzegovina

The 1st Student Conference Content and English Language Integrated Learning
CLIL 2016 Zenica, B&H, June 2016

Content
1. INTRODUCTION..................................................................................................................4
2. AIR COMPOSITION.............................................................................................................5
2.1. Term emission and immission, maximum allowable concentration................................6
3. THE SOURCES OF AIR POLLUTION................................................................................7
3.1. Natural sources of air pollution........................................................................................7
4.2. Artificial (anthropogenic) sources of air pollution...........................................................8
4. AFTERMATH OF AIR POLLUTION...................................................................................8
5. PROTECTION MEASURES OF AIR POLLUTION............................................................9
6. CONCLUSION.....................................................................................................................11
7. LITERATURE...................................................................................................................... 12

The 1st Student Conference Content and English Language Integrated Learning
CLIL 2016 Zenica, B&H, June 2016

SUMMARY
This paper is based on the identification of sources of air pollution with consequences that they make
to the environment. Polluted air influence in different ways on human health and the whole ecosystem.
Objective of this paper is the protection of human health, respectively, identification of pollution
sources, determining the degree of pollution, determining the movement of air pollution during the
year, evaluation of the burden on certain locations, identification of critical situations in order to alert
the public. And as the main final objective is to define and implement protection measures of air
pollution.
Key words: sources, air pollution,consequences, human health, environment, protection measures
SAETAK
Ovaj rad je baziran na opisivanju izvora zagaenja zraka sa posljedicama koje oni ine po okoli.
Zagaeni zrak utie na razliite naine na zdravlje ljudi i itav ekosistem. Cilj ovog rada jeste zatita
zdravlja ljudi, odnosno, utvrivanje izvora zagaenja, odreivanje stepena zagaenja, odreivanje
kretanja zagaenosti zraka u toku godine, procjena optereenosti pojedinih lokacija, utvrivanje
kritinih situacija u cilju upozorenja javnosti. I kao glavni zavrni cilj je definisati i provoditi mjere
zatite zraka od zagaenja.
Kljune rijei: izvori, zagaenje zraka, posljedice, zdravlje ljudi, okoli, mjere zatite.

The 1st Student Conference Content and English Language Integrated Learning
CLIL 2016 Zenica, B&H, June 2016

1. INTRODUCTION
Subject of this paper are the sources of air pollution. The aim is to define and explain the natural and
artificial sources of pollution. Air is all around us. The air is, like and water, condition for life. He has
two basic functions: biological (primary) and manufacturing (secundary). The average composition of
clean air is: nitrogen (78,08 %), oxygen (20,95 %), noble gases (0,03 %). The most important
component of air is oxygen. He allows breathing for all higher organisms, even the people. Most of the
oxygen is of biological origin, this means that it derives from photosynthesis. The biggest
manufacturers are woods, algae that live in the water and phytoplanktons. Air has great ecological
significance, because it contains the necessary life gases: oxygen, carbon dioxide and nitrogen. The
human body daily needs seven times more air than water. Polluted air that we are forced to breathe is
the result of human activities. Significant air pollution are started with using fossil fuels, first in the 13
century, and then in the 17 century. Sources of air pollution are numerous and may be naturally
(volcano eruption, forest fires, storm, earthquakes) and artificial. Important artificial sources of air
pollution are: motor vehicles, industry, power stations, heating, burning waste materials and so on. Of
the total weight, gases make up 90 percent, and solid particles 10 percent. Transport and industry are
the main sources of air pollution. During combustion, different forms of fuel in engines or factories,
with the release of energy is released and large amount of harmful substances, such as: carbon
monoxide, carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, oxides of nitrogen, ash and soot. Humans polluting the air
in many ways: burning forest, driving cars and airplanes, work in the factories and thermal power
plants, burning firewood in households. [1]

The 1st Student Conference Content and English Language Integrated Learning
CLIL 2016 Zenica, B&H, June 2016

2. AIR COMPOSITION
The air which surrounding our planet consists of a mixture of gases and various additives in the solid,
liquid and gaseous state. This additives (dust, volcanic ash, soot, salt particles and other particles),
water vapor and various gases, are everywhere and in every place in larger or smaller amounts. With
its activity, a person consciously or unconsciously more and more polluting the air. Air is a mixture of
gases (Figure 1), water vapor and solid particles.
The most important gases that are a part of the air:
Nitrogen - representation about 78 %,
Oxygen representation about 21 %,
Carbon dioxide representation about 0,03 %,
Other gases representation about 0,97 %.

Figure 1. Air composition [1]

The 1st Student Conference Content and English Language Integrated Learning
CLIL 2016 Zenica, B&H, June 2016

2.1 Term emission and immission, maximum allowable concentration

Emissions is the discharge of pollutants from facilities (chimney, engine, pipeline and so on) to the
environment: air, water, land. When studying the extent of pollution with some harmful substances, it
is important to determine:
Speed emission
Total emission.
Speed emission is the amount of pollutant expressed in the unit of time: g/sec., or in percentages. Total
emission is released amount of pollutants expressed in grams per amount of energy released (in joules)
or in kilograms of product.
Immission is the occurrence of gaseous, liquid and solid matters in layer directly above the soil
surface. She can be higher than emissions. Their value is based on the concentration of pollutants in air
at a height of 0 to 0,2 meters from the ground level. The value of the emission depends on the: speed,
strenght, type of emissions surrounding sources, of the dispersion of pollutants in the atmosphere and
of types of pollutants.

Maximum

allowable concentrations are determined by how many are harmful to human health. Maximum
allowable concentration of some harmful substances is an amount that at human does not cause
pathological changes and diseases, does not impair the biological optimum for people. Relatively
clean air is one in which the concentrations does not exceed the permitted limits. [1]

The 1st Student Conference Content and English Language Integrated Learning
CLIL 2016 Zenica, B&H, June 2016

3. THE SOURCES OF AIR POLLUTION

Harmful substances, among them pesticides, heavy metals, oil and derivatives, in the environment
triggering a series of chain reactions and therefore their presence in environment can not remain
unnoticed. Sources of air pollution are processes that under internal or external influence emit
contaminants into the atmosphere.

Sources of

air pollution can be:

1. Natural and
2. Artificial (anthropogenic).
Sources of air pollution are result of:
combustion of fuel
working industry
agriculture
production of weapons
communal work.

3.1. Natural sources of air pollution

In natural sources of pollution we include only nature that is its wide expanse, sea, oceans, fog, effect
of its volcanoes, natural radioactivity, forests and forest fires, various combustion, erosion. Therefore,
nature also creates harmful and toxic substances, often far more than the human activities. The
difference between natural and anthropogenic sources is in the amount and type of pollutants and the
way they are issued. The most of the sulfur emission is from ocean and then from the biogenic
process. However, significant amounts are broadcast and from the volcano in some large eruptions
directly into the stratosphere.
In such cases, emission may have limited consequences for the entire planet. Fine particles of dust
and sulphate aerosols, inserted from volcanic eruptions in the stratosphere remain there for a long time
(during the deposition of up to 5 years) and may lead to reduction of heat that from the sun matures to
the earth. Fine particles of dust and aerosols when there is the eruption, can erupt at an height of 40-50
km and with air currents transmitted over long distances thus pollution gets global character. During
volcanic eruptions Krakatau on the island between Java and Sumatra 1883. year, two-thirds of the

The 1st Student Conference Content and English Language Integrated Learning
CLIL 2016 Zenica, B&H, June 2016

island flew in the air referring about 20 km3 dusts at height about 30 km. Then died about 36 000
people. [2]
3.2. Artificial (anthropogenic) sources of air pollution
Artificial sources of air pollution are processes of extracting and processing of mineral resources,
chemical industry, coal combustion, agriculture, road transport, settlements, power plants (thermal and
nuclear) and so on.

4. AFTERMATH OF AIR POLLUTION

Global warming, acid rain, damaging of ozone layer and raising the level of world sea, are direct
consequence of air pollution. And many human beings suffer direct consequence increasing the
concentration of harmful substances in the air. Plants lose chlorophyll and change color, gradually then
dying tissues and organs, stop processes of photosynthesis and growth, at the end comes drying and
death. Animals labored breathe, damaging their respiratory organs, and occurring diseases such as:
bronchitis, asthma and lung cancer. Extremely serious consequences of air pollution suffer the man
himself. Air pollution acts in two ways at people. On the one end, life in air pollution is dangerous
(Picture 2.), particularly for children, old and sick people. Harmful substances from the air cause many
diseases. On the other hand, harmful substances from the air can pollute and the human food.
Therefore is concern about air quality one of the most important tasks modern man.

Figure 2. Air pollution in cities [2]

Today is the air over many cities dark and gloomy, and this unnatural appearance is the result of
pollution. During more century stay on the earth, man is with its negative impact disrupted natural
balance that has at one time existed. In the most serious consequences of air pollution we include:

The 1st Student Conference Content and English Language Integrated Learning
CLIL 2016 Zenica, B&H, June 2016

Acid rain
Greenhouse effect
Global warming
Smog. [2]

5. PROTECTION MEASURES OF AIR POLLUTION

Protection measures of air pollution can be divided into three groups. The first involves the
elimination of the causes of pollution, the second involves reducing the amount of harmful substances
which are released into the atmosphere and third involves special protection measures of air pollution.
Elimination causes of pollution including the introduction of new clean technologies in the
production processes and the use of clean fuels. As one of the good measures to reduce air pollution
is the possibility of using biodiesel and other biofuels. In contrast to conventional fuels, biodiesel does
not contain sulfur (respectively the sulfur content is very low), thus reducing the possibilities for the
occurrence of acid rain. Biodiesel does not contain neither toxic aromatic compounds such as benzol.
High content of oxygen contributes to reducing the content of particles (or soot) in the exhaust gases,
while more complete combustion contributes and reduced emissions of carbon monoxide. As with all
fuel, with combustion of biodiesel appeared carbon dioxide. However, since plants use carbon
dioxide from atmosphere (photosynthesis process) for its growth, carbon dioxide formed by
combustion of this fuel balances with adsorbed carbon dioxide during the annual plant growth. These
plants are used as a raw material for the preparation of vegetable oils.
Reduction the amount of pollutants is today the main form of air protection. Installation of filters and
special facilities for treatment of exhaust gases and smoke at the factory plant, can give quite good
results. Construction of tall chimneys may contribute improving air quality, but only on local level.
Most of the exhaust gases from the chimney goes into more parts of the atmosphere, but there makes
other problems, who already have global consequences at the entire planet. Problems for solving air
pollution:
incomplete network for pollution monitoring,
traffic
low level of technical equipments

great proximity to power and industrial facilities in regard to the settlements

9

The 1st Student Conference Content and English Language Integrated Learning
CLIL 2016 Zenica, B&H, June 2016

increasing number of thermal power plants at the one place which as fuel using coal with high
content of sulphur.
Air quality control is carried out with systematic measurements of emmission through a network of
weather stations, whose number depends on the number of inhabitants, the number of emission
sources, meteorological parameters, etc. [3, 4]

6. CONCLUSION
Polluted air influence in different ways on human health and the whole ecosystem. Atmosphere serves
and as a means of transport pollutants to remote locations and as a means of pollution of land and
water. Air pollution depends primarily of the type of contaminants. Sources of pollution are different.
These are, above all, processes of combustion of coal and oil in power plants, heating plants and
individual household furnaces, processes in industrial plants (oil, chemical, metallurgical, food
industry), exhaust gases of transport vehicles and heavy machinery, processes on the landfill of waste
and garbage and so on. The most common pollutants are: carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, sulfur
dioxide, nitrogen oxides, various organic compounds (hydrocarbons, benzenes, freons), lead and other.
On the air quality in one area, in addition to the concentration of pollutants from a source of pollution
and distance of sources, major impact have a meteorological elements. The largest concentration of
pollutants is laid out horizontally windward. In periods of silence - absence of air movement, all
pollute substances remain in the settlement. In the lower layers of atmosphere air is warmer and
moves up to the upper cooler layers, what allowing normal dispersion. However, in terms of the rapid
cooling of the Earth comes to the temperature inversion. Ground - level air is colder than air in the
higher layers so dispersion is disabled. Low air pressure, absence of wind, high humidity of air, fog
and temperature inversions, reduce the spread of pollutants in height and length, they keep them in the
lower layer and concentrating them in the vicinity of sources of pollution. Can reach to forming the
smog with compounds that are highly toxic and dangerous to human health. The level of
concentration the pollutant is determined by measuring. The concentration of polluting substances in
the air, in a certain place, which expressing the air quality, is called immissions. The competent
ministry defines limit values of immissions, ensures proper monitoring of air quality in settlement and
records data, ensures monitoring of basic meteorological elements and
pollution

air

on

human

monitors the impact of

health.

Objective of air quality control is the protection of human health, respectively, identification of
pollution sources, determining the degree of pollution, determining the movement of air pollution
during the year, evaluation of the burden on certain locations, identification of critical situations in

10

The 1st Student Conference Content and English Language Integrated Learning
CLIL 2016 Zenica, B&H, June 2016

order

to

alert

public

and

determining

of

protection

measures.

7. LITERATURE
[1] Colls,J. (2002): Air Pollution, Spon Press, London, 2002.
[2] Ross,B., Amter, S. (2010): The Polluters: The making of Our Chemically Altered Environment, Oxford
Universiy Press, New York, 2010.
[3] Cherni, J. (2002): Economic Growth versus the Environment: The Politics od Wealth, Health and Air
Pollution, Palgrave, New York, 2002.
[4] Crandall,R. (1983): Controlling Industrial Pollution, Brookings Institution, Washington, D.C., 1983.

11