Ozone is formed when heat and sunlight cause chemical reactions between oxides of nitrogen (NO X ) and Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) , which are also known as Hydrocarbons. This reaction can occur both near the ground and high in the atmosphere.
What are the two types of ozone?
Ozone or “O3” is a colorless gas composed of three atoms of oxygen (O3). There are two types of ozone, both “good” ozone and “bad” ozone .
What happens to ozone in the presence of sunlight?
Destruction of ozone in the stratosphere takes place as quickly as formation of ozone, because the chemical is so reactive. Sunlight can readily split ozone into an oxygen molecule and an individual oxygen atom .
How does sunlight produce ozone?
Ozone is naturally produced in the stratosphere by a two- step reactive process. In the first step, solar ultraviolet radiation (sunlight) breaks apart an oxygen molecule to form two separate oxygen atoms. ... In the over- all process, three oxygen molecules plus sunlight react to form two ozone molecules.
Which chemical is an ozone depleting substance?
Ozone depleting substances are chemicals that destroy the earth’s protective ozone layer. They include: chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) halon .
How is ozone produced in the atmosphere?
Stratospheric ozone is formed naturally through the interaction of solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation with molecular oxygen (O2) . The “ozone layer,” approximately 6 through 30 miles above the Earth’s surface, reduces the amount of harmful UV radiation reaching the Earth’s surface.
What is ozone pollution?
But at ground level, ozone is an air pollutant that harms people and plants. Ground-level ozone forms when nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds react with each other in sunlight and hot temperatures. This pollution comes from vehicles, industry, and other sources and contributes to smog formation.
What layer in the atmosphere is the ozone?
The ozone layer is the common term for the high concentration of ozone that is found in the stratosphere around 15–30km above the earth’s surface. It covers the entire planet and protects life on earth by absorbing harmful ultraviolet-B (UV-B) radiation from the sun.
What does sunlight and chemicals create?
Sunlight is used to drive many chemical processes that would not otherwise occur. For example, carbon dioxide and water do not ordinarily react, but in the process of photosynthesis, plants take these two chemicals and, using sunlight, produce oxygen and sugar .
Is ozone made from sunlight?
The natural level of ozone in the stratosphere is a result of a balance between sunlight that creates ozone and chemical reactions that destroy it. Ozone is created when the kind of oxygen we breathe—O 2 — is split apart by sunlight into single oxygen atoms .
What are the chemical properties of ozone?
Ozone is a bluish gas with a boiling point at -112oC . At atmospheric pressure, ozone can partially dissolve in water. At standard pressure and temperature, the solubility of ozone is thirteen times that of oxygen. The oxidation potential of 2.07 volts proves that ozone is a strong oxidizer.
What are the chemical equations for the two reactions that create ozone?
O 2 + hν ( < 242 nm ) → 2 O. Each oxygen atom then quickly combines with an oxygen molecule to form an ozone molecule: O + O 2 → O . The ozone–oxygen cycle: the ozone molecules formed by the reaction above absorb radiation having an appropriate wavelength between UV-C and UV-B.
What is the function of ozone in the upper atmosphere?
The function of the ozone (O 3 ) layer in the upper atmosphere is to prevent harmful ultraviolet (UV) rays from reaching the Earth’s surface , as these UV rays cause various types of diseases including skin cancer.
Why is ozone toxic?
How is Ozone Harmful? The same chemical properties that allow high concentrations of ozone to react with organic material outside the body give it the ability to react with similar organic material that makes up the body, and potentially cause harmful health consequences. When inhaled, ozone can damage the lungs.
What kind of chemical are in the sun?
Like any star in its prime, the sun consists mainly of hydrogen atoms fusing two by two into helium , unleashing immense energy in the process. But it’s the sun’s tiny concentration of heavier elements, which astronomers call metals, that controls its fate.
Is sunlight a chemical reaction or contains chemicals?
Photosynthesis requires energy, making it an endothermic reaction . Light, generally sunlight, is the source of this energy. The process converts the sun’s electromagnetic energy into chemical energy, which is then stored in chemical bonds in the plant. Sunlight is the primary source of energy on the surface of Earth.
What chemicals are in the sun?
The sun is mostly composed of the elements hydrogen (H) and helium (He) . By mass the composition of the sun is 92.1% hydrogen and 7.9% helium. Various metals make up less than 0.1% of the mass of the sun.
Which gases destroy the ozone layer?
Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) and halons destroy the earth’s protective ozone layer, which shields the earth from harmful ultraviolet (UV-B) rays generated from the sun.
How hydrocarbons deplete the ozone layer?
Ultraviolet Radiation
A type of hydrocarbons that are nonreactive, nonflammable organic molecules in which both chlorine and fluorine atoms replace some of the hydrogen atoms. Use of CFCs is one of the primary causes of stratospheric ozone depletion. ... A form of oxygen in which three atoms of oxygen occur together.
What products damage the ozone layer?
- chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)
- hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs)
- hydrobromoflurocarbons (HBFCs)
- halons.
- methyl bromide.
- carbon tetrachloride.
- methyl chloroform.
Can you smell ozone?
Ozone has a distinctive smell that humans can detect even in small concentrations — as few as 10 parts per billion. Here are some of the ways the smell of ozone is described: Metallic. Like a burning wire.
Is ozone a greenhouse gas?
Ozone is technically a greenhouse gas , but ozone is helpful or harmful depending on where it is found in the earth’s atmosphere. ... There are human-made industrial chemicals that break down ozone in the stratosphere and create holes in the ozone layer.
Is ozone a smog?
What Is Ozone? Ozone (O 3 ) is a gas molecule composed of three oxygen atoms. Often called “smog,” ozone is harmful to breathe . Ozone aggressively attacks lung tissue by reacting chemically with it.
How does energy from the sun enter the atmosphere?
Energy is transferred from the sun to Earth via electromagnetic waves, or radiation . Most of the energy that passes through the upper atmosphere and reaches Earth’s surface is in two forms, visible and infrared light. ... This transfer of energy can take place by three processes: radiation, conduction, and convection.
How does the ozone layer act as a protective shield?
The ozone layer acts as a shield for life on Earth . Ozone is good at trapping a type of radiation called ultraviolet radiation, or UV light, which can penetrate organisms’ protective layers, like skin, damaging DNA molecules in plants and animals.
Is there chemical energy in the sun?
Sunlight creates a chemical reaction that gives plants energy to grow. Chemical energy is energy that is stored in the bonds between chemical compounds, such as atoms and molecules.
What is Sulphur used for?
The major derivative of sulphur is sulphuric acid (H2SO4), one of the most important elements used as an industrial raw material. Sulphur is also used in batteries, detergents, fungicides, manufacture of fertilizers, gun power, matches and fireworks .
How is ozone prepared write any two uses of ozone?
Preparation of ozone
Ozone is prepared in laboratory by passing silent electric discharge through dry oxygen . By passing the electric current some of the oxygen molecules dissociate and then atomic oxygen combines with oxygen molecules to form ozone.
How does the sun affect chemical reactions?
The sun’s awesome power drives a multitude of chemical reactions that are critical for life on Earth. In the atmosphere, ultraviolet radiation at wavelengths smaller than 242 nanometers splits molecular oxygen (two atoms bonded together) into atomic oxygen (individual atoms).
What chemical feature of the ozone molecule makes it highly reactive?
Ozone reacts directly with organic double bonds. When ozone breaks down to dioxygen, it produces oxygen free radicals , which are highly reactive and capable of damaging many organic molecules. Moreover, it is believed that the powerful oxidizing properties of ozone may be a contributing factor of inflammation.
