Coal and its pollution impact and how to best deal with it.
Coal is made primarily of carbon, but also contains sulfur, oxygen and hydrogen. The
reaction between coal and the air surrounding it produces oxides of carbon, usually
carbon dioxide (CO2 - an important greenhouse gas) in a complete combustion, along
with oxides of sulfur, mainly sulfur dioxide (SO2), and various oxides of nitrogen (NOx).
Because of the hydrogen and nitrogen components of air, hydrides and nitrides of
carbon and sulfur are also produced during the combustion of coal in air. These could
include hydrogen cyanide (HCN), sulfur nitrate (SNO3) and many other toxic
substances.
Further, acid rain may occur when the sulfur dioxide produced in the combustion of coal,
reacts with oxygen to form sulfur trioxide (SO3), which then reacts with water molecules
in the atmosphere to form sulfuric acid (see Acid anhydride for more information).
Biomagnification
Biological Magnification often refers to the process whereby certain substances such as
pesticides or heavy metals move up the food chain, work their way into rivers or lakes,
and are eaten by aquatic organisms such as fish, which in turn are eaten by large birds,
animals or humans. The substances become concentrated in tissues or internal organs
as they move up the chain.
Biomagnification is found in what tissue.
Fatty tissues (Adipose)
Bioaccumulation
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Refers to the accumulation of substances, in the environment before they are taken in by
the first organism in a food chain.
Biogeochemical processes (phosphorus and nitrogen especially)
Nitrogen cycle is the process by which nitrogen is converted between its various
chemical forms. This transformation can be carried out via both biological and non-
biological processes. Important processes in the nitrogen cycle include fixation,
mineralization, nitrification, and denitrification.
The nitrogen cycle is of particular interest
to ecologists because nitrogen availability can affect the rate of key ecosystem
processes, including primary production and decomposition.
Phosphorus cycle is the biogeochemical cycle that describes the movement of
phosphorus through the lithosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere. Unlike many other
biogeochemical cycles, the atmosphere does not play a significant role in the
movements of phosphorus, because phosphorus and phosphorus-based compounds
are usually solids at the typical ranges of temperature and pressure found on Earth.
Phosphorus is an essential nutrient for plants and animals in the form of ions.
Phosphorus forms parts of important life sustaining molecules but is not very common in
the biosphere.
Definition of evolution
Evolution is the change in the inherited traits of a population of organisms through
successive generations.

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- Winter '12
- None
- Global Warming, Greenhouse gas
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