GLOBAL PANDEMIC -

AIR POLLUTION

SMOG AND ITS EFFECTS

BREATHING KILLS

The first preventable health risk

according to the research by WHO
is breathing.
More dangerous than blood pressure
,lack of exercise and tobacco itself.
More people die every year from
breathing than smoking.
A figure of about 7 Million people
Environmental inequality

Varies from 1:10 from street

corner to street corner
It compounds the social and
economic inequalities
People of different regions
have different impacts on their
life expectancy i.e.
London : a decrease of 3
months of life due to air
pollution
Athens: 6 months
Europe: 2 years of life due to
this main inequality
Air pollution – an
introduction

Air pollution occurs when the air

is contaminated with any
chemical, physical or biological
agent.
World’s largest environmental
health risk leading to millions of
deaths every year.
Vulnerable groups: elderly,
children, people with chronic
lung and heart diseases.
OUTDOOR AIR POLLUTION

 NATURAL HUMAN
{BIOGENIC} {anthropogenic}
pollens industry
Bushfires burning fossils
 dust motor vehicles
Outdoor pollutants

PARTICULATE MATTER {PM}:

Industry
Vehicle exhausts
Dust storms
Bush fires
They are classified according to
the diameter of particle
Outdoor pollutants

NITROGEN DIOXIDE:
Burning fuel
Vehicle exhausts
Industry
Power plants
Gas stovetops
Outdoor pollutants

CARBON MONOXIDE:
Incomplete burning of carbon
Vehicle exhausts
Carbon is a source of many other
health hazards
Industry incinerators
Bush fires
Outdoor pollutants

 SULPHUR DIOXIDE:
 Burning of sulphur containing fuels
 Power plants refineries
 LEAD:
 Metal and ore processing
 Car exhausts
 Ozone and there are hundreds of other
air pollutants
Indoor air pollution

Many sources
Solid fuels used for cooking i.e.
wood , charcoal,
3 Billion people use simple
stoves or open fires to cook or
heat their homes
This increases the concentration
of particulate matters indoors
INDOOR AIR
POLLUTANTS

 Other indoor air pollutants include

 Tobacco smoke
 Building materials
 Pesticides
 Asbestos
 Cleaning products
 Inadequate ventilation
 Heat and humidity
INDOOR AIR POLLUTION

There are several ways to

reduce indoor air pollution:
Controlling at the source-solid
fuel, clean energy. Energy
efficient housing
Improve indoor environments:
Increase ventilation
Design features
Health effects

 Short and long term ,depend upon:

 Type
 Concentration
 Length of exposure
 Individual characteristics
 Minor: eye ,nose and throat irritation
 Severe: heart or lung disease, cancer
 3.7 Millions deaths
Reducing air pollution

 Combined efforts of Governments,

industry and individuals
 Govt. can take actions like:
 Developing standards
 Regulation
 Policies
 Using clean energy sources
Reducing air pollution

Industry can help by:

Reduced emissions
Prevent pollution accidents
Technological innovation
Reducing air pollution

Individuals can help by

Reducing reliance on fossil
fuels
Using public transport
Using energy efficient means
of living and transportation
Air quality monitoring

Laws to regulate the air quality

Air quality standards
Technological feasibility
Specified concentration of
pollutants
Criteria pollutants
i.e.PM,NO2,O3,CO,Pb that are
allowed in the air
Prevention by laws

Various laws have been

established for the menace of air
pollution
Air ,( prevention and control of
pollution) . Act,1981
Motor vehicle Act,1988
Environment protection Act,1986
Clean air act regulate

Under the Clean Air Act, the

Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) is required to regulate
emission of pollutants that
"endanger public health and
welfare." State and local
governments also monitor and
enforce Clean Air Act
regulations, with oversight by
the EPA.
Classification of
pollutants

 Pollutants can be grouped into two

categories :

 1- Primary pollutants: which are

emitted directly from identifiable
sources

 2- Secondary pollutants: which are

produced in the atmosphere when
certain chemical reactions take place
among primary pollutants
Air pollution controlling
equipments

 1- Gravitational settling chamber:

 Used to remove particles with size
greater than 50 micrometers
 Particles settle under gravitational
force
 Advantages include, low initial cost and
easy to design and have a low pressure
drop
 Disadvantages include , less collection
efficiency and requirement of large
space
Air pollution controlling
equipments

 2- Cyclone separator:
 Centrifugal force is utilized to
separate the particulate matter.
 Can remove 10-50 micrometers
particle size
 Advantages include , low initial cost
and can handle large volume of gas
at high temperature
 Disadvantages include , less
efficiency for smaller particles and
requires large head room
Air pollution controlling
equipments

 3- Electrostatic precipitators:
 Works on the principle of electrical
charging of particulate matter(-ve)and
collecting it in a +ve charged surface
 99% efficiency
 Advantages include, high collection
efficiency and can be operated at high
temperatures
 Disadvantages include , high initial cost
and high voltage requirement
Smog

 The term smog was first used in London

during the early 1900’s to describe the
combination of smog and fog
 Combination of pollutants but actually,
primarily made up of ground level ozone
 Smog is a visible example of air
pollution
 You can look at the horizon during the
day to see how much haze there is in
the air
How is smog formed?

 In typical urban areas , at least half

of the smog precursors come from
automobiles.
 Other sources include, power plants
, factories , paints, hair spray and
even plastic popcorn packaging
 Other causes include smoke
particles , ozone and NO2
What makes smog so bad?

 Smog consists of NOX and ozone

 It is extremely toxic and corrosive
 Virtually all the plant life was dead
for a half mile around Donora even
before 1948
 Repeated exposure may permanently
damage lungs or aggravate
respiratory infections
 Reduces lung function , causes
asthma, emphysema and bronchitis
EFFECTS OF SMOG ON
FERTILITY

1- Disruption in production of

testosterone and estrogen
2-Premature births
3-Higher risk of miscarriages
in pregnant women
4-Neonatal death
EFFECTS OF SMOG ON
FERTILITY

IVF specialist Dr. Rita Bakshi

have prepared a report and
claimed that:
Smog can effect the hormonal
activity in the body and reduce
fertility
The consequences may include:
Major types of smog

 Photochemical smog:
 It is a type of secondary pollutant
that occurs when the chemicals
given off react with sunlight in the
atmosphere.
 Formed by secondary pollutants ,
ozone and PAN
(PEROXYACETYLNITRATE) brown in
color
 NO + O2 forms NO2 and in presence
of sunlight and gives O radical
O combines with O2 and gives
O3
Major types of smog

Sulphurous smog:
London smog is also known as
sulphurous smog. (industrial
smog)
Contains soot particulates from
smoke , sulphur dioxide and
other components.
Created when fossil fuels are
burned
Gray colored
SOME MAJOR VICTIMS OF
SMOG
o DELHI:
o Pollution levels have reached its
worst
o Harmful for health including
fertility
o Air pollution in 2017 peaked on
both PM 2.5 and PM 10 levels
MAJOR VICTIMS OF
SMOG

In Lahore , smog as become a

“FIFTH SEASON”
PM 2.5 which is small enough
to penetrate lungs and blood
stream
More than 30 times what
Pakistan’s Govt. considers the
safe limit
SURVIVING CHINA’S
SMOG

5 facts about china’s smog

that will make your skin crawl:
1-A shockingly low number of
Chinese cities meet the
country’s air quality standards
2- Hazardous plumes of smog
fill the air and interrupt daily
life
SURVIVING CHINA’S
SMOG

3- China’s air pollution is

visible from outer space
4- Air borne toxins kill an
alarming number of people
5- There is no end in sight
CHINA’S IONIC SMOG-
SUCKING VACUUM

Designed by Daan
Roosegaarde, an artist who
focuses on social design
projects
He designed a giant ionic smog
crushing vacuum that he
wants to put in the parks of
Beijing
HOW IT WORKS

It works by capturing the air

containing 70% PM 10 and
produces a bubble of filtered
air that is released
Can capture PM 2.5 as well
But helps through only in a
small area
5 steps to protect yourself
from smog

 1- If the air quality forecast is poor ,

stay indoors and keep the windows
closed.
 2- If you are asthmatic or have COPD,
carry your inhaler at all times.
 3- Avoid exercising in smoggy
conditions
 4- Avoid built up or congested areas if
you want to go outdoors
 5- Keep your own emissions to a
minimum and wear mask
WILL OUR FUTURE CITIES
BE POLLUTION FREE?

The answer is yes! There is a

hope!
Govt. and brands have started to
take actions
Co2 emissions can be reduced
They do not ask consumers to
pay for bicycles or smog masks
THE FUTURE

Nissan and Foster + partners

have developed a concept that
turns cars into mobile battery
units.
Nissan is also trialing xStorage
batteries
Collaboration is the key to
macro-scale innovation
REFERENCES

The times of India blogs

Thought catalog.com
www.nytimes.com
http://medium.com/pakistan-
air-quality