No2 what is it

A bolt of lightning can reach temperatures of roughly 30, kelvins 53, degrees Fahrenheit. How many times does lighting strike the earth you might ask? In large cities, nitrogen oxides are produced from fuel combustion in mobile and stationary sources. The combustion of gasoline in automobiles emit nitrogen oxides into the atmosphere mobile source.

Stationary emissions come from coal fired power plants, electric power plant boilers. Natural sources: Mainly thunderstorms due to the extreme heat of lightning. Forest fire is another natural source. Biogenic: Agricultural fertilization and the use of nitrogen fixing plants through nitrogen fixation by microorganisms.

Although naturally produced nitrogen oxides outweigh man-made emissions, NOx from natural sources are typically found at altitudes higher than 5km. Nitrogen oxides NO x react to form smog and acid rain.

NO x reacts with ammonia, moisture and other compounds to form nitric acid vapour and related particles. The impacts of NO x on human health include damage to the lung tissue, breathing and respiratory problems. Nitric oxide NO is not considered to be hazardous to health at typical ambient conditions.

However, excess nitric oxide and its products may cause respiratory ailments, hematologic side effects, metabolic disorders, low blood pressure, nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea.

Nitrogen dioxide NO 2 at high concentrations causes inflammation of the airways. Breathing in high levels of NO 2 can increase the likelihood of respiratory problems: wheezing, coughing, colds, flu and bronchitis.

People with asthma are prone to have more intense attacks. Prolonged exposure to high levels of NO 2 can cause irreversible damages to the respiratory system. High levels of NOx can have a negative effect on vegetation by making it more susceptible to disease and frost damage.

When NOx reacts with other pollutants in the presence of sunlight, it forms ozone. Ozone at high concentrations also damage vegetation.

Air pollution occurs when gases, dust particles, fumes or odour are introduced into the atmosphere which has harmful or poisonous effects. The common air pollutants are also known as criteria pollutants :. The amount of nitrogen oxides emitted into the atmosphere as air pollution, from both man-made sources, can be quite significant.

While NO 2 is a primary pollutant, it is also a contributing component for secondary pollutants formed from a chemical reaction. The most common is ozone.

Photochemical smog, most common in sunny, dry locations, is created when NO 2 from gas combustion is exposed to sunlight, splits and releases an oxygen ion O. A large new study found evidence that people with lung cancer faced greater risk from NO 2 , ozone, and other outdoor air pollutants.

The study tracked the air pollution levels from to experienced by more than , cancer patients in California. The researchers found that exposure to these air pollutants shortened their survival. Looking beyond the lungs, newer research has linked NO 2 to cardiovascular harm, lower birth weight in newborns and increased risk of premature death. Cars, trucks, and buses are the largest sources of emissions, followed by power plants, diesel-powered heavy construction equipment and other movable engines, and industrial boilers.

Man-made sources in the U. Monitors show the highest concentrations of outdoor NO 2 in large urban regions such as the Northeast corridor, Chicago and Los Angeles. NO 2 can be a problem indoors, as well.

Kerosene or gas space heaters and gas stoves also produce substantial amounts of nitrogen dioxide. If those heaters or stoves are not vented fully to the outside, levels of NO 2 can build up indoors.

Environmental Protection Agency. January In both cases, however, the intent is to control NO X emissions as a group. A large body of health science literature indicates that exposure to NO 2 can induce adverse health effects. The strongest health evidence, and the health basis for the ambient air quality standard for NO 2 , is results from controlled human exposure studies that show that NO 2 exposure can intensify responses to allergens in allergic asthmatics.

In addition, a number of epidemiological studies have demonstrated associations between NO 2 exposure and premature death, cardiopulmonary effects, decreased lung function growth in children, respiratory symptoms, emergency room visits for asthma, and intensified allergic responses.

Infants and children are particularly at risk because they have disproportionately higher exposure to NO 2 than adults due to their greater breathing rate for their body weight and their typically greater outdoor exposure duration. Several studies have shown that long-term NO 2 exposure during childhood, the period of rapid lung growth, can lead to smaller lungs at maturity in children with higher compared to lower levels of exposure.

In addition, children with asthma have a greater degree of airway responsiveness compared with adult asthmatics. In adults, the greatest risk is to people who have chronic respiratory diseases, such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

With few exceptions, NO 2 can injure vegetation, including trees, forests and crops. This has only been reported when the cumulative duration of exposures was at least 0. Also, NO 2 can contribute to the reduction of visibility both directly, by selectively absorbing the shorter blue wavelengths of visible light, and indirectly by contributing to the formation of nitrate aerosol haze that decreases visibility.

Indoor levels of NO 2 are determined primarily by the presence of NO 2 -emitting appliances, the indoor-outdoor air exchange rate, i. Gas stoves and space heaters are the most common indoor sources of NO 2 emissions. Other possible sources include improperly vented furnaces, water heaters, and clothes dryers.