Question

Give the composition, causes and effect of acid rain.

Answer 1

To solve this we must know that acid rain as the name suggests is the precipitation of acid in the form of rain in a simple manner. When various pollutants in the atmosphere like nitrogen oxides and sulphur react with rain water and come down along with rain drops it is known as acid rain.

Complete solution:
We know that when various pollutants in the atmosphere like nitrogen oxides and sulphur react with rain water and come down along with rain drops it is known as acid rain.
Acid rain is composed of highly acidic droplets of water. This is due to the air emissions, disproportionate levels of nitrogen and sulphur emitted by different industrial processes and vehicles.
The deposition of acid occurs in two ways: wet deposition and dry deposition.

1. Wet deposition: The form of precipitation which removes acids from the atmosphere and places them on the earth surface is known as wet deposition.
2. Dry deposition: The type of deposition in which polluting particles and gases stick to the ground through smoke and dust is known as dry deposition.
   Acid rain is caused mainly by the particles of nitrogen and sulphur which get mixed with the wet components of rain. The nitrogen and sulphur particles are either manmade or natural. Man Made particles are the result of industrial emissions and natural particles are the result of lightning strikes which release nitrogen ions and volcanic eruptions which release sulphur.
   Effects of acid rain are as follows:
   a) Acid rain has adverse effects on agriculture, plants and animals. Acid rain washes out all the essential nutrients required for the growth and survival of plants and alters the composition of soil.
   b) Acid rain causes respiratory problems in humans and animals.
   c) Acid rain causes harm to the aquatic ecosystems by altering the composition of water.
   d) Acid rain damages monuments made up of marble.

Note: One adverse effect of acid rain is the Taj Mahal which is one of the seven wonders of the world. Taj Mahal is made up of calcium carbonate. The sulphur in acid rain resulted in the reaction of calcium carbonate and sulphur which produced calcium sulphate. Calcium sulphate resulted in corrosion of the monument.