Question

The major threat to Taj Mahal is:
A. Acid rain
B. Hydrogen peroxide
C. Both a and b
D. None of the above

Answer 1

Hint There are seven wonders of the world and out of that Taj Mahal is the one which is an ivory-white marble mausoleum. The marbles of Taj Mahal are made up of calcium carbonate.

Complete Step by step solution:
The major threat to the Taj Mahal is the acid rain. Acid rain is generally defined as the polluted rain in which sulphur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide are known as the most common pollutants. These pollutants are released into the atmosphere by burning of fossil fuels like diesel and coal and when these pollutants react with the water vapors present in the atmosphere they form nitric acid and sulphuric acid which are further mixed with vapors and falls down on the earth in the form of acid rain.
There are many bad effects of acid rain on the Taj Mahal; it gets corroded as it is completely made up of marble. Acid rain reacts with this marble and forms a powder-like substance which is further washed away by the rain and this phenomenon is called marble cancer. Rather than nitric acid and sulphuric acids there are some other pollutants which are produced by the industries located in and around Agra react with air to form acids and due to this decoloration happens to its white marble and it becomes pale yellow in color.

Note: Acid rain is not only harmful for buildings and monuments it is very harmful for agriculture, plants and animals too as it washes away all the nutrients from them which are required for the growth and survival of plants and it also reduces the fertility of land.