At the end of the day.. (:

And in conclusion..
Thank you ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, (and teachers) for enduring through this long, LONG presentation of ours. (x
As you all can see, we've put in ALOT of effort into this. -hint hint- 
We should say that we've learnt quite a fair bit in the midst of doing up this blog, and we hope you all have as well. :D
Thank you all once again!! You guys have been great audiences! (:

Forever Toxin,
Shuenlin, Candy, Meiling, Qinying, Jueying, Liying
:D


-CLAPS-

Stop them!!

Hi everyone, this is a post by jueying and qinying, since many of you have already realized the harmful effects brought to us by sulphur dioxides and oxides of nitrogen, the following are some solutions to reduce emissions of these “evil  gases” ,so let’s protect our environment and our health J

 

Environmental Agencies

  

  - Lower the limit of SO₂ emissions from power plants

   -Authorize power plants to trade SO₂ allowances

Companies: Burning fossil fuels and Power Plants

Companies can also earn money while protecting environment and people’s health

-Use coal containing less sulfur

-Washing the coal before burning

-Use devices called “scrubbers” to chemically remove the SO2 from the gases leaving the smokestack.

-A power plant to switch fuels—e.g. burning natural gas creates much less SO2 than burning coal.

-Power Plants use technologies that do not burn fossil fuels.

-Use Flue-gas desulphurization (FGD), a technology used to remove sulfur dioxide (SO2) from the exhaust flue gases of fossil-fuel power plants, and chemical producers of sulphur oxides.

Vehicles

Cars may be useful in our everyday life but a slight change made to your vehicles could help the environment and our healthJ

-Catalytic converters to reduce NO_x emissions from cars.

-Make changes to gasoline that allows it to burn cleaner.

-Cleaning up exhaust pipes

-Use alternative energies, e.g. Natural gas, batteries, and fuel cells, available to power automobiles.

Individuals

Please do your part in saving the environment and your own health J

-Use other sources of electricity besides fossil fuels, such as nuclear power, hydropower, wind energy, geothermal energy, and solar energy.

-Conserve energy because energy production comes from fossil fuels which can lead to acid rain. Hence by acting appropriately in the following ways, we can reduce emission of sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxides.

-Turn off lights, computers, and other appliances when you're not using them.

-Use energy-efficient appliances: lighting, air conditioners, heaters, refrigerators, washing machines, etc.

-Only use electric appliances when you need them.

-Insulate your home as best you can. 

-Carpool, use public transportation, or better yet, walk or bicycle whenever possible can reduce tons of nitrogen oxide emissions.

-Buy vehicles with low NO_x emissions, and properly maintain your vehicle.

-Be well informed.

 

Their evil plans.. >:)

Hey guys! This is Candy and Mei Ling. So you've gotten to know a bit more about the evil NITROGEN OXIDE and SULFUR DIOXIDE, right? Great! Now it's our turn to introduce you to the devilish plans they have in mind, what they've done, and what they're planning to do next..

-MUAHAHAHAHA-

-ahem-
So as we were saying, we'll be giving you all a sneak peak on what these two guys are up to. We'll be classifying the evil they've done into two types: their effects on the HUMAN HEALTH (yes, that's you! :D) and their effects on the ENVIRONMENT.

You all might be wondering, "What can all these invisible lil' things in the air do to us?". Well, you'll be surprised. (:

Let's start off with sulfur dioxide.
How FATAL serious the situation can be usually depends on how many of these lil' guy are present in the air around us.

Short term exposure to these guys lead to wheezing, chest tightness and shortness of breath..

High concentration of SO2 can cause breathing problems with asthmatic children and adults who are active outdoors...

   

And if you're really loved surrounded by these guys, it'll lead to respiratory illness, alterations in the lungs' defenses and aggravation of existing cardiovascular (simply put, "heart") disease.





Unexpected this, eh?
Now lets move on to what nitrogen oxide can do to you.

Small levels of these guys can cause nausea, irritated eyes and/or nose, fluid forming in lungs and shortness of breath..

Breathing in high levels of it can lead to rapid, burning spasms; swelling of throat; reduced oxygen intake; a larger buildup of fluids in lungs and/or death..






They can also react with aerosols from aerosols cans and cause respiratory problems and visual impairment in the area affects by it.

Oh my...so how does all that sound?
I guess most of you would've realised by now that they have the GREAT ability to KILL US. Yeah. That's right. They can KILL. 

AND THAT'S NOT ALL!

Now lets move on to the environmental problems, shall we?
(Note: We know most of you would've cared less about what these guys can do to the environment. But hey, have a heart. We ARE living on Earth, right?)

Remember what we said about acid rain in the previous post? These lil' guys are one of the major precursors of acid rain, which corrodes stone and metal work and damages buildings. :O
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JRvvPOAWMAo&feature=related

In addition to that, have you realised how hot the weather has become? That's right! Nitrogen oxide contributes to global warming too. Also, they hamper the growth of plants.

And to spice it all up, they play a part to destroy the ozone layer, resulting in higher levels of UV radiation and increasing the risk of skin cancer and cataracts. So this eventually will affect us.. >.<

So how does all that sound to you now? Are you maybe, probably, just a little more SCARED?


-evil laughs-

After knowing about their evil plans, are you guys going to be the HERO and do something to STOP them? Do you know how?

Stay tuned as the rest of us brief you on your mission to stop them.

FAREWELL~ :D

WANTED: NITROGEN OXIDE AND SULFUR DIOXIDE

Hi this is Li Ying and Shuen Lin from Crazy Chemists and today we would like to share with you (or rather warn you about) this very dangerous guy called nitrogen oxide. It is extremely dangerous especially because you can't exactly see it, can't hear it and the most terrifying thing of all...

YOU MAY BE INHALING IT RIGHT NOW

Ok ok, if that has frightened you out of your wits, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to, but what if it's true, I said

WHAT IF

Ok? So chill out and don't get freaked out, cos I am pretty sure that our NEA has been doing a terrific job all along.

First, I will do a brief introduction about this guy. This nitrogen oxide is a combination of two gas elements called nitrogen and oxygen (For those who can't understand what I am saying you may visualize a family tree). This guy can change into many forms, depending on how much each of the elements decided to contribute to its formation.

FOR EXAMPLE

Nitric oxide (NO)

Also called nitrogen monoxide, it is formed when nitrogen gives one atom and oxygen also gives one atom to fuse together. It is a colorless gas, so

BEWARE

  

There may be traces of it around, silently lurking about

AND YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW ABOUT IT,
FOR GOODNESS SAKE

And before you can scream out loud, I still have to tell you, if nitrogen monoxide decides to get another atom from oxygen, that makes:

Nitrogen dioxide (NO2)


this 2nd form of nitrogen dioxide is much, much okay, in the sense that it can be easily spotted, cos it is brown (thank God) 


so what causes the formation of these Nitrogen Oxides?

Actually, it's all because of father's car and your medicine cabinet, and I am NOT joking.

While they are making your car and medicine and other chemical stuff, some heat has to be produced, right? That's why: the high temperatures in these factories, nitrogen combines with oxygen to form nitrogen monoxide. Then some nitrogen monoxide gets another atom from the surrounding oxygen in the atmosphere and becomes nitrogen dioxide, like this:

N2(g) + O2(g) = 2NO(g)
nitrogen    +   oxygen    =  nitrogen monoxide

2NO(g) + O2(g) = 2NO2(g)
nitrogen     +     oxygen    =    nitrogen dioxide
monoxide

AND NOT ONLY THAT

If it is raining cats and dogs right now at your place, you may have a high possibility to encounter this villainous thing. When it is raining cats and dogs (not the real ones!), there must be lightning, right? Lightning is the form of light energy, am I right? Light produces heat, correct? That's the root of the problem. this heat causes nitrogen and oxygen in the air to react and form nitrogen oxides. and the scary thing is:

IN THE COMPOSITION OF AIR AROUND US...


ABOUT 78% IS MADE UP OF NITROGEN

AND

ABOUT 20% IS MADE UP OF OXYGEN

AND THAT MAKES

98% OF THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF AIR IN THE ATMOSPHERE 

GOT THAT???? MWAHAHAHAHAHA -evil laughter-

Alright alright relax it's only a silly joke (but the statistics are real!!!!) But if you are still feeling indignant about it, you may go smash that car of yours (joking joking), or go raid that pharmacy down the street and destroy the boxes of chemicals there.

disclaimer: this is only a suggestion. you may do it at your own expense

And there's one more:

Nitrous oxide: N2O


This form of nitrogen dioxide is another hazard, but drop that broom - it isn't that car's fault, poor thing (though you deserved it). This guy has been dwelling the horizons of Earth a long long time ago, when T-rexes and other giant reptiles roam the lands and seas. It is emitted by bacteria in soils and oceans, deep down in the chasms of the planet.


It is:


COLORLESS


NON FLAMMABLE


AND

SWEET ^^


but don't be fooled by its appealing appearance

Nitrous oxide reacts with oxygen to produce NO (nitric oxide)...


...and this NO in turn reacts with ozone (a compound of 3 oxygen atoms)...


...and NO2 is produced...


...and it goes on and on...

TIPS TIPS TIPS

Now it's time to be a hero and pull out this evil monster.

Ingredients: a jet, a pilot, and some machine which you can suck out this evil thing (but I don't think it's invented yet), a president, a medal

First, I will tell you where this guy lives in.


See that picture below?


These are the layers of the atmosphere surrounding Earth.



See that label "stratosphere"?


Yes, 10 to 30km vertical and you'll crash right into its home. 


So all you have to do is:


1. Take out the machine


2. Suck out the monster


3. Go back to Earth


4. Get your medal and relish in the cheers of the crowd.

Isn't that easy?


Apparently,

But fret not, there are still many other ways we can mow down this bad guy.

AND WAIT~

have I missed anything?


aw shucks I've forgotten to warn you about the evil things that nitrogen dioxide had done!  

WELL IT'S IN THE NEXT CHAPTER~

 -And-

Now it’s time for SO2 !

SO2 is the chemical formula of the gas called sulfur dioxide, and it isn’t less evil than nitrogen oxides!

Sulfur dioxide cannot be seen as well. It is invisible, with a nasty smell.

And why exactly is it dangerous? It is because of its ability to react easily with other substances to form many kinds of harmful compounds, with sulfuric acid and sulfate particles being a few examples.

Now, before we start pointing fingers, let me just state that

WE, HUMANS

Are the ones causing 99% of the sulfur dioxide in our environment. Yes, we’re the ones doing this to our Earth.

Industrial activity, where materials that contain sulfur are processed, is one of the biggest source of sulfur dioxide.  Examples will be the burning of fossil fuels which contain sulfur as well as the generation of electricity from coal, oil, or gas that contain sulfur. So switch off the lights when you leave the room, yeah ? :D

And when mineral ores are processed, sulfur dioxide will also be released if the ores contain sulfur. Volcanoes also release sulfur dioxide. Yeah yeah relax! I'm not saying volcanoes are your fault! :D 

Oh, and did you know that when your father drives a car, he is also contributing to the presence of sulfur dioxide in the environment? As a result of fuel combustion, sulfur dioxide is also present in motor vehicle emissions. So we should use public transport more often!

Furthermore, smelting, which is to produce a metal from its ore, also releases sulfur dioxide into our poor environment! 

Of course, there are natural sources of sulfur dioxide as well. These include biological decay, oceans, forest fires and, as previously mentioned, volcanoes. Yes yes chill! No one's blaming you for this! These are things that are beyond our control, but what we can do is to minimize the release of sulfur dioxide due to human activities! 

Okay, I suppose we're done here. The others will follow up ^_^ So stay tuned~ 

haven't you people realized all along that I didn't provide any proofs that this nitrogen oxide is dangerous?

Just to say Hello

We've started quite late, I know... but to those who are reading this post, do simmer down first. You might never know what to expect next! ;)

First, on behalf of the group, welcome to Forever Toxic. To start with, I am Li Ying, a proud member of Crazy Chemists. Currently, I am working with my fellow team mates Shuen Lin, Candy, Jue Ying, Mei Ling and Candy as a group (okay...). The reason why we are setting up this blog is to warn readers and netizens about how much harm this pollution thing has been causing to our Earth (though privately I feel quite obliged to say that this is one of another holiday projects that we have to do), but

ANYWAY

We are doing this with the purest of pure intentions (not to mention securing some CA marks). 

SO...

What we need you to do is to sit back and enjoy our posts, and to certain guests who are concerned, please rate us so we can serve you better. 

Do support us and look out for updates! Comments (minus vulgarities) and feedback are certainly welcomed. So thank you and have a good night.