CO2 Enhanced or Impaired in our life?

Carbon dioxide (chemical formula CO2) is a chemical compound composed of two oxygen atoms covalently bonded to a single carbon atom. It is a gas at standard temperature and pressure and exists in Earth's atmosphere in this state. CO2 is a trace gas being only 0.038% of the atmosphere.
As a gas, CO2 is colorless and odorless and harmful to human health in concentration higher than 5,000 ppm. The first person to discover CO2 in gas form was Flemish chemist Jan Baptist van Helmond in the 17th century, and the properties of CO2 were further researched by Scottish physician Joseph Black in the 18th century. Carbon dioxide is formed by combustion and by biological processes. These include decomposition of organic material, fermentation and digestion. As an example, exhaled air contains as much as 4% carbon dioxide, or about 100 times the amount of carbon dioxide which was breathed in.

Today CO2 gas has many industrial uses and it can be found in many everyday products.

Multi-Industry Uses for Carbon Dioxide (CO2):
Carbon dioxide in solid and in liquid form is used for refrigeration and cooling. It is used as an inert gas in chemical processes, in the storage of carbon powder and in fire extinguishers.

Metals Industry:
Carbon dioxide is used in the manufacture of casting molds to enhance their hardness.

Manufacturing and Construction Uses:
Carbon dioxide is used on a large scale as a shield gas in MIG/MAG welding, where the gas protects the weld puddle against oxidation by the surrounding air. A mixture of argon and carbon dioxide is commonly used today to achieve a higher welding rate and reduce the need for post weld treatment.
Dry ice pellets are used to replace sandblasting when removing paint from surfaces. It aids in reducing the cost of disposal and cleanup.

Chemicals, Pharmaceuticals and Petroleum Industry Uses:
Large quantities are used as a raw material in the chemical process industry, especially for methanol and urea production.
Carbon dioxide is used in oil wells for oil extraction and maintain pressure within a formation. When CO2 is pumped into an oil well, it is partially dissolved into the oil, rendering it less viscous, allowing the oil to be extracted more easily from the bedrock. Considerably more oil can be extracted from through this process.

Food and Beverages Uses for Carbon Dioxide:
Liquid or solid carbon dioxide is used for quick freezing, surface freezing, chilling and refrigeration in the transport of foods. Carbon dioxide gas is used to carbonate soft drinks, beers and wine and to prevent fungal and bacterial growth.

Health Care Uses:
Carbon dioxide is used as an additive to oxygen for medical use as a respiration stimulant.

Carbon Dioxide: The Breath of Life
Many experiments have been conducted to determine the effects of atmospheric CO2 enrichment on plant growth and development. In the vast majority of these studies, vegetative productivity has been significantly enhanced by increases in the air’s CO2 content. The provocative report also describes a number of non-climatic effects of atmospheric CO2 enrichment that positively impact human health, including the concentration enhancement of various health-promoting constituents of food and medicinal plants. They tend to enhance people’s quality of life.

Carbon Dioxide in the Earth’ atmosphere and Influence of Climate Change
Carbon dioxide in air is considered to be a greenhouse gas because of its ability to absorb infrared light. The concentration of CO2 in the Earth's atmosphere has been increasing at a noticeable rate for much of the past century, human industrial activities are believed to be adding to the amount of "greenhouse gases" naturally present in the atmosphere. There are mounting proofs that following the industrial revolution of the 18th and 19th centuries, which commenced in Britain and has expanded to several parts of the world, the amounts of carbon dioxide, methane and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere has increased somewhat. They could have been contributing to Global Warming

Climate Change is believed by scientists, that have been working in that area for years, to be producing or contributing to the severity of effects such as:
Winds and tornadoes/hurricanes becoming stronger
Glacier Melting/declining snow cover
Rising river flows and sea levels,
Decrease in water levels in ponds, lakes and other water bodies
Increasing precipitation,
Timing of lake and river freeze-up/break-up

Copenhagen Climate Concerns
Many people have expressed grave concerns about what was attempted to be accomplished when representatives of the nations of the world met in Copenhagen in early December 2009, seeking to acquire power to restrict the use of energy produced from coal, gas and oil in the guise of fighting global warming and averting the so-called climate crisis.

Carbon dioxide plays a major role as a component of the carbon cycle in which carbon is exchanged between the atmosphere, the terrestrial biosphere (which includes freshwater systems and soil), the oceans, and sediments (including fossil fuels). These interactions are complex and widespread. They undoubtedly can be, and are, influenced by many types of human activities, but the extent to which humans have impacted these processes, and will impact them in the future, remains the subject of much research and debate.

Zheng Shucheng 1000819858

CHEMISTRY BEHIND INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE

Introduction

The modern cars of todays are powered by gasoline fuel. The power is harness from the explosion of hi pressure air-fuel mixture and gives out the energy to the wheel via so many engine parts.
The gasoline contains many chemical but it is primarily made up of hydrocarbons, which are made up of hydrogen atoms chemically bonded with carbon atoms. There are many hydrocarbon combinations in gasoline which depends upon the ratio of carbon to hydrogen.

Combustion

There will be no combustion if these hydrocarbons are not mixed with air which contains 21% of oxygen, 78% of nitrogen and some amount of other gases.
The hydrocarbons in fuel react with oxygen in the air forming carbon dioxide and water vapour, also creating the heat and pressure to power the engine.
The air-fuel ratio plays an important role and it affects the efficiency of the engine as well.
Ideal air-fuel mixture is called stoichiometric air-fuel ratio where the hydrocarbons react with oxygen to form carbon dioxide and water vapour giving optimal efficiency for the engine.
If the air-fuel ratio is richer than stoichiometry then the fuel economy and emission get badly affected, and if the air-fuel mixture is leaner stoichiometry the power and driveability get affected. If the air supplied is more then there will be excess oxygen in the product and if air supplied is less then due to imperfect combustion carbon monoxide is formed affecting the emission.
All the phenomenas said above take place inside the engine via four strokes namely intake, compression, power, exhaust.

Harnessing the chemistry of these hydrocarbons, the fate of mankind has changed beyond the wildest imagination.

M.Raamjee
1000717321

WATER OR COKE???

I could not believe this.....very interesting...

• In many states the highway patrol carries two gallons of Coke in the trunk to remove blood from the highway after a car accident.



• You can put a T-bone steak in a bowl of Coke and it will be gone in two days.



• To clean a toilet: Pour a can of Coca-Cola into the toilet bowl and let the 'real thing' sit for one hour, then flush clean. The citric acid in Coke removes stains from vitreous china.



• To remove rust spots from chrome car bumpers: Rub the bumper with a rumpled-up piece of Reynolds Wrap aluminum foil dipped in Coca-Cola.



• To clean corrosion from car battery terminals: Pour a can of Coca-Cola over the terminals to bubble away the corrosion.



• To loosen a rusted bolt: Apply a cloth soaked in Coca-Cola to the rusted bolt for several minutes.



• To bake a moist ham: Empty a can of Coca-Cola into the baking pan, wrap the ham in aluminum foil, and bake. Thirty minutes before ham is finished, remove the foil, allowing the drippings to mix with the Coke for a sumptuous brown gravy.



• To remove grease from clothes: Empty a can of Coke into the load of greasy clothes, add detergent, and run through a regular cycle.. The Coca-Cola will help loosen grease stains. It will also clean road haze from your windshield.

What will happen to their body taking of this coke??? Why do American coke can react like this????

For your information!!!

• The active ingredient in Coke is phosphoric acid. Phosphoric acid also leaches calcium from bones and is a major contributor to the rising increase of osteoporosis.



• To carry Coca-Cola syrup! (the concentrate) the commercial trucks must use a hazardous Material place cards reserved for highly corrosive materials.



• The distributors of Coke have been using it to clean engines of the trucks for about 20 years!

Phosphoric acid also know as orthophosphoric acid having the chemical formula H3PO4. American coke are different from Malaysia coke. It is because American coke has a high level of phosphoric acid than Malaysia. There are three element in phosphoric acid; phosphorus, oxygen and hidrogen. Coke has a pH of 2 , it is 100,000 times more acidic than a pH of 7. This has a huge impact on system. Body will use its alkaline minerals such as sodium, potassium, magnesium and calcium to neutralize the acid to return your internal biochemical environment back to normal.

Compounding this acidic problem, body also maintains a balanced concentration of phosphorus, calcium, and potassium in the bloodstream. This provides the right combination for building new bones and maintaining old ones. The shock of incoming phosphorus with zero calcium causes the calcium levels in the blood to decline. This triggers body to dissolve calcium from the bones to restore this balance. This reaction, continued over time, leads to osteoporosis. Additionally, the body usually dissolves more calcium than needed so the excess calcium is eliminated in the following order:

1. Excretion in the urine.
   



2. Deposited in the joints leading to osteoarthritis and bursitis.
   



3. Formation into stones such as kidney stones.
   Deposited in the arteries leading to calcified plaque.
   

Now the question is, would you like a glass of water?

or coke??

malarvili

1001024775

WHATS IN OUR DETERGENT?? IS IT HARMFUL TO US???

we have been using detergent everyday to wash our clothes everyday. detergent really helps us in removal of stain in our clothes and also to soften our clothes. what is detergent actually??? what are the chemicals used to make detergent??? detergents were developed in response to the shortage of the animals and vegetables fats used to produce soap during World War I and II. detergents are primarily surfactants, which could be produced easily from petrochemicals. surfactants lower the surface tension of the water, essentially making it "wetter" so that it is less likely to stick to itself and more likely to interact with oil and grease. modern detergents contains more than surfactants. cleaning products may also contains enzymes to degrade protein-based stains, decolorize stains and to add power to cleaning agents, and blue dyes to encounter yellowing. like soaps, detergents have hydrophobic or water-hating molecular chains and hydrophylic or water-loving components. the hydrophobic hydrocarbons are repelled by water but are attracted to oil and grease. the hydophylic ends of the same molecule means that one end of the molecule will be attracted to water, while the other site is binding to oil. neither detergent nor soap accomplish anything except binding to the soil until some mechanical energy or aggitation are added into the equation. swishing the soapy water around allows the detergent to grime away from clothes or dishes into the larger pool of rinsing water. rinsing washes the detergent aswell as the soil away. warm or hot water melts the fats and oils so that it will be easier for the soap or detergent to dissolve the and pull it away into the rinsing water. detergents are similarly to soap, but they are less likely to form films or soap scum and are not as affected by the presence of minearls in water(hard water). modern detergent may be made from petrochemicals or oleochemicals derived from plants and animals. alkalis and oxidizing agents are also found in detergents. detergents can be used both in hard water aswell as soft water. detergents are more soluble in water than soap. detergents also have a stronger cleansing power compared to soaps. detergents dont need expensive vegetable oils for their preparations as they can be prepared from hydrocarbons of petroleum. they can be used in a very acidic condition too... though detergents really help us out to remove the stains of our dishes and our clothes, but they do have their disadvantages too!!! detergents are neither soluble nor biodegradable like soap. once we add them into the water, they just remain there resisting to breakdown into any smaller particles or componenets!!! some detergents are considered environtmental frenly as they do not contain phosphates or bleaching agents. however, according to the article, there are some evidence from Italy that said that they themselves are the pollutants to the environment. regardless the advantages of the detergents, we as the human beings, must really think of the pros and cons of detergents before using it. we must think of our mother earth and environment before over using the detergent which can harm them... someting that everyone have to think about.??

eswari

1000818345

WHY DO ONIONS MAKE PEOPLE CRY???

Onion cells contain some chemical compound called sulphur. Two chemical reactions take place when cutting an onion. When cutting an onion, the cells break and release a strong odor and volatile the sulphur gas which contain in onions. Then it will react with eyes forming sulphuric acid, which makes our eyes irritation. The nerves of our eyes are very sensitive. Our brain will react by telling the tears to produce water to prevent from the irritation. This will make us to cry so that our eyes will be protected from the sulphur acid.

There are some ways to prevent from crying when chopping onions...

• The onions should be chopping under cold water so that the chemical compound will be release and react with the water.

• The onion also can be kept in refrigerator to freeze so it can slow down the chemical reaction.
  

Sulphur is from group 16 in a periodic table. It has a 16 atomic number and a member of the oxygen family. Sulphur is in pale yellow color and non-metal element. It is also used extensively in making phosphates fertilizers. Sulphur very important for our life. It is a minor component of fats, body fluids, and skeleton minerals. It also used in producing batteries and detergent.

Malarvili Purushothaman

1001024775