EESA10H3 Chapter Notes - Chapter 4: National Health And Nutrition Examination Survey, Predatory Fish, Seed
Document Summary
Most combustion products from burning fossil fuels are released into the atmosphere, becoming air pollution, a term that has traditionally referred to pollution of the troposphere. All combustion is fundamentally the same basic oxidation process (see the following sidebar titled about. However, this simple picture is complicated by both the conditions of burning and the characteristics of the fuel. In particular, combustion under real-world conditions is often incomplete, and fossil fuels are more than just hydrocarbons. Further, some air pollutants from the burning of fossil fuels set in motion complex secondary impacts. At its most basic, combustion is a chemical reaction that requires a hydrocarbon fuel, the presence of oxygen, and an initial source of heat. Heating causes the hydrocarbon fuel to break down and recombine with the oxygen, forming water (h2o) and carbon dioxide (co2). This oxidation reaction also releases heat energy, causing the combustion to continue as long as fuel remains.