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Zhang, Dyrus: Global Warming & Your Carbon Footprint

  • Page ID
    95461
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    Individual Essay Submission        Edit section    Edit section     

    Cut and paste your un-plagiarized essay of 250-500 words having 3 or more paragraphs into this private individual page below on or before midnight December 1st.  Be sure to save your drafts off line and cut and paste the final version. Submissions will not be accepted after that time.

    Once you have made a final submission, send Dr. R. an e-mail (rrusay@chemconnections.org) advising him that you have done so.

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    The greenhouse effect refers to the warning process of the Earth’s atmosphere. It is caused by the absorption of radiation energy by greenhouse gases, which are Carbon dioxide (CO2), Methane (CH4), Nitrous oxide (NO2) and  Sulfur hexafluoride(SF6). Although there is the small concentration of greenhouse gases in the world, it prevents the Earth’s surface heat from escaping into space. 

    Carbon dioxide is considered as a great concern which contributed the most to the greenhouse effect and climate change among all Greenhouse Gases. , The amount of CO2 in the atmosphere is about 402.29 ppm today. This is tracked by CarbonTracker, which is developed by NOAA. Surprisingly, the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere has increased from 185 ppm in ice age to 403 ppm in Jan 2016 (esrl.noaa.gov) Since the first industrial revolution, the human has burned a tremendous amount of fossil fuels, which made great contribution in increasing greenhouse gases, especially CO2. The fossil fuels are a part of Carbon Cycle, which also includes the terrestrial biosphere and the oceans. To reduce effects that are brought by CO2, using alternative energy become a new trend. Solar energy is one the of most important ones because it is renewable it is H2 safe. The increasing concentration of Carbon dioxide can also influence the acid-base equilibrium of the ocean. Because Carbon dioxide is highly soluble in water and becomes a weak acid, which reacts to the strongest base concentration and upsets the carbonate buffer system. If the buffering effects are stopped, it would result in much more acidic ocean, according to American Chemical Society (acs.org)


    According to the Guardian, the average American is responsible for 19.8 tons per person (Vaughan, theguardian.com). My personal total carbon footprint is 29.3. To improve my carbon footprint, I can take less airplane, use public transportation more frequently, turn off the lights when I am not using them, eat less meat and buy fewer goods. To enhance people s awareness of reducing greenhouse effects, I will hold some workshops to provide more solutions for people to prevent global warming.

     


    Zhang, Dyrus: Global Warming & Your Carbon Footprint is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by LibreTexts.

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