oxides
of A & BCombustion
Every time we strike a match or light a barbecue we start a combustion reaction. Also known as burning, this reaction is easily identified because it produces heat. For combustion to proceed, three things must be present: fuel, oxygen and heat.
sulfur
dioxide(g)S(s) + O2(g)
SO2(g)Application
The everyday activities of human beings include a great amount of combustion
reactions, from driving to work, lighting our offices, to heating our homes
and cooking our food. For example, coal-burning power plants burn coal,
which produces heat, which is used to generate electricity. In this case,
the element in the reactant is carbon and the reaction is: carbon(s) +
oxygen(g)carbon
dioxide(g)
C(s) + O(g)CO2(g)
Impact
However, most burning reactions are incomplete combustion reactions, which means that the reactions produce large amounts of byproducts. Unfortunately, the byproducts are usually unhealthy and damage the environment. In the case of burning fuel in automobiles or coal-burning power plants, gaseous oxides of nitrogen and sulfur are released into the atmosphere. These oxides react with water vapour (through synthesis) to form acids and are responsible for the increased acidity of acid rain. Furthermore, our continued release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere increases the greenhouse effect, thus increasing worldwide temperatures and causing climate change.src