air pollution and control effects of air pollutants on man gaseous pollutants particulate matter

1. Effects of Air Pollutants on
Human
Ravi Kumar GARRE

2. Contents covered
• Introduction
• Effects of particulate matter
• Effects of gaseous pollutants

3. Introduction
• Air pollution is one of the great environmental
evils.
• The air we breathe has not only life supporting
properties also life damaging properties.
• On an average man breathes 22,000 times a day
and takes in 16kg of air each day.
• Under ideal conditions the air we inhale has a
qualitative and quantitative balance that
maintain the well being of man. But when the
balance is damaged the air may affect human
health.

4. Introduction
• The prime factors which affect the human
health due to air pollutants are:
 Nature of the pollutants
 Concentration of the pollutants
 Duration of exposure
 State of health of receptors
 Age group of the receptor

5. Particulate matter
• Particulate matter is a complex mixture of air
borne particles that differ in size, origin and
chemical composition, all of which are
microscopic in size.
• Example: dust, smoke, mist, fog, fume, etc.
• PM is one among the most harmful pollutants.
• Another names: SPM, Aerosols, RSP, Fine
particles, Soot

6. Particulate matter
• Natural sources:
Originates from volcanoes, dust storms, forest
fires, living vegetation and sea spray.
• Anthropogenic sources:
Originates from burning fossil fuels,
incinerating wastes and smelting metals

7. Particulate matter

8. Particulate matter
Adverse health effects:
• PM-10 are inhalable particles. Deposit upper
respiratory tract and large air ways (nose and
throat) and are cleared out.
• PM-2.5 are fine particles. Deposit in deeper
lungs. Stay there longer periods of time.
• PM-0.1 are ultrafine particles. Enter into blood
travel through out body.

9. Particulate matter
Adverse health effects:
• Irritate eye, nose and throat.
• Inflammation of lung tissue.
• Decreased lung function.
• Development chronic lung disease.
• Severity of asthma attacks in children.
• Pre-term birth and low birth weight.
• Premature death in people with heart and lung
diseases.
• Diseases: asthma, bronchitis, pneumonia, lung cancer,
respiratory tract diseases.

10. Particulate matter
People at risk
• Children under 18 age
• Adults above 60 age
• Anyone with chronic lung diseases such as
asthma, bronchitis or emphysema.
• Anyone with cardiovascular disease.
• Anyone with diabetes.

11. Particulate matter
Environmental effects:
• Fine particles reduce visibility.
• Particles make lakes and streams acidic,
deplete nutrients in soil and damage sensitive
forests and farm crops.
• Settling particles on surfaces of statues,
monuments, buildings can damage stone and
other materials.

12. Gaseous pollutants
Sulphur dioxide:
• It is pungent odour gas, irritant gas and when
inhales it affects our mucous membranes.
• It will increase breathing rate, causes oxygen
deficiency in body.
• The patients of asthma will affected very
badly.
• Soluble and absorbed by respiratory system.

13. Gaseous pollutants
Oxides of Nitrogen:
• Cause nose and eye irritation and lungs
problems.
• Reduce blood carrying capacity.
• Pneumonia, emphysema, lung cancer.
• At higher concentrations causes death.
• Combines with haemoglobin in blood 3lakhs
times faster than blood.

14. Gaseous pollutants
Carbon monoxide:
• Highly poisonous gas.
• CO possesses about 200 times affinity for blood-
haemoglobin than Oxygen. When Co inhaled, it
immediately reacts with Hb and forms
carboxyhaemoglobin.
• It stops supply blood to body tissues.
• Low levels of CO causes headache, dizziness, reduction
in reaction time, etc.
• Higher levels CO causes nausea, heart strokes, difficulty
in breath and some times death.

15. Gaseous pollutants
Lead:
High concentrations of lead in atmosphere causes
mental retardation, behavioural disorders,
anaemia, kidney malfunction, tissue damage in
brain and death in extreme poisoning.
Ozone:
Ozone reduces lung function and causes cough,
chest pain, sneezing, etc. It affects respiratory
system also.

16. Gaseous pollutants
Hydrocarbons:
• At high concentrations they cause eye
irritation and respiratory problems.
• Aromatic hydrocarbons are carcinogenic in
nature.
Aldehydes:
• Irritation of mucous membranes of eye, nose
and lungs.

17. Gaseous pollutants
Hydrogen sulphide:
• It is a gas with foul odour. So creates
objectionable odours.
• It also causes irritating effects on mucous
membranes,
PAN (Peroxyacetyl Nitrate):
• It is extremely harmful gas.
• It causes lung cancer.
• It can enter deep in lungs.

18. Thank you