�� ACID RAIN
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� What is Acid Rain ???
� As the name suggests, acid rain is just rain that has an acidic pH level. The rain becomes
acidic because of gases which dissolve in the rain water to form various acids. Rain is
naturally slightly acidic beacuse of the carbon dioxide dissolved in it (which comes from
animals breathing), and to a lesser extent from chlorine (which is derived from the salt in
the sea). This gives rain a pH of around 5.0, and in some parts of the world it can be as
low as 4.0 (this is typical around volcanoes, where the sulphur dioxide and hydrogen
sulphide form sulphuric acid in the rain). Before the Industrial Revolution, the pH of rain
was generally between 5 and 6, so the term acid rain is now used to describe rain with a
pH below 5.
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� How does Acid Rain Form ???
� Acid rain comes from various gases such as Sulfur Dioxides and Nitric Oxides,
Which disolve in water vapour to form Sulfuric Acids and Nitric Acids,
respectively. These are not the only contributors however, in the USA, about six
percent of all acid rain is hydrochloric acid. Once dissolved in the water vapour,
these acids return in the form of Acid Rain.
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� Towards the Future !!!
� Currently, not only the occurence of Acid Rain is increasing, but also the acidity of the acid rain. Towards the future we will see more of the destruction that acid rain brings almost indefinently, unless something is done to deter its progress as a world disaster. An example of this destruction can clearly be seen in the Black Forest of Germany, where much of the woodlands have been decimated by acid rain carried by the wind from spain and surrounding industrial countries.
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