Action of air pollutants on plants (in German)
Sulfur dioxide and hydrogen fluoride are the main industrial pollutants causing wide spread damage to plants; nitrogen oxides, ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, chlorine or hydrochloric acid, bromine and iodine produce effects which are limited to the industrial area. Acid vapors such as sulfuric or nitric acid exhibit their action within the area close to the emission source. Depending on the concentration of pollutants and on the duration of their action, plant damage can be acute, chronic or latent. Acute damage is produced by high air pollutant concentration following short time exposure and leaf necrosis, general weakening of plant vitality, growth depression, sometimes, ending in plant death, constitute its main effects. Chronic plant damage occurs in areas exposed to long-lasting low pollutant concentrations; chloroplast damage associated with inhibition of photosynthesis and overall impairment of metabolism constitute the main results of such exposure. Latent damage is considered to be a precursor of chronic damage. Alterations of soil structure, its pH and nutritional element content due to the cumulative action of pollutants constitute the indirect damage to plants. Diagnosis of plant damage from air pollutants can be made visually, by chemical analysis of air and plant samples and by biological tests. Experimental evaluation of pollutant action on plants in special exposure chambers or on free field should constitute one of the basic tools of research in this field. Included are descriptions of such facilities and discussions on possibilities to prevent plant damage from pollutants by special soil treatments. Reference is made to a bibliography on the subject included elsewhere.
- OSTI ID:
- 6052392
- Journal Information:
- Ullmanns Encyklopaedie der Technischen Chemie; (), Vol. 2:2
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- German
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Related Subjects
AIR POLLUTION
BIOLOGICAL EFFECTS
LEAVES
NECROSIS
PHOTOSYNTHESIS
INHIBITION
PLANTS
INJURIES
AMMONIA
BROMINE
CHLORINE
CHLOROPLASTS
DOSE-RESPONSE RELATIONSHIPS
EXPOSURE CHAMBERS
HYDROCHLORIC ACID
HYDROFLUORIC ACID
HYDROGEN SULFIDES
IODINE
METABOLISM
NITRIC ACID
NITROGEN OXIDES
PH VALUE
PLANT GROWTH
POLLUTANTS
SOILS
SULFUR DIOXIDE
SULFURIC ACID
CELL CONSTITUENTS
CHALCOGENIDES
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
ELEMENTS
GROWTH
HALOGENS
HYDRIDES
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
INORGANIC ACIDS
NITROGEN COMPOUNDS
NITROGEN HYDRIDES
NONMETALS
OXIDES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PATHOLOGICAL CHANGES
PHOTOCHEMICAL REACTIONS
POLLUTION
SULFIDES
SULFUR COMPOUNDS
SULFUR OXIDES
SYNTHESIS
560303* - Chemicals Metabolism & Toxicology- Plants- (-1987)