These days, industrial activities make use of certain specialized gases which do not naturally occur in the concentrations or states required by industry. One of these is carbon dioxide, or CO2, to use the scientific abbreviation. CO2 is present in the atmosphere but only constitutes about 0.03% of the air. Even though this sounds like an unimportant proportion, it is anything but that - CO2 is one of the integral gases in the environment and the air. Anyone who operates a high pressure CO2 pump should educate themselves on this gas.
As a gas, CO2 has no smell or color. It is therefore impossible to detect by human senses. In its frozen form, it is known as dry ice, and it is used in cooling applications. However, it soon evaporates once exposed to the ordinary atmosphere. It is therefore difficult to store or trap CO2 in this form.
CO2 is formed by the reaction of carbon with oxygen. This is simply ordinary combustion, or burning. One carbon atom combines with two oxygen atoms to form the CO2 molecule. Carbon might not be regarded as the most common fire hazard but it burns to produce carbon dioxide.
Carbon dioxide is also formed by trees and other plants through the reverse of photosynthesis at night, in the absence of the sun. During the day, plants perform the process of photosynthesis, during which carbon dioxide is harvested from the atmosphere and converted into oxygen. At night, however, the process is reversed and the plants release CO2. The destruction of forests is a threat to the safe composition of the atmosphere because trees remove large amounts of CO2 from the air.
0.03% might sound like a very small fraction, but CO2 is nonetheless an important gas. It is not used by the body, and is exhaled with water vapor during respiration. In an environment containing only CO2, respiration is impossible and suffocation will ensue in a short space of time.
This property of CO2 is the basis of its use in CA storage (controlled atmosphere storage). In this process, the atmosphere in the storage area is almost totally composed of CO2. This prevents fresh produce from decomposing. The pathogens which cause decomposition require oxygen and cannot function in CA storage. It has been alleged, however, that the nutritional properties of the stored products are not maintained.
Another application of CO2 is in carbonated drinks, or soft drinks. This is obvious and well known, but there is an aspect of this technique that is not advertised and which is not always known to the consumer of these products. CO2 dissolves easily in water to form a weak acid known as carbonous acid (H2CO3). This acid forms and disappears as the fizzy bubbles dissolve and re-evaporate. Leaving a tooth in a soft drink overnight will cause it to dissolve, so that it won't be there the next day.
Carbon dioxide can cause death by suffocation. Those who work with it should therefore be trained in the appropriate safety precautions and the nature of the gas. This is particularly important for those who make use of the high pressure pumps.
As a gas, CO2 has no smell or color. It is therefore impossible to detect by human senses. In its frozen form, it is known as dry ice, and it is used in cooling applications. However, it soon evaporates once exposed to the ordinary atmosphere. It is therefore difficult to store or trap CO2 in this form.
CO2 is formed by the reaction of carbon with oxygen. This is simply ordinary combustion, or burning. One carbon atom combines with two oxygen atoms to form the CO2 molecule. Carbon might not be regarded as the most common fire hazard but it burns to produce carbon dioxide.
Carbon dioxide is also formed by trees and other plants through the reverse of photosynthesis at night, in the absence of the sun. During the day, plants perform the process of photosynthesis, during which carbon dioxide is harvested from the atmosphere and converted into oxygen. At night, however, the process is reversed and the plants release CO2. The destruction of forests is a threat to the safe composition of the atmosphere because trees remove large amounts of CO2 from the air.
0.03% might sound like a very small fraction, but CO2 is nonetheless an important gas. It is not used by the body, and is exhaled with water vapor during respiration. In an environment containing only CO2, respiration is impossible and suffocation will ensue in a short space of time.
This property of CO2 is the basis of its use in CA storage (controlled atmosphere storage). In this process, the atmosphere in the storage area is almost totally composed of CO2. This prevents fresh produce from decomposing. The pathogens which cause decomposition require oxygen and cannot function in CA storage. It has been alleged, however, that the nutritional properties of the stored products are not maintained.
Another application of CO2 is in carbonated drinks, or soft drinks. This is obvious and well known, but there is an aspect of this technique that is not advertised and which is not always known to the consumer of these products. CO2 dissolves easily in water to form a weak acid known as carbonous acid (H2CO3). This acid forms and disappears as the fizzy bubbles dissolve and re-evaporate. Leaving a tooth in a soft drink overnight will cause it to dissolve, so that it won't be there the next day.
Carbon dioxide can cause death by suffocation. Those who work with it should therefore be trained in the appropriate safety precautions and the nature of the gas. This is particularly important for those who make use of the high pressure pumps.
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