Question

What pollutant forms when automobile emissions react with oxygen gas and ultraviolet rays?

Answer 1

Ozone is a molecule that consists of three oxygen atoms. When high-energy ultraviolet rays strike ordinary oxygen molecules (O2), they split the molecule into two single oxygen atoms, known as atomic oxygen. A freed oxygen atom then combines with another oxygen molecule to form a molecule of ozone.  Hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides come from great variety of industrial and combustion processes. Motor vehicle exhaust and industrial emissions, gasoline vapors, and chemical solvents are some of the major sources of NOx and VOC that acts as a precursor of ozone. In urban areas, the number of automobiles are more and therefore, more production of such harmful gases. These gases in presence of sunlight leads to the formation of bad ozone.