Exhaust gas

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Exhaust gas is flue gas which occurs as a result of the combustion of fuels such as natural gas, gasoline/petrol, diesel, fuel oil or coal. It is discharged into the atmosphere through an exhaust pipe or flue gas stack.

Contents 1 Composition 2 Pollution reduction 3 Exhaust steam 4 See also 5 External links 6 References

[edit] Composition

Although the largest part of most combustion gases is relatively harmless nitrogen (N₂), water vapor (H₂O) (except with pure-carbon fuels), and carbon dioxide (CO₂) (except with hydrogen as fuel), a relatively small part of it is undesirable noxious or toxic substances, such as carbon monoxide (CO), hydrocarbons, nitrogen oxides (NO_x), partly unburnt fuel, and particulate matter.

[edit] Pollution reduction

Emission standards focus on reducing pollutants contained in the exhaust gases from vehicles as well as from industrial flue gas stacks and other air pollution exhaust sources in various large-scale industrial facilities such as petroleum refineries, natural gas processing plants, petrochemical plants and chemical production plants.^[1][2]

One of the advantages claimed for modern steam engines is that that they produce smaller quantities of toxic pollutants (e.g. oxides of nitrogen) than petrol and diesel engines. However, there is a downside - they produce larger quantities of carbon dioxide.

[edit] Exhaust steam

In steam engine terminology the exhaust is steam that is now so low in pressure that it no longer can to do useful work.

[edit] See also

• Alternative propulsion
• Automobile emissions control
• Catalytic converter
• Clean Air Act
• Combustion
• Diesel Particulate Matter is the main article about diesel exhaust.
• Emission standards
• Flue gas
• Flue gas emissions from fossil fuel combustion
• Global warming
• Greenhouse gas
• Philip Cooney

[edit] External links

• Health and Air Pollution Publication of the California Air Resources Board
• U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety & Health Administration: Safety and Health Topics: Diesel Exhaust
• Partial List of Chemicals Associated with Diesel Exhaust
• Diesel Exhaust Particulates: Reasonably Anticipated to Be A Human Carcinogen
• Scientific Study of Harmful Effects of Diesel Exhaust: Acute Inflammatory Responses in the Airways and Peripheral Blood After Short-Term Exposure to Diesel Exhaust in Healthy Human Volunteers

[edit] References

1. ^ EPA Plain English Guide to the Clean Air Act
2. ^ US EPA Publication AP 42, Fifth Edition, Compilation of Air Pollutant Emission Factors

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