Published by: BhumiRaj Timalsina
Published date: 10 Feb 2022
Importance of Air
Air is essential for all living being. All living being need air to breathe. They take in oxygen, while breathing. Actually, the living beings take in glass of the air (e.g. nitrogen, carbon dioxide, inert gases etc.) while breathing. But only oxygen is taken by the body and the other unused gases are returned back. The exhaled air contains much more carbon dioxide than the inhaled air because carbon dioxide is given out while breathing.
Air reaches to our lungs while breathing. The blood in the lungs absorbs the oxygen from the air and gives back carbon dioxide. The oxygen is the taken to different parts (cells) of the body by the blood. The oxygen is used to burn the food present in the cells. The digested food is also taken to the cells by the blood. The burning of foods in the cells produce energy, carbon dioxide and the water. The energy and water are used up by body but carbon dioxide and water .The energy and water are used up by body but carbon dioxide is useless. Hence, it is taken to the lungs by blood. Again, carbon dioxide is thrown out and oxygen is observed by the blood.
Besides breathing, air is useful to us in many other ways. It helps in the burning of the fuels like petroleum, wood and cool. It helps to dry of the wet clothes. It can be filled into many things like football, volleyball, basketball, balloons, mattresses and hot air balloon for their use. The tubes inside the tyros help in the movement of vehicles water pumps, pen, syringe etc.
Also use atmospheric pressure for working. The wind force is also used to run the windmill that can do different works. Air contains many other gases which are useful to human beings, plants and animals.
Composition of air
Air consists of the nitrogen, oxygen, carbon dioxide, water vapor, inert gases and dust paeticles.Nitrogen (N2) forms 78 percent of total volume of the air while oxygen (O2) occupies about 21 percent. Carbon Dioxide (CO2) occupies about 0.03-0.04 percent of the total volume of the air. Nitrogen and the oxygen are called invariable components of air because their volume doesn’t change. The percentage of water vapor in the air change from the season to season. It is maximum during rainy season and minimum during the summer season.
The air is dense at the sea level. It extends up to the height of 1000 km from the sea level. As we move upwards, the air becomes rarer (thinner). The air is very rare at the top of the Mt. Everest, so the mountaineers carry oxygen cylinders on their back while climbing the mountain.
Impurities of air
Smoke and dust are the main agents that make the air impure. The smoke coming out from kitchen, automobiles, aero planes, factories and power plants pollute the air so badly. The stench from decaying bodies, rotten food particles, and improper disposal of the human wastes also pollutes the air. The dust blown up while running the vehicles also pollute the air. The air is also pollute by the over-crowd of people.
The fast increase in population has resulted in the over –crowed inhabitation in the towns. Many people get congested in a room for living. The air becomes polluted by the breathing of many people in a room. The polluted air can cause asthma and bronchitis as well.
Purification of air
The earth is covered by the vast layer of atmosphere. There is no any instrument or machine that can purify our whole air (atmosphere). Only the plants are the natural’s purifier of the air. The plants make the air unusable by absorbing dust and carbon dioxide and supplying fresh oxygen into it. The plants use carbon dioxide and release oxygen by the process of photosynthesis. So, vegetation is necessary for the purification of air. For this, the natural vegetation should be protected. Parks and gardens should be built up and trees should be grown up on both sides of the roads. Proper management of dirt, garbage, human wastes and decaying materials is also necessary to prevent air pollution.
Water
Water is essential for all living beings. No life would have been possible on earth if there were no water. Water is the most abundant substance in our body. It is also the most abundant substance on the earth. Water is available is several sources – spring, stream, brook, lake, pond, well, river, sea, and ocean. This water is called underground water.
Water is used for several purpose in our daily life. But the water that we use, must be clean and pure. The pure water shows the following properties:
Importance of the water
We use water for several purpose in our daily life. All the animals and plants also needs water to live.
We can discuss the importance of water under the following headings:
The use and importance of water is not limited to the above points only. There are several other uses of water. Water helps us in the digestion of our food and also in the excretion of the waste materials from the body. It promotes the circulation of blood and maintains contains blood pressure in our body.
Impurities water
The water obtained from the natural sources may not be safe to drink. It can contain May soluble or suspend materials in it. The suspend materials can be living or non- living things. Mainly dust and soil are the non-living impurities. The living things that pollute water bacteria, algae, protozoa, round worms, water fleas, leeches small water insects, eggs of the mosquito etc. Most of these organism are harmful to us.
The human activities are also responsible for polluting the water.
Washing clothes, cleaning household’s utensils, having bath, letting cattle drinks and have bath at the source of water pollute it. Similarly, throwing garbage into the stream or river, connecting sewer to them, throwing the dead bodies of the animals and birds into them.
The polluted water can transmit several diseases. Diarrhea, cholera, typhoid, dysentery and jaundice are some common diseases that are transmitted through polluted water.
Purification of water
We should not drink the water of unknown source. We should not use the water of polluted source as well. The water which is supplied for households use should be made pure and safe before drinking. The process of removal or destruction of the harmful materials from water is called purification of water. The water can be purified in two different ways:
Boiling the oldest and the best way to purify water in the house. It kills all the germs and makes water safe to drink. Water is generally boiled for 5 to 10 minutes to make it germ fire. The boiled and cooled water can be filtered to remove the suspended impurities from it.
The germs present in the water can be killed by mixing chlorine, bleaching powder and iodine with water. We have to mix about 2 drops of iodine or 250mg of bleaching powder in liter of water to make it germfree.
Generally, two types of filters can be used for making the water pure. They are: sand filter and commercial filter. The sand filter, water gets filtered as it passes through sand and pebbles. But in commercial filter, water is filtered by candles.
In big cities, water is treated with water system in order to make it free from suspend impurities. Mainly, dust, mud, sand, plant parts, tiny aquatic plants etc. are separated from the water in the water system. The water is then passed to a big reservoir where chlorine gas is passed through it. The process of passing chlorine gas through water is known as chlorination. The chorine destroys the germs of disease present in water makes the water safe. The chlorinated water is then supplied to the houses through pipes and taps.
The chlorinated water is not safe to drink because it can be contaminated on the way through the leakage of pipes.