Question

What is the range of pH of acid rain?
(A) More than 5.6
(B) Less than 5.6
(C) In between 5.6 to 6.6
(D) In between 6.0 to 6.6

Answer 1

Hint: When we check the nature of the water of normal rain, it is slightly acidic. Acid rain occurs due to formation of nitric acid and sulphuric acid by the reaction of gases with rain water in the atmosphere.


Complete step by step answer:
Let us understand how pH is actually measured.
- We can measure the pH of the solution using litmus paper. Most of the indicators and pH papers are useful only to tell whether a substance is acid or base. A universal indicator is a mixture of such indicator solutions which can provide a color change over a pH range of 2 to 10.

Let us see what acid rain is.
- Acid rain is nothing but a broad term that includes any form of precipitation with acidic components like, sulfuric acid or nitric acid that fall to the ground form the atmosphere in wet or dry dorms. This includes rain, snow, fog or even dust that is acidic.
- Acid rains results when sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides which are emitted react with water, oxygen and other chemicals to form sulfuric acid and nitric acid.
- Generally, clean rain has a pH value of between 5.0 and 5.5, which is slightly acidic. But when rain combines with sulfur dioxide or nitrogen oxides produced from power plants and automobiles the rain turns out to be more acidic.


- Therefore, typical acid rain has a pH value of 4.0. Hence, from the given options it can be less than 5.6, so option B is the required answer.


Note: Acid rain shows adverse impacts on forests, freshwater and as it flows through the soil, acidic rainwater can leach aluminum from soil clay particles and then flow into streams and lakes.