Nitrous Oxide (N2O): The Dominant Ozone-Depleting Substance Emitted in the 21st Century.

(Review Paper) Cited in Nitrous Oxide (N2O): The Dominant Ozone-Depleting Substance Emitted in the 21st Century.

Points Made

CFC's have been banned because of their contributions to global warming. N2O and CFC’s (both man made chemicals) are stable gases when they are emitted but once they reach the stratosphere they release ozone depleting chemicals. N2O’s release chemicals including: akin and methyl bromide, which is directly linked to ozone depletion.

In addition to the CFC's there is also a factor in which needs to be considered. With the increasing population and concentration of the human population there is more CO2 emission present. Therefore, there is another element that is contributing to the ozone layer depletion. With area such as China and Japan there is a dense population. There has been studies that have been completed that prove that the increasing population has increased the CO2 emissions significantly.

With so many additional products being created that emit N2O, there is a decrease in methane gas release due to an agricultural increase. There is currently not enough space for animals (i.e. cows), who are grazers, to emit the methane gas that could potentially reconstruct the stratospheric layer.

Methods

The experiment tested the ozone-depleting potential (ODP) of N2O using the Garcia and Solomon two-dimensional (2D) model.

Results

The results calculated the ODP(ozone depleting potential)of N2O under current atmospheric conditions to be 0.017. This value is comparable to the ODP of many hydro chlorofluorocarbons that are currently being phased out under the Montreal Protocol. Otherwise, the effects of N20 are having a huge impact in the depletion of the ozone layer (O3).

It has also been concluded that there are more N2O gasses being emitted, and not enough methane gas to counteract the harm that N2O is doing on the atmostphere.