Environmental Chemistry Terminology

Question 0

Nitrogen Fixation

Answer 0

The process of changing free nitrogen so that the nitrogen atoms can combine with other elements to form compounds that organisms can use; carried out mainly by bacteria in soil

Question 1

Element

Answer 1

A pure substance that cannot be broken down into other substances; substance made up of only one type of atom

Question 2

Pollution

Answer 2

Any change in the environment that produces a condition that is harmful to living things

Question 3

Fertilizer

Answer 3

A substance that enriches soil so that plants will grow better

Question 4

Pesticide

Answer 4

A chemical used to kill pests

Question 5

Pest

Answer 5

Organism that harms people, crops or structure

Question 6

Sewage

Answer 6

Wastewater containing dissolved and undissolved materials from your kitchen, bathroom and laundry

Question 7

Septic Tank

Answer 7

Underground container where bacteria break down organic material in sewage before they are moved out to the soil

Question 8

Sewage Treatment Plant

Answer 8

Building and grounds containing special equiptment to treat wastes from homes, businesses, industries and institutions so the wastes can be disposed of safely

Question 9

Effluent

Answer 9

Wastewater released from a factory or sewage treatment plant

Question 10

Storm Sewers

Answer 10

large pipes that carry runoff water from yards and streets directly (without treatment) into a river, lake or ocean

Question 11

Fossil Fuels

Answer 11

A natural fuel such as coal or gas, formed in the geological past from the remains of living organisms

Question 12

Sour Gas

Answer 12

natural gas containing hydrogen sulfide

Question 13

Acid

Answer 13

Compound that dissolves in water to form a solution with a pH under 7

Question 14

Base

Answer 14

Compound that dissolves in water to fro a solution with a pH higher than 7

Question 15

Neutral

Answer 15

pH of 7; a neutral substance is neither an acid nor a base

Question 16

Neutralization Reaction

Answer 16

A reaction between an acid and a base that produces water and a solid compound called a salt

Question 17

Salt

Answer 17

A compound in a neutralization reaction between an acid and a base

Question 18

Organic Compounds

Answer 18

Compounds whose molecules contain carbon (eg. fossil fuels), except carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, carbonates and cyanides, which are Inorganic compounds

Question 19

Inorganic Compunds

Answer 19

Compounds whose molecules do not contain carbon, except carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, carbonates and cyanides

Question 20

Nutrients

Answer 20

Elements and compounds that organisms need for living, growing and reproducing.

Question 21

Macronutrients

Answer 21

Nutrients that organisms need in relatively large amounts

Question 22

Micronutrients

Answer 22

Nutrients that organisms need in only minor or trace amounts

Question 23

Optimum amounts

Answer 23

Amount of a substance that provides an organism with the best health

Question 24

Carbohydrates

Answer 24

Organic molecules made up of toms of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen; can form simple molecules such as sugar, or large and complex molecules such as starch, cellulose or glucose.

Question 25

Lipids

Answer 25

Organic molecules made up of atoms of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen; lipids are insoluble in water

Question 26

Proteins

Answer 26

Organic compound made up of units called amino acids, protein molecules contain atoms of nitrogen, hydrogen, oxygen and carbon

Question 27

Enzymes

Answer 27

Catalyst involved in chemical reactions in living things

Question 28

Amino Acids

Answer 28

Building blocks of proteins

Question 29

Nucleic Acids

Answer 29

Largest and most complicated molecules found in all the cells of living things ; the two most important are DNA and RNA; made up of simple phosphates, a simple sugar called ribose, and nitrogen containing bases; plays a major role in heredity and in contolling a cell’s activity

Question 30

Diffusion

Answer 30

A process in which molecules move form an area of high concentration, to an area of low concentration

Question 31

Osmosis

Answer 31

Type of diffusion in which water molecules move across a membrane from an area where there are more water molecules to an area where there are fewer water molecules.

Question 32

Active Transport

Answer 32

Process in which plant cells use energy to move nutrient molecules from areas of lower concentration to areas of higher concentration

Question 33

Hydrolysis

Answer 33

Reaction of a substance with water; “hydro means water and “lysis” means break down

Question 34

Substrate

Answer 34

A surface on which an organism lives or moves

Question 35

Invertebrates

Answer 35

Animals without backbones