Carbon dioxide history

The combustible components of the gas are carbon monoxide and hydrogen, but combustion (heat) value varies because of dilution with carbon dioxide and with nitrogen. The gas has a low flame temperature unless the combustion air is strongly preheated. Its use has been limited essentially to steel (qv) mills, where it is produced as a by-product of blast furnaces. A common choice of equipment for the smaller gas producers is the WeUman-Galusha unit because of its long history of successful operation (21). 

Figure 2a. Carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere have varied over the glacial cycles of the earth s history, with high vjues at of around 300 during the interglacial period approximately 130,000 years ago...

Eppley RW (1989) New production history, methods, problems. In Productivity of the ocean Present and past. Berger WH, Smetacek VS, Wefer G (eds) John Wiley Sons, Chichester, p 85-97 Feely RA, Sabine CL, Takahashi T, Wanninfhof R (2001) Uptake and storage of carbon dioxide in the ocean The Global CO2 Survey. Oceanogr 14 18-32... 

William H. Brock. The Norton History of Chemistry. New York W. W. Norton Co., 1993. Source for Lewis-Langmuir theory early plastics Staudinger controversy available technology carbon dioxide emissions, but relatively clean technology. 

Fig. 5-4. The response of carbon in atmosphere and ocean to a fossil fuel source of carbon dioxide that increases for a few hundred years and then decreases. The history of the source is plotted at the bottom of the figure (Broecker and Peng, 1982, p. 553).

The protein nature of enzymes was established through the seminal work of James Sumner. In 1926, Sumner succeeded in isolating the enzyme urease in crystalline form from jack bean meal. This was the first time in history that an enzyme had been obtained in crystalline, though not completely pure, form. Subsequently, Sumner established that the crystalline enzyme was a protein. Urease is an enzyme that degrades one of the human end products of nitrogen metabolism, urea, to ammonia and carbon dioxide ... 

Lavoisier was aware of his ignorance, however, and in 1773 he began an intensive study of the history of chemistry, paying special attention to experiments with the different airs and repeating many of these experiments with new safeguards. However, this only led him to a new error. He now became convinced that fixed air, or carbon dioxide, was responsible for combustion. 

There have been roughly five periods in Earths history where much of the planet was covered in ice. Global climate cooled for millions of years. The sheets of ice at the north and south poles of the planets grew to cover the oceans. The amount of CO2 in the atmosphere dropped. These periods are widely known as ice ages. Atmospheric carbon dioxide dropped by about 25% during each major ice age. The drop in atmospheric carbon dioxide happened at the same time that global climate got colder. There just wasn t enough carbon dioxide to trap heat from the Sun and keep the planet s surface warm. 

What scientists cannot determine is what caused carbon dioxide levels to drop in the first place during these icy periods in Earth s history. Some suggest perhaps photosynthesizing plants became too successful and took in too much carbon dioxide, causing less heat to be trapped near the planet s surface and consequently cooling the globe. Thus, while it is known cold climates coincide with low levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide, it is not known why. 

One way scientists have learned about the levels of carbon dioxide in the past is through the analysis of ice cores. An ice core is a tube of ice, usually drilled out of a glacier or ice sheet, that contains bubbles of air trapped inside layers of snow and ice. Each layer of snow and ice represents roughly a year. The deeper the layer, the older the ice sample. From the size and chemical content of each layer, scientists can draw conclusions about the temperatures at that point in history at that spot on the planet. At the same time, the bubbles of air preserved in each layer contain indicators of the amount of atmospheric carbon dioxide present at that time. 

Global warming pressure groups would have the world believe that catastrophic changes in the earth s climate will occur without drastic limitations of carbon dioxide emissions—this in spite of the fact that the carbon dioxide levels in the earth s atmosphere have been much higher than today s for much of geological history. For example, as documented by the work of Berner,13 atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations were some five 15... 

Since this review has focused on photoelectrochemical conversions of organic compounds, it has neglected the redox reactions of simple inorganic materials like nitrogen, water, and carbon dioxide, species which have a rich photoelectrochemical history. Recent progress made with photoelectrochemical CO2 reduction signals the possibility that in the future organic feedstocks may derive from aldehydes and alcohols produced by photoelectrochemical reductions. 

Atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide have varied naturally throughout Earth s history. Present C02 concentrations, however, are now higher than any seen in at least the past 450,000 years. Recent direct measurements combined with sampling of air trapped in polar ice cores shows that the recent rise in CO, correlates well with industrialization, which began in the early 1800s, as revealed in the following graph ... 

The carbon dioxide content has changed most during our planet s long history. At present, the average level of carbon dioxide is -0.03 %. 

Hazards attendant on use of ethylene oxide in steriliser chambers arise from difficulties in its subsequent removal by evacuation procedures, owing to its ready absorption or adsorption by the treated material. Even after 2 evacuation cycles the oxide may still be present. Safety is ensured by using the oxide diluted with up to 90% of Freon or carbon dioxide. If high concentrations of oxide are used, an inert gas purge between cycles is essential [7]. The main factors in safe handling and use on laboratory or small pilot plant scales have been identified [8]. Safe operation of ethoxylation processes on industrial scale is discussed, with case histories [15],... 

---