The Civil Analyst

  One of carbonaceous gas in the earth atmosphere which takes part in global carbon cycle is Carbon Monoxide. Carbon Monoxide (CO) is a colourless, tasteless and odourless gas which is 96.5% as heavy as air and insoluble in water. Its molecular weight is 28.1 with a boiling point of -191.5ºC and melting point of -205ºC. However, it is not uniformly distributed on earth but can be transported long distances and remains in the atmosphere for a longer duration with an average residence time of 36-110 days. Some basic chemical reactions that yields CO are-       I.         Incomplete combustion of fuel: 2C + O 2 à 2CO     II.         Reactions between carbon dioxide and carbon containing materials at very high temperature such as in blast furnaces: CO 2 + C à 2CO    III.         Dissociation of carbon dioxide at elevated temperature CO 2 ó CO Sources and Sink of Carbon Monoxide in the Atmosphere There are two types of sources of CO in the atmosphere which are natural so