Question

Which of the following gas save us from the harmful ultraviolet radiations coming from the sun?
1. Nitrogen
2. Oxygen
3. Ozone
4. Carbon dioxide

Answer 1

Correct Answer - Option 3 : Ozone

The correct answer is Ozone.

• Ultraviolet Radiation
  • Ultraviolet is a form of electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength from 10 nm to 400 nm.
  • Ultraviolet radiation is undetectable by the human eye.
  • Many insects, however, are able to see ultraviolet radiation.
  • Most of the ultraviolet radiation in sunlight is absorbed by oxygen in Earth's atmosphere which forms the ozone layer of the lower stratosphere.
• Ozone
  •  Ozone is a highly reactive gas composed of three oxygen atoms.
  • It is both a natural and a man-made product that occurs in the Earth's upper atmosphere.
  • Ozone is an inorganic molecule with the chemical formula O₃.
  • It is a pale blue gas with a distinctively pungent smell.
  • It is an allotrope of oxygen that is much less stable than the diatomic allotrope O₂.

• Carbon dioxide
  • It is the non-metal whose atomic number is 6 and the mass number is 12.
  • Due to the property of catenation( self linking of atoms through covalent bond), carbon is able to exist in allotropic forms.
  • Allotropes of Carbon

1. Diamond: the hardest substance on earth.
2. Graphite: It is a hexagonal array structure.
3. Fullerene: only a pure form of carbon and has a shape like a soccer ball.

• Oxygen
  • Its atomic number is 8 and its mass number is 16.
  • It is the most abundant of all the elements on earth.
  • It is paramagnetic in nature.
  • Ozone(O3) is an allotropic form of oxygen.​​​​
• Nitrogen
  • Nitrogen is the chemical element with the symbol N.
  • Its atomic number is 7 and its mass number is 14.
  • It is inert at room temperature.
  • Nitrogen comprises 78% by volume of the atmosphere.​
  • Nitrogen is the lightest member of group 15 of the periodic table.