Acid rain Acid rain Acid rain is a rain or any other form of precipitation that is unusually acidic, meaning that it has elevated levels of hydrogen ions (low pH). It can have harmful effects on plants, aquatic animals and infrastructure. Acid rain is caused by emissions of sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxide, which react with the water molecules in the atmosphere to produce acids. Some governments have made efforts since the 1970s to reduce the release of sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxide into the atmosphere with positive results. Nitrogen oxides can also be produced naturally by lightning strikes, and sulphur dioxide
Sulfur dioxide and 2002. This improvement resulted in part from flue-gas desulfurization, a technology that enables SO to be chemically bound in power plants burning sulfur-containing coal or oil. In particular, calcium oxide (lime) reacts with sulfur dioxide to form calcium sulfite: Aerobic oxidation of the CaSO gives CaSO, anhydrite. Most gypsum sold in Europe comes from flue-gas desulfurization. Sulfur can be removed from coal during burning by using limestone as a bed material in fluidized bed combustion. Sulfur can also be removed from fuels before burning, preventing formation of SO when the fuel is burnt. The Claus process is used in