The Use of Potassium Chloride and Saline Solution

Potassium chloride (KCl) is a chemical compound that resembles the common table salt but in reality is an odorless and colorless metal halide salt. Potassium is formed naturally as Sylvite but needs to be extracted from Sylvinite ore. However it can also be artificially manufactured by crystallization of salt water solution. While, a saline solution is a solution of Sodium chloride and sterile water and the normal saline solution is 9% Sodium chloride. Both Potassium Chloride and Saline solution are administered intravenously in their diluted form and are also beneficial for other medicinal purposes.

Uses of Potassium Chloride
Potassium chloride has a variety of uses, the most important being one of the main ingredients in making fertilizer as it is essential for the growth of specific plants. Potassium chloride is also used as an ingredient in medicines, for scientific applications, food preservative and also as a substitute for table salt. Potassium is essential for human body and the easiest way to replenish the body of Potassium Chloride is by taking it orally. Medically potassium chloride is used in the treatment of Hyperkalemia and also injected intravenously in the treatment of Potassium deficiency but only after being diluted and this is usually done when oral replacement is not feasible. Potassium is chief citation of human body cells and maintains the body fluid composition and electrolyte balance. While potassium in essential in carbohydrate synthesizing and is also important for nerve and muscle contraction

Warnings
Some uses mentioned above are common everyday, beneficial uses of potassium chloride. But what most people do not know is that if misused, potassium chloride can also become life threatening. For this reason it is also used as intravenous injections in judicial execution. Other lethal injections are with the medical fraternity that uses potassium chloride in fetal intra cardiac injections inducing abortions in pregnant women in their second and third trimester.

Medicinal Use of Saline Solution:
The normal saline solution is commonly used in patients suffering from dehydration through an intravenous IV drip especially the people who fail to consume foods and nutrients by mouth. Normal saline is also diluted with glucose to reduce the complications that may develop due to infusion of saline solution so that it can reduce the concentration of sodium circulating in the blood. It is also used in intravenous injections as it is a non proyegnic solution for fluids and electrolytes replenishments for intravenous administration.

Benefits
Saline solutions are also beneficial for rinsing and safe storing of contact lenses as well as nasal drops in patients suffering from sinus problems. Saline solution acts as a moisturizer for dryness, itching and crusting in the nose. Warm saline solutions can be used to pulsate irrigation of the nasal passage as it helps to bring more circulation to the area and is also is void of any anti microbial agents.

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What Is the Purpose of an Alternator?

If you have ever used a DC generator, you would find no trouble getting yourself acquainted with an alternator or even constructing one yourself. What differentiates an alternator with a DC generator is the absence of permanent magnets for creating a magnetic field that would allow electricity to be produced.

Mechanism
Alternators are designed using wound concentric coils including the fixed stator coil and the rotor coil which gives the alternator its flow. This stator coil is also referred to as the alternator’s field, as a clockwise movement in the field coil when passed with current produces the electromagnet. This magnet constantly changes its polarity to and fro, producing an alternating current which gives the name to this amazing power generator.

Features
Engineers over the years have found alternators to be alternatives for the typical DC generators as they are comparatively more efficient, compact, light weight, more reliable and best of all these alternators can be used in heavy late model vehicles where more voltage is produced even at idle speeds. Some find it quite amazing to see that the alternator that initially required an external source of current to run, eventually gets to produce its own electricity which when simply rectified through use of diodes transforms the output into direct current which could be used to charge the battery again. And when it does, the initial supply from the battery cuts out and the alternator becomes a self sustaining producer of electricity in vehicles and huge machines.

Purpose & Benefits
The advantages and usage have been reaped well by special purpose military vehicles to quite some extent as the use of high frequency radios, advanced GPS navigational systems, ammunitions and several other devices that require lots of electricity to keep the inmates mobile and armed. DC generators cannot really provide the energy to keep the batteries charged or help operate electronic devices especially when the vehicles are running on low speeds and thus low rotations per minute engines. Alternators in such situations really come in handy as the limited input of current tends to produce a self sustaining electricity generator.

Modern Usage
Alternators are usually fitted on the front end of the engine with one fixed and one adjustable belt. In modern cars, the alternator is forced into action by the crankshaft which converts the up and down motion of the pistons and converts them into a circular motion to drive the rotor fields. The use of alternators is becoming very crucial in sports cars and modern luxury cars for their added features like power windows, automatic gear shifts, halogen lights, GPS systems and various other devices which require lots of electricity which my never be provided under any other generator other than an alternator itself.

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Effects of a Photochemical Smog

Smog is a type of air pollution that is caused by the interaction of sunlight with certain chemicals in the atmosphere including aldehydes and the ozone particles themselves. The word smog is derivative of two combined words Smoke and Fog. The chemical reaction of sunlight, Nitrogen oxides and the volatile organic compounds leaves particulate matter at ground level zone and this leads to what we refer to as a Photochemical Smog.

Formation
The high level of nitrogen oxides are released in the air by the reaction of Nitrogen and Oxygen at high temperatures and the exhaust of fossil fuels, burning of engines and other vehicles is the leading factor in the formation of Photochemical Smog. Smog can also be formed by volcanic eruptions when high levels of sulphur are emitted along with the volcanic ash that reacts with other air pollutants.

History
Photochemical smogs have been one of the reasons for numerous deaths in the past other than the one’s marked by the two world wars. In 1952, London alone witnessed a photochemical smog that lasted 4 days killing approximately a thousand people a day. It was not until 1969, according to LA Times newspaper that scientists figured the hazards of the photochemical smog and discovered drying membranes in the nose and throat and also the imbalance in hormone systems due to the dreadful fogs.

Environmental Hazards
The smog also leaves devastating effects on the environment and kills thousands of species of animals and plants as they are still not immune or adapted to breathing in such a toxic environmentThe peroxyacetyl nitrate and ozone; the components of the photochemical smog themselves are known to be aggravating breathing difficulties, headaches and eye irritation alone. The most affected areas are the ones that contain large amounts of air pollutant but the affect of this deadly smog worsens during the warm season when the upper air is warm enough to inhibit vertical circulation. Thus one could imagine what problems may come under way when these combine together.

Effect on Humans
Photochemical Smog is also hazardous to human health. Photochemical smog causes pre-mature deaths and creates a lot of problems for even normal people. It can affect densely populated areas and can build up to dangerous levels. The most affected include senior citizens, children and people with heart complications who tend to suffer from bronchitis and asthma. The photochemical smog is the cause of inflamed breathing passages which cause decrease in the working capacity of normal lungs, pain in inhaling deeply and shortness of breath.

Solutions
A photochemical smog is considered a huge problem especially with the Modern industrialization and the hazardous chemicals involved that are not only highly reactive but also spread around in the atmosphere. The effects of photo chemical smog can be reduced by adopting helpful solutions like adopting lifestyle changes, limiting use of fossil fuels finding alternate means for transportation rather than fuel powered vehicles as this helps reduce the emission of the harmful emissions especially the ones that are released from car exhausts.

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