IB ESS HL 8.3.8 Photochemical smog Question Bank
Practise IB ESS HL 8.3.8 by applying photochemical smog concepts to exam-style environmental systems questions.
- Syllabus
- First assessment 2026
- Course
- ESS HL
- Level
- HL
Exam points
- identify the relevant environmental system, process or evidence
- apply the correct ESS concept and explain the causal relationship
- evaluate the outcome using ecological, social or management evidence
8.3.8 (HL)—Photochemical smog question 1
[Maximum number: 4]
Outline four factors that contribute to an increase in tropospheric ozone.
Increased burning of fossil fuel would release more NOx \& VOCs into the atmosphere;
b. ...could be due to population growth/increasing populations;
c. ...industrialization / urbanization / more conventional vehicles / reform to a more mechanized agriculture / increased affluence (especially in developing nations);
d. Seasons/time periods when sunlight is more intense/ temperature is higher/ e.g. at noon/summer/after the clouds have cleared;
e. ...increasing the rate of the photochemical reaction leading to ozone formation;
f. Following weather conditions leading to thermal inversions / e.g. after clear, calm nights;
g. During burning of crop residues which release NOx \& VOCs;
h. Agricultural reform towards using more fertilizers/pesticides/livestock that release more ammonia or VOCs…
i. ...changing cultivation to corn/soybean/crop that releases more VOCs;
j. ...more tilling/unsustainable farming practices releasing more NOx;
k. Building high rise structures in cities that prevent dispersal/raise concentration of air pollutants
Note to examiners: Accept any other relevant example to those given. Do not credit "valleys/low-lying areas" as this is a topographic feature that does not "increase".
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