Scientists at University of Toronto discovered a long-lived manmade
greenhouse gas (GHG) called Perfluorotributylamine (PFTBA) that is 7100 times
more potent than carbon dioxide at warming the Earth over a 100-year time span.
The
new discovered gas PFTBA which does not occur naturally has been in use in the
electrical industry such as transistors and capacitors since the mid-20th
century. It belongs to an entire class of chemicals used for industrial
applications whose effects on the atmosphere remain unknown.
Concentrations
of PFTBA in the atmosphere are low – 0.18 parts per trillion in the Toronto
area – compared to 400 parts per million for carbon dioxide. So PFTBA does not
in any way displace the burning of fossil fuels such as oil and coal as the
main drivers of climate change.
From
a climate change perspective, individually, PFTBA's atmospheric concentration
does not significantly alert the phenomenon of climate change, still the
biggest culprit is CO2 from fossil fuel emissions. Further, it has the highest
radiative efficiency of any molecule detected in the atmosphere to date.
But
PFTBA is long-lived. The Toronto researchers estimated that PFTBA remains in
the atmosphere for about 500 years. Unlike carbon dioxide which is taken up by
forests and oceans, there are no known natural "sinks" on Earth to
absorb it.
The
discovery of PFTBA and its warming potential raises questions about the climate
impacts of other chemicals used in industrial processes.
No comments:
Post a Comment