Chemistry+of+Bovine+Flatulence+II

   =** By Casey McMahon and Kim Szkudlarek **=  =Table of Contents:=

I. Description :
====Flatulence is caused by the air that is breathed in by an organism, and the gases that are produced in the digestive tract. Foods that generally result in flatulence are high in complex carbohydrates. Some examples of these foods are milk, broccoli, beans, and yeast, among others. Because these carbohydrates are difficult to break up they go to the lower intestines where bacteria feeds on them, producing gas. The primary components are nitrogen, oxygen, methane, carbon dioxide, and hydrogen gases.[|(3.)] The flatulence that bovine and other livestock create is particularly high in methane, which is why people worry about its effects on our environment. ====

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II. The Role of Bacteria:
====The bacteria found in the lower intestines of bovines decomposes organic matter, like complex carbohydrates as bovines have a difficult time digesting them. The bacteria creates energy by going through the following process. Carbon dioxide along with hydrogen is converted into methane and water by the bacteria. The bacteria then takes a greenhouse gas, carbon dioxide, and converts it into an even more harmful greenhouse gas called methane. [|(6.)] ====


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III. The Chemistry Behind the Process:
====When the cow eats, the food goes to the first of the four divisions of the stomach the rumen. This is where most of the food goes immediately after being swallowed and then the food returns back into the mouth as cud.[|(8.)] The rumen is where most of the methane is produced. Mixed ruminal bacteria in cows create methane through anaerobic fermentation. The bacteria convert CO2 + H into methane CH4.[|(9.)] The fermentation will create volatile fatty acids and microbial proteins and along with this methane will be produced. The bacteria will break down the materials producing C02 and hydrogen. Methane is then created in order to decrease the level of hydrogen, which would suppress digestion. Carbohydrates (which contain Carbon, Oxygen and Hydrogen) are often a concern when looking at the digestion system because when they are broken down carbohydrates, especially complex carbohydrates will produce a lot of,CH4, methane.[|(10.)] The amount of methane produced by cows eventually adds up to amounts that start to affect the environment.====

====Greenhouse gases,like methane, are found in the atmosphere. They allow the strong radiations that come directly from the sun through the atmosphere. Once these rays hit the earth most of it is absorbed by the earth, but the rest is reflected off the earth back towards the atmosphere. Some of this radiation is able to leave the atmosphere. The greenhouse gases will absorb the lower radiation of the reflected rays and trap it inside the earths atmosphere. These gases will keep the earth at a warm temperature, which enable organisms to live on earth.[|(4.)] But people fear that too much of these gases will cause the earth to get too warm, to the point that all the ice in the world will melt, and that the planet may eventually become uninhabitable.====

The original video below illustrates the what is happening with the chemical methane and how it affects the planet.
media type="youtube" key="J6EYual_gcM" height="344" width="425" align="center"

IV. Why Are They Called Greenhouse Gases?:
====The gases that are blamed for global warming get their name from the effect that they have on the earth. The atmosphere consists of many different gases and sunlight is able to pass through them. Some gases, the greenhouse gases, absorb the heat that radiates back. In effect, those gases trap in the heat and warm the earth if they become too plentiful. [|(5.)] The result of these gases towards the earth is the same as what happens inside of a greenhouse. The walls of a greenhouse allow sunlight to reach the plants inside, while keeping in the heat, so the plants don’t freeze. As the properties of the walls aren’t changing, the temperature is kept relatively stable. The same will happen to the earth if the amount of green house gases doesn’t change. ====



For a more in-depth explanation of the chemistry behind the Greenhouse Effect, visit here.


V. The **Importance of the Issue:**
====Although some may not believe it, studies have shown that bovine flatulence does play a part in our changing climate. In a report put out by the U.N., it even says that more greenhouse gases are coming from cows than from human transportation. To put things into perspective more, it has been said that bovines emit over one-third of the world's methane and over two-thirds of the world's ammonia. [|(1.)] Methane is a big greenhouse gas and the latter is one of the main causes of acid rain. Also, the manure from cows and other livestock contributes greatly to the green house gases in our atmosphere by emitting nitrous oxide. In fact, livestock is responsible for 65% of nitrous oxide that's attributed to man. [|(2.)] Nitrous oxide is particularly harmful to the environment because it has such a high Global Warming Potential. It's almost 300 times worse than CO2.==== ====New Zealand is working on reducing gas emissions from livestock by proposing a tax on the animals. Many find this proposal unreasonable as there is nothing the farmers can do to stop their animals from taking part in natural processes. That's why scientists from the same country are researching possible solutions to the problem by starting from the source. For example, creating a vaccine that reduces the amount of gas animals emit. [|(7.)]====

====Global warming is a very large problem that we face but many people wonder if there is anything we can do about it and if there is, will fixing global warming be too expensive. The topic of the expense of global warming is discussed on this page.====

media type="custom" key="3007912" [[image:cow_burp.jpg align="right"]]
While people fear that bovine's flatulence is a big problem, bovine burping actually has a greater impact on the earth !

If global warming is real, is it too expensive to do anything about?
====Bovine Flatulence is adding to global warming. But is there anything that we can do about it? If we can do something to change the results of global warming can we afford to do it? See the above link to learn more.====



VIII. Work Cited:
1. Peters, Eric. "Blaming the Bovines." __Pittsburgh Tribune Review__ 27 Dec. 2006. 20 Jan. 2009 .

2. Matthews, Christopher. "Livestock a major threat to environment Remedies urgently needed." __FAO__. 29 Nov. 2006. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. 20 Jan. 2009 .

3."Flatulence." __Chemistry Daily__. The Chemistry Encyclopedia. 16 Jan. 2009.http://www.chemistrydaily.com/chemistry/Flatulence

4."GLOBAL WARMING: greenhouse gases & climate change graphics: methane CH4, carbon dioxide CO2, and water molecules H2O, in the atmosphere." __Science graphics: scientific illustration and animation. Russell Kightley Media__. Ed. Russell Kightley. Russell Kightley Media. 21 Jan. 2009 <http://www.rkm.com.au/GREENHOUSE/index.html>.

5. United States. Energy Information Agency. __Greenhouse Gases, Climate Change, and Energy__. May 2008. Energy Information Agency. 20 Jan. 2009 <http://www.eia.doe.gov/bookshelf/brochures/greenhouse/Chapter1.htm>.

6. <span style="font-size: 10pt; color: rgb(38, 42, 44); font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">"Natural gas in the marine environment." __Environmental Impact of the Offshore Oil and Gas Industry__. Offshore-. 21 Jan. 2009 <http://www.offshore-environment.com/naturalgas.html>.

7. "Gas Tax." Winter 2009. __EBSCO__. Student Research Center. 6 Apr. 2009 <http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=sch&AN=35825523&site=src-live>.

8."Rumen." Def. 1. __The American HeritageÂ® Dictionary of the English Language__. 4th ed. Houghton Mifflin Company. <http://www.thefreedictionary.com/rumen>

9.Van Kessel, J.S, and J.B Russell. "Rumen Microbiology." U.S. Dairy Forage Research Center. 6 Apr. 2009.

10. Mitsumori, Makoto. "Control of rumen microbial fermentation for mitigating methane emissions from the rumen | Asian - Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences | Find Articles at BNET." __Find Articles at BNET | News Articles, Magazine Back Issues & Reference Articles on All Topics__. Jan. 2008. Asian - Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences. 06 Apr. 2009 <http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_6917/is_1_21/ai_n28485578/>.