What are some important uses for oxygen?

Answer 1

Oxygen is essential for many things:

1. All aerobic metabolic processes on animals such as sea and land animals including people use oxygen

. Oxygen is what we breath in, CO2 what we breath out.

2. Almost all combustion processes whether camp fires, engines, or fossil fueled power plants.

3. Many chemical processes in manufacturing utilize oxygen as a reagent such as pharmaceuticals (drugs), plastics, and refineries.

4. Fabrication processes like welding often use oxygen (cutting torches).

5. Results in the ozone layer (O3) which absorbs ultraviolet radiation.

While not exactly uses for oxygen, it also causes steel to rust, metals to oxidize and participates in much of the weathering effect on paint and materials as well as promotes the breakdown of many materials and elements.