What are fumes?

Answer 1

Toxic fumes are gases that are poisonous or dangerous to people. There are different levels of toxicity, meaning some fumes ( gases ) are more dangerous than others. For instance, carbon monoxide can be present in your house. It is a toxic fume that comes from car exhaust or furnaces. In very, very low concentrations, you may only show mild symptoms like a headache or even none if you come and go a lot. But in higher concentrations it will be lethal (deadly ) and kill you.

Toxic fumes generally come from factories or result from chemical processes like combustion ( in an engine ), or processing/manufacturing ( mills, oil refineries,chemical plants). It is now widely accepted that cigarette smoke is toxic, as it causes cancer, and has been linked to lung and Heart diseases. Generally, most toxic fumes are man-made.

Answer 2

Nitrous Oxides (NO, NO2 and N2O), Sulphur Dioxide, Carbon Dioxide and Carbon Monoxide are the famous ones, depending on the reactions that are taking place in the factory. There are also particulates (PM10) which are small cinders which end up floating around the atmosphere.

However many factories have special grilles inside their chimneys to remove the sulphur dioxide, or they crush the coal mixed with an acid to remove any sulphur, thus reducing the amount of SO2 in the atmosphere.

Answer 3

Fumes are airborne metals, which are formed when a metal is heated above its boiling point and its vapours condense into very fine, particles (solid particulates).

Smoke very often contains fumes, and welding ALWAYS gives off fumes. Spray painting does not emit fumes, neither do bottles of corrosive or strong chemicals, such as bleach, battery electrolyte, or ammonia.

Therefore, it can be seen that this word is often misused, when referring to vapors. Gases are vapors, not fumes. Liquids are droplets, mist, or vapors, not fumes.

Answer 4

Fumes are airborne particles or vapors created by the heating or chemical reaction of a substance. They can be toxic or harmful to humans if inhaled in large quantities, causing respiratory issues or other health problems.

Answer 5

Vapor released by any chemical, fuel, food, process, burning, etc.