Sulfate aerosols, heterogeneous chemistry

Atmospheric aerosols have a direct impact on earth s radiation balance, fog formation and cloud physics, and visibility degradation as well as human health effect[l]. Both natural and anthropogenic sources contribute to the formation of ambient aerosol, which are composed mostly of sulfates, nitrates and ammoniums in either pure or mixed forms[2]. These inorganic salt aerosols are hygroscopic by nature and exhibit the properties of deliquescence and efflorescence in humid air. That is, relative humidity(RH) history and chemical composition determine whether atmospheric aerosols are liquid or solid. Aerosol physical state affects climate and environmental phenomena such as radiative transfer, visibility, and heterogeneous chemistry. Here we present a mathematical model that considers the relative humidity history and chemical composition dependence of deliquescence and efflorescence for describing the dynamic and transport behavior of ambient aerosols[3]. 

Zhang, R., M.-T. Leu, and L. F. Keyser, Heterogeneous Chemistry of HONO on Liquid Sulfuric Acid A New Mechanism of Chlorine Activation on Stratospheric Sulfate Aerosols, . /. Phys. Chem., 100, 339-345 (1996). 

There are several reasons for the dramatic ozone destruction (see Fig. 2.17) low temperatures may have prolonged the presence of polar stratospheric clouds, which play a key role in the ozone destruction, the polar vortex was very stable, there were increased sulfate aerosols from the 1991 Mount Pinatubo volcanic eruption, which also contribute to heterogeneous chemistry, and chlorine levels had continued to increase. These issues are treated in more detail shortly. 

Volcanic injection of large quantities of sulfate aerosol into the stratosphere offers the opportunity to examine the sensitivity of ozone depletion and species concentrations to a major perturbation in aerosol surface area (Hofmann and Solomon 1989 Johnston et al. 1992 Prather 1992 Mills et al. 1993). The increase in stratospheric aerosol surface area resulting from a major volcanic eruption can lead to profound effects on C10 -induced ozone depletion chemistry. Because the heterogeneous reaction of N205 and water on the surface of stratospheric aerosols effectively removes N02 from the active reaction system, less N02 is available to react with CIO to form the reservoir species C10N02. As a result, more CIO is present in active CIO cycles. Therefore an increase in stratospheric aerosol surface area, as from a volcanic eruption, can serve to make the chlorine present more effective at ozone depletion, even if no increases in chlorine are occurring. 

---