scholarly journals An isotope view on ionising radiation as a source of sulphuric acid

2012 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 5039-5064 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. B. Enghoff ◽  
N. Bork ◽  
S. Hattori ◽  
C. Meusinger ◽  
M. Nakagawa ◽  
...  

Abstract. Sulphuric acid is an important factor in aerosol nucleation and growth. It has been shown that ions enhance the formation of sulphuric acid aerosols, but the exact mechanism has remained undetermined. Furthermore some studies have found a deficiency in the sulphuric acid budget, suggesting a missing source. In this study the production of sulphuric acid from SO2 through a number of different pathways is investigated. The production methods are standard gas phase oxidation by OH radicals produced by ozone photolysis with UV light, liquid phase oxidation by ozone, and gas phase oxidation initiated by gamma rays. The distributions of stable sulphur isotopes in the products and substrate were measured using isotope ratio mass spectrometry. All methods produced sulphate enriched in 34S and we find a δ34S value of 8.7 ± 0.4‰ (1 standard deviation) for the UV-initiated OH reaction. Only UV light (Hg emission at 253.65 nm) produced a clear non-mass-dependent excess of 33S. The pattern of isotopic enrichment produced by gamma rays is similar, but not equal, to that produced by aqueous oxidation of SO2 by ozone. This, combined with the relative yields of the experiments, suggests a mechanism in which ionising radiation may lead to hydrated ion clusters that serve as nanoreactors for S(IV) to S(VI) conversion.

2012 ◽  
Vol 12 (12) ◽  
pp. 5319-5327 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. B. Enghoff ◽  
N. Bork ◽  
S. Hattori ◽  
C. Meusinger ◽  
M. Nakagawa ◽  
...  

Abstract. Sulphuric acid is an important factor in aerosol nucleation and growth. It has been shown that ions enhance the formation of sulphuric acid aerosols, but the exact mechanism has remained undetermined. Furthermore some studies have found a deficiency in the sulphuric acid budget, suggesting a missing source. In this study the production of sulphuric acid from SO2 through a number of different pathways is investigated. The production methods are standard gas phase oxidation by OH radicals produced by ozone photolysis with UV light, liquid phase oxidation by ozone, and gas phase oxidation initiated by gamma rays. The distributions of stable sulphur isotopes in the products and substrate were measured using isotope ratio mass spectrometry. All methods produced sulphate enriched in 34S and we find an enrichment factor (δ34S) of 8.7 ± 0.4‰ (1 standard deviation) for the UV-initiated OH reaction. Only UV light (Hg emission at 253.65 nm) produced a clear non-mass-dependent excess of 33S. The pattern of isotopic enrichment produced by gamma rays is similar, but not equal, to that produced by aqueous oxidation of SO2 by ozone. This, combined with the relative yields of the experiments, suggests a mechanism in which ionising radiation may lead to hydrated ion clusters that serve as nanoreactors for S(IV) to S(VI) conversion.


2012 ◽  
Vol 116 (24) ◽  
pp. 6127-6133 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mariano A. Teruel ◽  
Julio Benitez-Villalba ◽  
Norma Caballero ◽  
María B. Blanco

2016 ◽  
Vol 3 (9) ◽  
pp. 327-331 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nadine Borduas ◽  
Jennifer G. Murphy ◽  
Chen Wang ◽  
Gabriel da Silva ◽  
Jonathan P. D. Abbatt

2013 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 151 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. M. Donahue ◽  
W. Chuang ◽  
S. A. Epstein ◽  
J. H. Kroll ◽  
D. R. Worsnop ◽  
...  

Environmental context Fine particles (aerosols) containing organic compounds are central players in two important environmental issues: aerosol-climate effects and human health effects (including mortality). Although organics constitute half or more of the total fine-particle mass, their chemistry is extremely complex; of critical importance is ongoing oxidation chemistry in both the gas phase and the particle phase. Here we present a method for representing that oxidation chemistry when the actual composition of the organics is not known and show that relatively slow oxidant uptake to particles plays a key role in the very existence of organic aerosols. Abstract Organic aerosols play a critical role in atmospheric chemistry, human health and climate. Their behaviour is complex. They consist of thousands of organic molecules in a rich, possibly highly viscous mixture that may or may not be in phase equilibrium with organic vapours. Because the aerosol is a mixture, compounds from all sources interact and thus influence each other. Finally, most ambient organic aerosols are highly oxidised, so the molecules are secondary products formed from primary emissions by oxidation chemistry and possibly non-oxidative association reactions in multiple phases, including gas-phase oxidation, aqueous oxidation, condensed (organic) phase reactions and heterogeneous interactions of all these phases. In spite of this complexity, we can make a strong existential statement about organic aerosol: They exist throughout the troposphere because heterogeneous oxidation by OH radicals is more than an order of magnitude slower than comparable gas-phase oxidation.


2015 ◽  
Vol 15 (12) ◽  
pp. 17367-17396 ◽  
Author(s):  
Y. B. Lim ◽  
B. J. Turpin

Abstract. Aqueous chemistry in atmospheric waters (e.g., cloud droplets or wet aerosols) is well accepted as an atmospheric pathway to produce secondary organic aerosol (SOAaq). Water-soluble organic compounds with small carbon numbers (C2-C3) are precursors for SOAaq and products include organic acids, organic sulfates, and high molecular weight compounds/oligomers. Fenton reactions and the uptake of gas-phase OH radicals are considered to be the major oxidant sources for aqueous organic chemistry. However, the sources and availability of oxidants in atmospheric waters are not well understood. The degree to which OH is produced in the aqueous phase affects the balance of radical and non-radical aqueous chemistry, the properties of the resulting aerosol, and likely its atmospheric behavior. This paper demonstrates organic peroxide formation during aqueous photooxidation of methylglyoxal using ultra high resolution Fourier Transform Ion Cyclotron Resonance electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (FTICR-MS). Organic peroxides are known to form through gas-phase oxidation of volatile organic compounds. They contribute secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation directly by forming peroxyhemiacetals, and epoxides, and indirectly by enhancing gas-phase oxidation through OH recycling. We provide simulation results of organic peroxide/peroxyhemiacetal formation in clouds and wet aerosols and discuss organic peroxides as a source of condensed-phase OH radicals and as a contributor to aqueous SOA.


Chemosphere ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 132546
Author(s):  
Alejandro L. Cardona ◽  
Rodrigo G. Gibilisco ◽  
Cynthia B. Rivela ◽  
María B. Blanco ◽  
Iulia Patroescu-Klotz ◽  
...  

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