Publication Abstracts
Prather 1992
, 1992: More rapid polar ozone depletion through the reaction of HOCl with HCI on polar stratospheric clouds. Nature, 355, 534-537, doi:10.1038/355534a0.
The direct reaction of HOCl with HCl, known to occur in liquid water and on glass surfaces, has now been measured on surfaces similar to polar stratospheric clouds and is shown here to play a critical part in polar ozone loss. Two keys to understanding the chemistry of the Antarctic ozone hole are, one, the recognition that reactions on polar stratospheric clouds transform HCl into more reactive species denoted by ClOx and, two, the discovery of the ClO-dimer (Cl2O2) mechanism that rapidly catalyses destruction of O3. Observations of high levels of OClO and ClO in the springtime Antarctic stratosphere confirm that most of the available chlorine is in the form of ClOx. But current photochemical models have difficulty converting HCl to ClOx rapidly enough in early spring to account fully for the observations. Here I show, using a chemical model, that the direct reaction of HOCl with HCl provides the missing mechanism. As alternative sources of nitrogen-containing oxidants, such as N2O5 and ClONO2, have been converted in the late autumn to inactive HNO3 by known reactions on the sulphate-layer aerosols, the reaction of HOCl with HCl on polar stratospheric clouds becomes the most important pathway for releasing that stratospheric chlorine which goes into polar night as HCl.
Export citation: [ BibTeX ] [ RIS ]
BibTeX Citation
@article{pr06400u,
author={Prather, M. J.},
title={More rapid polar ozone depletion through the reaction of HOCl with HCI on polar stratospheric clouds},
year={1992},
journal={Nature},
volume={355},
pages={534--537},
doi={10.1038/355534a0},
}
[ Close ]
RIS Citation
TY - JOUR ID - pr06400u AU - Prather, M. J. PY - 1992 TI - More rapid polar ozone depletion through the reaction of HOCl with HCI on polar stratospheric clouds JA - Nature VL - 355 SP - 534 EP - 537 DO - 10.1038/355534a0 ER -
[ Close ]
