Uptake of Formic Acid on Thin Ice Films and on Ice Doped with Nitric Acid between 195 and 211 K

The HOX⋯SO2 (X=F, Cl, Br, I) Binary Complexes: Implications for Atmospheric Chemistry

Sulfur dioxide and hypohalous acids (HOX, X=F, Cl, Br, I) are ubiquitous molecules in the atmosphere that are central to important processes like seasonal ozone depletion, acid rain, and cloud nucleation. We present the first theoretical examination of the HOX⋯SO₂ binary complexes and the associated trends due to halogen substitution. Reliable geometries were optimized at the CCSD(T)/aug-cc-pV(T+d)Z level of theory for HOF and HOCl complexes. The HOBr and HOI complexes were optimized at the CCSD(T)/aug-cc-pV(D+d)Z level of theory with the exception of the Br and I atoms which were modeled with an aug-cc-pwCVDZ-PP pseudopotential. 27 HOX⋯SO₂ complexes were characterized and the focal point method was employed to produce CCSDT(Q)/CBS interaction energies. Natural Bond Orbital analysis and Symmetry Adapted Perturbation Theory were used to classify the nature of each principle interaction. The interaction energies of all HOX⋯SO₂ complexes in this study ranged from 1.35 to 3.81 kcal mol^-1 . The single-interaction hydrogen bonded complexes spanned a range of 2.62 to 3.07 kcal mol^-1 , while the single-interaction halogen bonded complexes were far more sensitive to halogen substitution ranging from 1.35 to 3.06 kcal mol^-1 , indicating that the two types of interactions are extremely competitive for heavier halogens. Our results provide insight into the interactions between HOX and SO₂ which may guide further research of related systems.

CH3CO + O2 + M (M = He, N2) Reaction Rate Coefficient Measurements and Implications for the OH Radical Product Yield

The gas-phase CH3CO + O2 reaction is known to proceed via a chemical activation mechanism leading to the formation of OH and CH3C(O)OO radicals via bimolecular and termolecular reactive channels, respectively. In this work, rate coefficients, k, for the CH3CO + O2 reaction were measured over a range of temperature (241-373 K) and pressure (0.009-600 Torr) with He and N2 as the bath gas and used to characterize the bi- and ter-molecular reaction channels. Three independent experimental methods (pulsed laser photolysis-laser-induced fluorescence (PLP-LIF), pulsed laser photolysis-cavity ring-down spectroscopy (PLP-CRDS), and a very low-pressure reactor (VLPR)) were used to characterize k(T,M). PLP-LIF was the primary method used to measure k(T,M) in the high-pressure regime under pseudo-first-order conditions. CH3CO was produced by PLP, and LIF was used to monitor the OH radical bimolecular channel reaction product. CRDS, a complementary high-pressure method, measured k(295 K,M) over the pressure range 25-600 Torr (He) by monitoring the temporal CH3CO radical absorption following its production via PLP in the presence of excess O2. The VLPR technique was used in a relative rate mode to measure k(296 K,M) in the low-pressure regime (9-32 mTorr) with CH3CO + Cl2 used as the reference reaction. A kinetic mechanism analysis of the combined kinetic data set yielded a zero pressure limit rate coefficient, kint(T), of (6.4 ± 4) × 10(-14) exp((820 ± 150)/T) cm(3) molecule(-1) s(-1) (with kint(296 K) measured to be (9.94 ± 1.3) × 10(-13) cm(3) molecule(-1) s(-1)), k0(T) = (7.39 ± 0.3) × 10(-30) (T/300)(-2.2±0.3) cm(6) molecule(-2) s(-1), and k∞(T) = (4.88 ± 0.05) × 10(-12) (T/300)(-0.85±0.07) cm(3) molecule(-1) s(-1) with Fc = 0.8 and M = N2. A He/N2 collision efficiency ratio of 0.60 ± 0.05 was determined. The phenomenological kinetic results were used to define the pressure and temperature dependence of the OH radical yield in the CH3CO + O2 reaction. The present results are compared with results from previous studies and the discrepancies are discussed.

The interaction of propionic and butyric acids with ice and HNO₃-doped ice surfaces at 195-212 K

The interaction of propionic and butyric acids on ice and HNO3-doped ice were studied between 195 and 212 K and low concentrations, using a Knudsen flow reactor coupled with a quadrupole mass spectrometer. The initial uptake coefficients (γ0) of propionic and butyric acids on ice as a function of temperature are given by the expressions: γ0(T) = (7.30 ± 1.0) × 10(-10) exp[(3216 ± 478)/T] and γ0(T) = (6.36 ± 0.76) × 10(-11) exp[(3810 ± 434)/T], respectively; the quoted error limits are at 95% level of confidence. Similarly, γ0 of propionic acid on 1.96 wt % (A) and 7.69 wt % (B) HNO3-doped ice with temperature are given as γ(0,A)(T) = (2.89 ± 0.26) × 10(-8) exp[(2517 ± 266)/T] and γ(0,B)(T) = (2.77 ± 0.29) × 10(-7) exp[(2126 ± 206)/T], respectively. The results show that γ0 of C1 to C4 n-carboxylic acids on ice increase with the alkyl-group length, due to lateral interactions between alkyl-groups that favor a more perpendicular orientation and well packing of H-bonded monomers on ice. The high uptakes (>10(15) molecules cm(-2)) and long recovery signals indicate efficient growth of random multilayers above the first monolayer driven by significant van der Waals interactions. The heterogeneous loss of both acids on ice and HNO3-doped ice particles in dense cirrus clouds is estimated to take a few minutes, signifying rapid local heterogeneous removal by dense cirrus clouds.