1-D air-snowpack modeling of atmospheric nitrous acid at South Pole during ANTCI 2003

International audience A 1-D air-snowpack model of HONO has been developed and constrained by observed chemistry and meteorology data. The 1-D model includes molecular diffusion and mechanical dispersion, windpumping in snow, gas phase to quasi-liquid layer phase HONO transfer and quasi-liquid layer...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Liao, Wei, Tan, D.
Other Authors: Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences Atlanta, Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: HAL CCSD 2008
Subjects:
[SDU.OCEAN]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Ocean
Atmosphere
South Pole
South pole
Online Access:https://hal.science/hal-00304193
https://hal.science/hal-00304193/document
https://hal.science/hal-00304193/file/acpd-8-9731-2008.pdf
Description
Summary:International audience A 1-D air-snowpack model of HONO has been developed and constrained by observed chemistry and meteorology data. The 1-D model includes molecular diffusion and mechanical dispersion, windpumping in snow, gas phase to quasi-liquid layer phase HONO transfer and quasi-liquid layer nitrate and interstitial air HONO photolysis. Photolysis of nitrate is important as a dominant HONO source inside the snowpack, however, the observed HONO emission from the snowpack was triggered mainly by the equilibrium between quasi liquid layer nitrite and firn air HONO deep down the snow surface (i.e. 30 cm below snow surface). The high concentration of HONO in the firn air is subsequently transported above the snowpack by diffusion and windpumping. The model uncertainties come mainly from lack of measurements and the interpretation of the QLL properties based on the bulk snow measurements. One critical factor is the ionic strength of QLL nitrite, which is estimated here by the bulk snow pH, nitrite concentration, and QLL to bulk snow volume ratio.

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