Relative integrated IR absorption in the atmospheric window is not the same as relative radiative efficiency

In their paper “Design strategies to minimize the radiative efficiency of global warming molecules,” Bera et al. (1) mistakenly equate the relative magnitudes of integrated absorption within the atmospheric window (800–1,400 cm−1) with relative radiative efficiencies of different molecules. Radiative efficiency is defined as the change in net radiation at the tropopause caused by a given change in greenhouse gas concentration or mass and has units of W·m−2·ppb−1 (2, 3). Radiative efficiency is calculated using radiative transfer models of the atmosphere and depends on the strength and spectral position of a compound's absorption bands, atmospheric structure, surface temperature, and presence or absence of clouds …