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Surface films and the production of sea‐salt aerosol
Author(s) -
Paterson M. P.,
Spillane K. T.
Publication year - 1969
Publication title -
quarterly journal of the royal meteorological society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.744
H-Index - 143
eISSN - 1477-870X
pISSN - 0035-9009
DOI - 10.1002/qj.49709540506
Subject(s) - supersaturation , adsorption , condensation , aerosol , surface pressure , bubble , cloud condensation nuclei , sea salt , seawater , salt (chemistry) , materials science , chemistry , chemical physics , meteorology , oceanography , geology , mechanics , physics , organic chemistry
The number of condensation nuclei produced by the bursting of a single bubble in sea‐water, and detectable at a few per cent supersaturation, is shown to be markedly dependent on the film pressure of naturally occurring surface‐active material adsorbed on the surface. At low film pressures around 1 dyne cm −1 the presence of the film increases the variability of the number produced, but the number is always less than that expected for a clean water surface. With increase of film pressure the number of nuclei produced decreases markedly. The dependence of nucleus number on the state of any surface‐adsorbed film has important consequences for the sea‐to‐air transport of organic material. This is discussed.