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The pH of deliquesced sea‐salt aerosol in polluted marine air
Author(s) -
Keene William C.,
Savoie Dennis L.
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1029/98gl01591
Subject(s) - aerosol , sea salt , sea salt aerosol , salt (chemistry) , environmental chemistry , environmental science , seawater , particle (ecology) , atmospheric sciences , chemistry , oceanography , geology , organic chemistry
The pH of deliquesced sea‐salt aerosol was derived from the Cl phase partitioning measured in marine air, corresponding meteorological conditions, and the thermodynamic properties of HCl. Under moderately polluted conditions at Bermuda during spring 1996, calculated sea‐salt aerosol pH ranged from the mid‐2s to the mid‐3 s. Cl − and NO 3 − concentrations in the lower half of the sea‐salt size distribution were near thermodynamic equilibrium with respect to HCl g and HNO 3g ; shorter aerosol lifetimes and slower reaction kinetics involving larger aerosol sustained moderate phase disequilibria. The active multiphase cycling of HCl buffered sea‐salt aerosol pH to approximately the same value across the particle size spectrum.