Total chlorine content in the lower stratosphere

Technical Report · Sun Oct 20 04:00:00 EDT 1985

OSTI ID:6073417

Gallagher, C C; Forsberg, C A; Mason, A S; Gandrud, B W

A cryogenic whole air sampler and a filter sampler were used, simultaneously, on a balloon platform to capture and preserve all significant stratospheric chlorine species with the exception of Cl and ClO at altitudes of 15, 20, 25, and 30 km. The whole air samples were analyzed by gas chromatography to determine mixing ratios of CF/sub 2/Cl/sub 2/, CFCl/sub 3/, CH/sub 3/Cl, CH/sub 3/CCl/sub 3/, and CCl/sub 4/. Liquid extractions of the filter samples were analyzed for acidic and particulate chlorine content using-neutron activation and wet-chemistry techniques. Summation of the contributions from the major species produced total chlorine mixing ratios that decreased from 2.6 ppbv at 15 km to 2.2-2.5 ppbv for the higher altitudes. Omission of Cl and ClO introduced about a 3-7% error at 25-30 km and negligible error at 15 and 20 km. The combined contributions of all other omitted species introduced 1-2% error to the total chlorine values for all altitudes investigated. The increase in total acidic species content with increasing altitude correlates with the decrease in the mixing ratios of the chlorine species of tropospheric origin.

• Research Organization: Air Force Geophysics Lab., Hanscom AFB, MA (USA)
• OSTI ID: 6073417
• Report Number(s): AD-A-162051/7/XAB; AFGL-TR-85-0283
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

500200* -- Environment
Atmospheric-- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport-- (-1989)
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
AIR
AIRSHIPS
ALTITUDE
ATMOSPHERIC CHEMISTRY
BALLOONS
CARBON TETRACHLORIDE
CHEMISTRY
CHLORINATED ALIPHATIC HYDROCARBONS
CHLORINE COMPOUNDS
CHROMATOGRAPHY
CRYOGENICS
EARTH ATMOSPHERE
EQUIPMENT
FILTERS
FLUIDS
GAS CHROMATOGRAPHY
GASES
HALOGEN COMPOUNDS
HALOGENATED ALIPHATIC HYDROCARBONS
MIXING
ORGANIC CHLORINE COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC HALOGEN COMPOUNDS
PARTICLES
PARTICULATES
SAMPLERS
SAMPLING
SEPARATION PROCESSES