Spontaneous electric fields in solid carbon monoxide

Reflection–absorption infrared spectroscopy (RAIRS) is shown to provide a means of observing the spontelectric phase of matter, the defining characteristic of which is the occurrence of a spontaneous and powerful static electric field within a film of material.</p

Uptake and surface chemistry of SO2 on natural volcanic dusts

V-dust (v-dust) is a highly variable source of natural particles in the atmosphere, and during the period of high volcanic activity it can provide a large surface for heterogeneous interactions with other atmospheric compounds. Icelandic v-dust was chosen as a case study due to frequency of volcanic eruptions and high aeolian activity in the area. In this study, we focus on the kinetics and mechanism of the reaction of sulfur dioxide (SO2) with natural v-dust samples under atmospheric conditions using coated wall flow tube reactor and diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy (DRIFTS). Steady state uptake coefficients determined are in the range of 10−9 to 10−8 depending on the considered v-dust. Concomitantly with SO2 uptake, both sulfites and sulfates are monitored on the surface of v-dust, with sulfates being the final oxidation product, attesting of SO2 surface reaction. Surface hydroxyl groups play a crucial role in the conversion of SO2 to sulfites as evidenced from both flow tube and DRIFTS experiments. Based on these experimental results, a mechanism for SO2 interaction with different surface sites of v-dust is proposed and discussed. This study provides original insights in the kinetics of SO2 uptake under simulated atmospheric conditions and its mechanism and transformation on volcanic material. To that regards, it brings an accurate perspective on SO2 heterogeneous sinks in the atmosphere.The authors acknowledge Mr Vincent Gaudion and Dr Mohamad Zeineddine (SAGE, IMT Lille Douai) for their assistance in the lab. We are grateful to Mr Bruno Malet and Dr Laurent Alleman (SAGE, IMT Lille Douai) for conducting the ICP-MS experiments. This work was achieved in the frame of Labex CaPPA, funded by ANR through the PIA under contract ANR-11-LABX-0005-01, and CPER CLIMIBIO project, both funded by the Hauts-de-France Regional Council and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). J. Lasne acknowledges support from the Labex CaPPA and CPER CLIMIBIO projects and the Hauts-de-France Regional Council for his post-doctoral fellowship.Peer Reviewe

Newly identified climatically and environmentally significant high-latitude dust sources

Dust particles from high latitudes have a potentially large local, regional, and global significance to climate and the environment as short-lived climate forcers, air pollutants, and nutrient sources. Identifying the locations of local dust sources and their emission, transport, and deposition processes is important for understanding the multiple impacts of high-latitude dust (HLD) on the Earth\u27s systems. Here, we identify, describe, and quantify the source intensity (SI) values, which show the potential of soil surfaces for dust emission scaled to values 0 to 1 concerning globally best productive sources, using the Global Sand and Dust Storms Source Base Map (G-SDS-SBM). This includes 64 HLD sources in our collection for the northern (Alaska, Canada, Denmark, Greenland, Iceland, Svalbard, Sweden, and Russia) and southern (Antarctica and Patagonia) high latitudes. Activity from most of these HLD sources shows seasonal character. It is estimated that high-latitude land areas with higher (SI ≥0.5), very high (SI ≥0.7), and the highest potential (SI ≥0.9) for dust emission cover >1 670 000 km$^{2}$, >560 000 km$^{2}$, and >240 000 km$^{2}$, respectively. In the Arctic HLD region (≥60$^{∘}$ N), land area with SI ≥0.5 is 5.5 % (1 035 059 km$^{2}$), area with SI ≥0.7 is 2.3 % (440 804 km$^{2}$), and area with SI ≥0.9 is 1.1 % (208 701 km$^{2}$). Minimum SI values in the northern HLD region are about 3 orders of magnitude smaller, indicating that the dust sources of this region greatly depend on weather conditions. Our spatial dust source distribution analysis modeling results showed evidence supporting a northern HLD belt, defined as the area north of 50$^{∘}$ N, with a “transitional HLD-source area” extending at latitudes 50–58∘ N in Eurasia and 50–55$^{∘}$ N in Canada and a “cold HLD-source area” including areas north of 60$^{∘}$ N in Eurasia and north of 58$^{∘}$ N in Canada, with currently “no dust source” area between the HLD and low-latitude dust (LLD) dust belt, except for British Columbia. Using the global atmospheric transport model SILAM, we estimated that 1.0 % of the global dust emission originated from the high-latitude regions. About 57 % of the dust deposition in snow- and ice-covered Arctic regions was from HLD sources. In the southern HLD region, soil surface conditions are favorable for dust emission during the whole year. Climate change can cause a decrease in the duration of snow cover, retreat of glaciers, and an increase in drought, heatwave intensity, and frequency, leading to the increasing frequency of topsoil conditions favorable for dust emission, which increases the probability of dust storms. Our study provides a step forward to improve the representation of HLD in models and to monitor, quantify, and assess the environmental and climate significance of HLD

Newly identified climatically and environmentally significant high-latitude dust sources

Peer reviewe

Editorial: Heterogeneous processes on dust and ice surfaces in planetary atmospheres: Mars, Venus, Titan, and perspectives for exoplanets

International audienceThis small collection of papers represents a tentative step in exploring such heterogeneous processes in other planetary atmospheres

Spontaneous Polarization of Solid CO on Water Ices and Some Astrophysical Implications

Reflection absorption infrared spectroscopy (RAIRS) is used to show that when 20 monolayer (ML) films of solid CO are laid down on solid water substrates at 20 to 24 K, the films polarize spontaneously.</p

Spontaneously electrical solids in a new light

Reflection–absorption infrared spectroscopy (RAIRS) of nitrous oxide (N2O) thin films is shown to provide an independent means of observing the spontelectric state; the first new structural phase of matter, with unique electrical properties, to have emerged in decades.</p