Growth of ice nanoparticles via uptake of individual molecules: pickup cross sections

We present cross sections for pickup of several atmospherically relevant molecules on ice nanoparticles with the 0.5-3 nm diameter range. The experimental values are supported by molecular dynamics simulations and analytical calculations based on long-range cluster-molecule potentials. The cross sections are all considerably larger than the geometrical cross section of nanoparticle and vary significantly for different guest molecules

Uptake of atmospheric molecules by ice nanoparticles: Pickup cross sections

Uptake of several atmospheric molecules on free ice nanoparticles was investigated. Typical examples were chosen: water, methane, NOx species (NO, NO₂), hydrogen halides (HCl, HBr), and volatile organic compounds (CH₃OH, CH₃CH₂OH). The cross sections for pickup of these molecules on ice nanoparticles (H₂O)N with the mean size of ***Missing image substitution***≈ 260 (diameter ∼2.3 nm) were measured in a molecular beam experiment. These cross sections were determined from the cluster beam velocity decrease due to the momentum transfer during the pickup process. For water molecules molecular dynamics simulations were performed to learn the details of the pickup process. The experimental results for water are in good agreement with the simulations. The pickup cross sections of ice particles of several nanometers in diameter can be more than 3 times larger than the geometrical cross sections of these particles. This can have significant consequences in modelling of atmospheric ice nanoparticles, e.g., their growth