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Uptake and Dissolution of Gaseous Ethanol in Sulfuric AcidThe solubility of gas-phase ethanol (ethyl alcohol, CH3CH2OH, EtOH) in aqueous sulfuric acid solutions was measured in a Knudsen cell reactor over ranges of temperature (209-237 K) and acid composition (39-76 wt % H2SO4). Ethanol is very soluble under these conditions: effective Henry's law coefficients, H*, range from 4 x 10(exp 4) M/atm in the 227 K, 39 wt % acid to greater than 10(exp 7) M/atm in the 76 wt % acid. In 76 wt % sulfuric acid, ethanol solubility exceeds that which can be precisely determined using the Knudsen cell technique but falls in the range of 10(exp 7)-10(exp 10) M/atm. The equilibrium concentration of ethanol in upper tropospheric/lower stratospheric (UT/LS) sulfate particles is calculated from these measurements and compared to other small oxygenated organic compounds. Even if ethanol is a minor component in the gas phase, it may be a major constituent of the organic fraction in the particle phase. No evidence for the formation of ethyl hydrogen sulfate was found under our experimental conditions. While the protonation of ethanol does augment solubility at higher acidity, the primary reason H* increases with acidity is an increase in the solubility of molecular (i.e., neutral) ethanol.
Document ID
20070026248
Acquisition Source
Ames Research Center
Document Type
Reprint (Version printed in journal)
External Source(s)
Authors
Michelsen, Rebecca R.
(NASA Ames Research Center Moffett Field, CA, United States)
Staton, Sarah J. R.
(NASA Ames Research Center Moffett Field, CA, United States)
Iraci, Laura T.
(NASA Ames Research Center Moffett Field, CA, United States)
Date Acquired
August 23, 2013
Publication Date
April 5, 2006
Publication Information
Publication: The Journal of Physical Chemistry A
Volume: 110
Issue: 21
Subject Category
Inorganic, Organic And Physical Chemistry
Funding Number(s)
CONTRACT_GRANT: NNA04CC01A
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Other

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