Thesis of Zaynab Srour

Defense of thesis  Zainab Srour - laboratory PC2A

Modelling Studies of the Chlorine Atmospheric Chemistry

Abstract :

The discovery of the ozone hole over the Antarctic in the 1970s established the significance of gas-phase halogenated species in the atmosphere. These species play a crucial role in tropospheric and stratospheric chemistry, influencing ozone budget, atmospheric concentrations of key species (such as OH, NOx, and volatile organic compounds), and halogen interactions. Numerous studies have explored halogen chemistry using global models, however, most of the focus has been on bromine and iodine due to their higher reactivity compared to chlorine. This preference arises from the greater chemical stability of HCl compared to other halogen acids (HX, where X = Br, I).
This thesis aims to unravel the chlorine chemistry in the troposphere starting from the molecular up to the global scales. This is done through the employment of different numerical tools: (i) quantum chemistry tools to predict the reactivity and thermokinetic parameters of the reaction between OH radicals and CH2ClOOH, which are challenging to obtain experimentally, (ii) the kinetic model “ASTEC” to determine the reactivity of gaseous chlorinated compounds on a short time scale; and (iii) the chemistry transport model “MOCAGE” to evaluate the impact of chlorine on the global atmospheric budget.
The results show that the reaction between CH2ClOOH and OH radicals is of atmospheric interest with an overall rate constant 6.55 × 10-11 cm3 molecule-1 s-1 at 298 K computed at the M06-2X/6-311++G(3df,3p) level of theory. The kinetic modelling showed that the daytime reactivity of chlorinated compounds is more important than the night-time reactivity governed by photolysis and reactivity with OH radicals. Moreover, the global modelling by MOCAGE showed that the chlorine atmospheric budget is not only affected by chemical transformation, but also, it is altered by the physical processes including transport and deposition.

Keywords : atmospheric chemistry,modelling studies,chlorine,quantum chemistry,chemistry-transport