Recent quantum chemical studies indicate that ammonia significantly enhances the formation of sulfuric acid–water clusters containing multiple sulfuric acid molecules. Our calculations on clusters containing up to three sulfuric acid molecules indicate a lower limit of 1:3 for the NH3:H2SO4mole ratio of nucleating clusters in atmospheric conditions. However, computations on NH3–H2SO4cluster cores also indicate an upper limit of 1:1, which is unlikely to be exceeded in any atmospheric conditions. Ammonia is also predicted to be only weakly bound to the HSO4− ion, and should thus not play a significant role in ion-induced nucleation of the sulfuric acid–water system.
Keywords Nucleation, sulfuric acid, ammonia, quantum chemistry
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Kurtén, T. et al. (2007). Investigating the Role of Ammonia in Atmospheric Nucleation. In: O'Dowd, C.D., Wagner, P.E. (eds) Nucleation and Atmospheric Aerosols. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-6475-3_10
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