Olenka Jibaja Valderrama

Reactivity studies in the Surface of the Sea

The SML (Sea-surface microlayer) is the boundary interface between the atmosphere and the ocean. It is a phenomenon of global relevance, as the ocean covers 70% of the Earth’s surface. The SML has different physical, chemical and biological properties compared to the sub-surface water, with an enrichment of organic matter that includes amino acids, fatty acids and many others. Being rich in organic material and because of its exposure to strong UV radiation, the SML is expected to be chemically and photochemically active. Nevertheless, the extent to which SML-specific reactions contribute to overall organic matter transformation or the emission of volatile organic compounds into the atmosphere remains insufficiently understood, so does their integration into air-sea interaction models. Understanding such photochemical processes will strongly improve our ability to describe atmospheric chemistry in the marine environment, since the SML will influence many ocean-atmosphere exchanges in both directions. The BASS project (Biogeochemical processes and Air–sea exchange in the Sea-Surface microlayer) seeks to gain a comprehensive understanding of the SML, and to quantify the processes regarding its reactivity, functional diversity, air-sea interaction, and dynamics. This presentation includes the first results of our investigations of molecular details of abiotic SML-specific chemical and photochemical reactions by integrating advanced techniques such as photochemistry, laser-based kinetics, spectroscopy, and analytical methods.

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(Meeting-ID: 691 8717 2525, Kenncode: 245062)