(ORDO NEWS) — The researchers found that the air envelope of our planet, to a certain extent, self-purifies itself from pollutants and greenhouse gases that are emitted into the Earth‘s atmosphere every day.
However, it has not yet been clear how this process occurs.
An international team of scientists from France, the United States, Switzerland, China and Israel has found that the reaction that produces hydroxide ions in the atmosphere is not the main catalyst for sunlight or the presence of metals, as previously thought.
It turned out that hydroxide ions can be released even in the dark from the purest water.
Scientists have studied the chemical processes in vessels filled with water and air or only water to understand how this happens.
They tracked the formation of hydroxide ions using a special fluorescent substance that emits light when it reacts with the desired ions.
It turned out that both in the light and in the dark, hydroxide ions are formed in vessels with water and air equally quickly, and in vessels only with water – much more slowly.
Probably, this occurs under the influence of a weak electric field, which is formed at the interface between air and water, that is, on the surface of water droplets.
Since such droplets are ubiquitous in the troposphere, this interfacial source of hydroxide ions should significantly affect air chemistry and quality, climate, and human health.
Currently, scientists are preparing for experiments in the real atmosphere in different parts of the world in order to correct pollution models and estimate the extent of self-purification of the Earth’s air envelope.
The daily release of tons of pollutants and greenhouse gases into the atmosphere has a serious impact on the environment and human health.
Studying the processes of self-purification of the atmosphere can help improve the state of the environment and develop more effective methods of combating air pollution.
In addition, these studies may have an impact on the development of measures to combat climate change.
After all, atmospheric pollution is one of the main causes of global warming and its consequences, such as rising sea levels, changing climatic zones and an increase in the frequency of catastrophic natural disasters.
Thus, research into the processes of atmospheric self-purification and determining the role of hydroxide ions in this process is an important step in the fight for cleaner air and a healthier planet in general.
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