The impact of high altitude aircraft on the ozone layer in the stratosphere

Tie, X.; Brasseur, Guy; Lin, Xin; Friedlingstein, Pierre; Granier, C.; Rasch, Philip J.

doi:10.1007/bf00696810

Cited by 24 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…One of the proposed configurations (LAPCAT-A2) was based on precooled turbo-ramjet fueled by hydrogen. The Synergetic Air Breathing Rocket Engine (SABRE), under consideration in the United Kingdom (Szondy, 2019), combines in a single system a conventional air-breathing jet engine (to be used for speed of less than approximately Mach 5) and a rocket engine (capable of accelerating the aircraft to speeds as high as Mach 25). The European STRATOFLY 300-passenger airliner was conceived to reach Mach 8 (European Commission, 2018) and would be equipped with two types of ramjet engines, one to be used for the first part of the flight up to the speed of Mach 4.5 and the second for flight operations from Mach 4.5 to Mach 8.…”

Section: Emissions By Hypersonic Aircraftmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Similar studies were conducted in other countries, including the United Kingdom, France, and Australia. The U.S. assessment (Grobecker et al, 1975) concluded that the emission of nitrogen oxides by a hypothetical fleet of 500 SSTs would not significantly affect the Earth's climate but would damage the ozone layer (Crutzen, 1972; Dameris et al, 1998; Hesstvedt, 1974; Johnston et al, 1989; McElroy et al, 1974; Tie et al, 1994).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Impact on the Ozone Layer of a Potential Fleet of Civil Hypersonic Aircraft

et al. 2020

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The aeronautical community is currently researching technology that might lead to commercial hypersonic aircraft that would cruise at Mach 5-8 in the middle or upper stratosphere and would transfer passengers from London to New York or from Los Angeles to Tokyo in just a couple of hours. Depending on the engine technology to be adopted, these aircraft will potentially release substantial amounts of water vapor and nitrogen oxides around 30-40 km altitude. We show here that the operation of a large fleet of such aircraft could potentially deplete considerable amounts of ozone in the stratosphere, which would lead to a substantial increase in biologically damaging ultraviolet radiation reaching the Earth's surface. The calculations are based on a specific emission scenario, which carries large uncertainties but can easily be scaled to account for the type of aircraft engine to be eventually adopted, improved technology to be expected, and the size and operation conditions of the future aircraft fleet. Plain Language Summary Commercial hypersonic aircraft, if developed in the future, will be flying at Mach 5 to 8 in the middle to upper stratosphere (30 to 40 km altitude) to carry passengers in a couple of hours from London to New York or from Los Angeles to Tokyo. Depending on the adopted technology and fleet size, the powerful engines of such airplanes may release substantial amounts of water and nitrogen oxides in the stratosphere, which could potentially damage the protecting ozone layer and hence increase the level of biologically damaging ultraviolet radiation reaching the Earth surface. The paper uses an advanced global atmospheric model to assess the impact of a potential fleet of hypersonic aircraft.

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Section: Emissions By Hypersonic Aircraftmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Impact on the Ozone Layer of a Potential Fleet of Civil Hypersonic Aircraft

et al. 2020

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“…Surface-catalyzed reactions occurring on sulfate aerosols enhance ozone destruction by reactive chlorine radicals (Cl and ClO) in the stratosphere. , Heterogeneous reactions involving ClONO 2 , HCl, and H 2 O, for example, transform the inactive chlorine reservoir species (i.e., ClONO 2 and HCl) into forms (HOCl and Cl 2 ) that are easily photolyzed to produce atomic chlorine ; − ozone destruction then occurs in catalytic cycles initiated by Cl, via the ClO dimer mechanism , or the reaction between ClO and BrO . Hydrolysis of N 2 O 5 on sulfate aerosols also contributes to the global ozone destruction by deactivating odd nitrogen species (NO x ) during elevated sulfuric acid loading events. − In particular, this reaction has been proposed to mitigate the environmental impact of the projected fleet of high-speed civil transport (HSCT) by converting the nitrogen oxide effluent into stable HNO 3 . − …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Heterogeneous Chemistry of HONO on Liquid Sulfuric Acid: A New Mechanism of Chlorine Activation on Stratospheric Sulfate Aerosols

1996

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Heterogeneous chemistry of nitrous acid (HONO) on liquid sulfuric acid (H 2 SO 4 ) was investigated at conditions that prevail in the stratosphere. The measured uptake coefficient (γ) of HONO on H 2 SO 4 increased with increasing acid content, ranging from 0.03 for 65 wt % to about 0.1 for 74 wt %. In the aqueous phase, HONO underwent irreversible reaction with H 2 SO 4 to form nitrosylsulfuric acid (NO + HSO 4 -). At temperatures below 230 K, NO + HSO 4 -was observed to be stable and accumulated in concentrated solutions (>70 wt % H 2 SO 4 ) but was unstable and quickly regenerated HONO in dilute solutions (<70 wt %). HCl reacted with HONO dissolved in sulfuric acid, releasing gaseous nitrosyl chloride (ClNO). The reaction probability between HCl and HONO varied from 0.01 to 0.02 for 60-72 wt % H 2 SO 4 . In the stratosphere, ClNO photodissociates rapidly to yield atomic chlorine, which catalytically destroys ozone. Analysis of the laboratory data reveals that the reaction of HCl with HONO on sulfate aerosols can affect stratospheric ozone balance during elevated sulfuric acid loadings after volcanic eruptions or due to emissions from the projected high-speed civil transport (HSCT). The present results may have important implications on the assessment of environmental acceptability of HSCT.

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“…For example, Johnston (1971) and Crutzen (1996) respectively presented a catalysis mechanism in which ozone is decomposed by nitrogen oxide. Studies have revealed that heterogeneous chemical reactions happening on an aerosol's surface play an important role in ozone depletion (Tie et al, 1994(Tie et al, , 2006Hofmann and Solomon, 1989;Granier and Brasseur, 1992;Tie et al, 1994;Bojkov, 1995;Li et al, 2005;Tie et al, 2006). Furthermore, studies related to the mesosphere have shown the existence of multiple steady states (White and Dietz, 1984;Yang and Brasseur, 1994;Konovalov et al, 1999;Brasseur, 2001, 2004).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 94%

On the nonlinear response of lower stratospheric ozone to external forces—the inclusion of BrOx and radiation processes

2012

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In this paper the bromine family and radiative effects are considered in an updated box model under the framework of ozone-temperature feedback, in order to further analyze the possible behavior of atmospheric ozone in the lower mid-latitude stratosphere. Results show that this updated photochemical system can present several different solutions, within a certain domain of parameters, with fixed-point and periodic states appearing in turn. The temperature feedback effect introduced in this box model has not changed the topology of the ozone system. This result presents nonlinear characteristics of the ozone system, and possible trends in the stratospheric atmosphere between complex chemistry and radiation processes. , 2012: On the nonlinear response of lower stratospheric ozone to external forces-The inclusion of BrOx and radiation processes.

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The impact of high altitude aircraft on the ozone layer in the stratosphere

Cited by 24 publications

References 42 publications

The Impact on the Ozone Layer of a Potential Fleet of Civil Hypersonic Aircraft

The Impact on the Ozone Layer of a Potential Fleet of Civil Hypersonic Aircraft

Heterogeneous Chemistry of HONO on Liquid Sulfuric Acid: A New Mechanism of Chlorine Activation on Stratospheric Sulfate Aerosols

On the nonlinear response of lower stratospheric ozone to external forces—the inclusion of BrOx and radiation processes

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