The hydrolysis of chlorine nitrate and its possible atmospheric significance

Article abstract of DOI:10.1021/j100401a001

The hydrolysis of CIONO₂ takes place very readily on a variety of laboratory surfaces and may also occur catalytically on particulate surfaces in the stratosphere. The reaction can be considered as an oxide exchange between two X-O-Y molecules with X and Y = H, C1, or NO₂. Two other reactions in this class which might occur in the stratosphere are HOCl plus HOCl, and HOCl plus ClONO₂. Each of these three is approximately thermoneutral and should be accompanied by the reverse reaction with a comparable reaction rate constant. Current atmospheric models have not explained the very large ozone depletions which have taken place during Antarctic spring in the past decade. The chemical reactions included in these models may need to include heterogeneous catalysis of one or more of these oxide exchange reactions.