A regional modelling study of halogen chemistry within a volcanic plume of Mt Etna's Christmas 2018 eruption

Narivelo, Herizo ; Hamer, Paul David ; Marécal, Virginie ; Surl, Luke ; Roberts, Tjarda ; Pelletier, Sophie ; Josse, Béatrice ; Guth, Jonathan ; Bacles, Mickaël ; Warnach, Simon ; Wagner, Thomas ; Corradini, Stefano ; Salerno, Giuseppe ; Guerrieri, Lorenzo

Année de publication
2023

Volcanoes are known to be important emitters of atmospheric gases and aerosols, which for certain volcanoes can include halogen gases and in particular <span class="inline-formula">HBr</span>. <span class="inline-formula">HBr</span> emitted in this way can undergo rapid atmospheric oxidation chemistry (known as the bromine explosion) within the volcanic emission plume, leading to the production of bromine oxide (<span class="inline-formula">BrO</span>) and ozone depletion. In this work, we present the results of a modelling study of a volcanic eruption from Mt Etna that occurred around Christmas 2018 and lasted 6 <span class="inline-formula">d</span>. The aims of this study are to demonstrate and evaluate the ability of the regional 3D chemistry transport model Modèle de Chimie Atmosphérique de Grande Echelle (MOCAGE) to simulate the volcanic halogen chemistry in this case study, to analyse the variability of the chemical processes during the plume transport, and to quantify its impact on the composition of the troposphere at a regional scale over the Mediterranean basin.</p> <p align=justify>The comparison of the tropospheric <span class="inline-formula">SO<sub>2</sub></span> and <span class="inline-formula">BrO</span> columns from 25 to 30 December 2018 from the MOCAGE simulation with the columns derived from the TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI) satellite measurements shows a very good agreement for the transport of the plume and a good consistency for the concentrations if considering the uncertainties in the flux estimates and the TROPOMI columns. The analysis of the bromine species' partitioning and of the associated chemical reaction rates provides a detailed picture of the simulated bromine chemistry throughout the diurnal cycle and at different stages of the volcanic plume's evolution. The partitioning of the bromine species is modulated by the time evolution of the emissions during the 6 <span class="inline-formula">d</span> of the eruption; by the meteorological conditions; and by the distance of the plume from the vent, which is equivalent to the time since the emission. As the plume travels further from the vent, the halogen source gas <span class="inline-formula">HBr</span> becomes depleted, <span class="inline-formula">BrO</span> production in the plume becomes less efficient, and ozone depletion (proceeding via the <span class="inline-formula">Br+O<sub>3</sub></span> reaction followed by the <span class="inline-formula">BrO</span> self-reaction) decreases. The depletion of <span class="inline-formula">HBr</span> relative to the other prevalent hydracid <span class="inline-formula">HCl</span> leads to a shift in the relative concentrations of the <span class="inline-formula">Br<sup>-</sup></span> and <span class="inline-formula">Cl<sup>-</sup></span> ions, which in turn leads to reduced production of <span class="inline-formula">Br<sub>2</sub></span> relative to <span class="inline-formula">BrCl</span>.</p> <p align=justify><span id="page10534"/>The MOCAGE simulations show a regional impact of the volcanic eruption on the oxidants <span class="inline-formula">OH</span> and <span class="inline-formula">O<sub>3</sub></span> with a reduced burden of both gases that is caused by the chemistry in the volcanic plume. This reduction in atmospheric oxidation capacity results in a reduced <span class="inline-formula">CH<sub>4</sub></span> burden. Finally, sensitivity tests on the composition of the emissions carried out in this work show that the production of <span class="inline-formula">BrO</span> is higher when the volcanic emissions of sulfate aerosols are increased but occurs very slowly when no sulfate and <span class="inline-formula">Br</span> radicals are assumed to be in the emissions. Both sensitivity tests highlight a significant impact on the oxidants in the troposphere at the regional scale of these assumptions.</p> <p align=justify>All the results of this modelling study, in particular the rapid formation of <span class="inline-formula">BrO</span>, which leads to a significant loss of tropospheric ozone, are consistent with previous studies carried out on the modelling of volcanic halogens.</p>

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