IUPAC

To produce a book containing an account of interaction of chemicals in the atmosphere with aqueous systems. Relevant solubility data form a major portion of the book.

Solubilities of natural and man-made gases and vapours present in the atmosphere are important in determining their fate in the environment. A high solubility implies that the gas or vapour will be readily removed from the atmosphere by rain. A low solubility implies that it will be removed more slowly.

The book covers the description and experimental measurement of phenomena related to dissolution in an aqueous phase of stable and unstable species in the atmosphere. It includes:

(i) The collection, evaluation and publication of solubility data which are fundamental to the understanding of:

• (a) the partitioning of gases and vapours between aqueous solutions and the atmosphere;
• (b) chemical processes occurring in clouds and other aqueous environmental aerosols.

(ii) The evaluation of theoretical models to interpret or predict solubilities in solutions containing dissolved componenets, and with compositions typical of atmospheric clouds and other natural waters. Substances are included if

• (a) aqueous solubility is important in determining the release of the substance to the atmosphere, from the oceans for example, or its removal from the atmosphere;
• (b) a substance, though its physical solubility may be low, is involved in important aqueous phase reactions.

The project involves the cooperation of 10 contributors who are either chemists or atmospheric physicists. There has been appreciable progress during the past year. A contract for publication by John Wiley & Sons (England) has been agreed, as a volume in "Wiley Series in Solution Chemistry".

Project completed - book reference: John Wiley & Sons, 2003 [ISBN: 0-471-98651-8].