EVALUATION OF VISIBLE-LIGHT PHOTOLYSIS OF OZONE-WATER CLUSTER MOLECULES AS A SOURCE OF ATMOSPHERIC HYDROXYL RADICAL AND HYDROGEN-PEROXIDE

The visible-light photolysis of ozone-water van der Waals complexes wa s evaluated as a potential source of atmospheric hydroxyl radical and/ or hydrogen peroxide. These reactions were shown to account for no mor e than 1.3% of the atmospheric burden of OH and no more than 7% of atm ospheric H2O2. Upper limits to the production of OH and H2O2 were eval uated in static, gas-phase ozone/water mixtures irradiated with natura l sunlight. Upper limits to hydroxyl radical concentrations were infer red from the catalytic destruction of ozone. Hydrogen peroxide was det ermined by purging the bulb contents into a receiving solvent, which w as analyzed for H2O2 by the peroxyoxalate chemiluminescence technique.