Vacuum ultraviolet photodissociation of sulfur dioxide and its implications for oxygen production in the early Earth's atmosphere

Chang，Yao1; Fu，Yanlin1; Chen，Zhichao1; Luo，Zijie1,2; Zhao，Yarui1; Li，Zhenxing1; Zhang，Weiqing1; Wu，Guorong1; Fu，Bina1,4,5; Zhang，Dong H.1,5,6; Ashfold，Michael N.R.3; Yang，Xueming1,5,6; Yuan，Kaijun1,4,5

2023-08-01

10.1039/d3sc03328g

Chemical Science   Impact Factor & Quartile

2041-6520

2041-6539

The emergence of molecular oxygen (O) in the Earth's primitive atmosphere is an issue of major interest. Although the biological processes leading to its accumulation in the Earth's atmosphere are well understood, its abiotic source is still not fully established. Here, we report a new direct dissociation channel yielding S(D) + O(aΔ/XΣ) products from vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) photodissociation of SO in the wavelength range between 120 and 160 nm. Experimental results show O production to be an important channel from SO VUV photodissociation, with a branching ratio of 30 ± 5% at the H Lyman-α wavelength (121.6 nm). The relatively large amounts of SO emitted from volcanic eruptions in the Earth's late Archaean eon imply that VUV photodissociation of SO could have provided a crucial additional source term in the O budget in the Earth's primitive atmosphere. The results could also have implications for abiotic oxygen formation on other planets with atmospheres rich in volcanically outgassed SO

SCI

English

NI Journal Papers

Corresponding

National Natural Science Foundation of China["22173099","DICP I202112","2019ZT08L455","2019JC01X091"] ; Scientific Instrument Developing Project of the Chinese Academy of Sciences[22241304] ; National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC Center for Chemical Dynamics)[ZDSYS20200421111001787] ; Scientific Instrument Developing Project of the Chinese Academy of Sciences[2021M693118] ; null[22225303] ; null[22203093] ; null[22288201] ; null[GJJSTD20220001] ; null[2021ZD0303304] ; null[2021ZD0303305]

Chemistry

Chemistry, Multidisciplinary

WOS:001040368500001

ROYAL SOC CHEMISTRY

2-s2.0-85167508365

Scopus

1.State Key Laboratory of Molecular Reaction Dynamics,Dalian Coherent Light Source,Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics,Chinese Academy of Sciences,Dalian,457 Zhongshan Road,116023,China
2.Marine Engineering College,Dalian Maritime University,Liaoning,116026,China
3.School of Chemistry,University of Bristol,Bristol,BS8 1TS,United Kingdom
4.University of Chinese Academy of Sciences,Beijing,100049,China
5.Hefei National Laboratory,Hefei,230088,China
6.Department of Chemistry,Center for Advanced Light Source Research,College of Science,Southern University of Science and Technology,Shenzhen,518055,China

Chang，Yao,Fu，Yanlin,Chen，Zhichao,et al. Vacuum ultraviolet photodissociation of sulfur dioxide and its implications for oxygen production in the early Earth's atmosphere[J]. Chemical Science,2023,14(31):8255-8261.

Chang，Yao.,Fu，Yanlin.,Chen，Zhichao.,Luo，Zijie.,Zhao，Yarui.,...&Yuan，Kaijun.(2023).Vacuum ultraviolet photodissociation of sulfur dioxide and its implications for oxygen production in the early Earth's atmosphere.Chemical Science,14(31),8255-8261.

Chang，Yao,et al."Vacuum ultraviolet photodissociation of sulfur dioxide and its implications for oxygen production in the early Earth's atmosphere".Chemical Science 14.31(2023):8255-8261.