Carbon dioxide exchange at the air-sea interface: Flux augmentation by chemical reaction

The stagnant film model for the transport of CO2 across the air-sea interface has been reexamined. By incorporating the constraint of electroneutrality, equations are derived that govern the flux of the carbon containing species within the film. Electroneutrality obviates the incorrect assumption of constant pH that is implicit in previous exchange calculations. Numerical results for typical ocean conditions indicate that for film thicknesses less than, say, 400μ. oceanic exchange is not influenced by the hydration/dehydration reactions of dissolved carbon dioxide. This conclusion is in substantial agreement with the approximate analysis of Bolin 1960. However, if suitable catalysts are present in the ocean (there is recent evidence to suggest that this may be true Berger and Libby, 1969), the accelerated reactions are capable of augmenting the exchange rate by a considerable amount. The extent of this enhancement can be predicted by the model presented here.