Incorporation of stratospheric acids into water ice

Hydrochloric and hydrofluoric acids are absorbed within the water ice lattice at mole fractions maximizing below 10 −5 and 10 −4 in a variety of solid impurity studies. The absorption mechanism may be substitutional or interstitial, leading in either case to a weak permeation of stratospheric ices by the acids at equilibrium. Impurities could also inhabit grain boundaries, and the acid content of atmospheric ice crystals will then depend on details of their surface and internal microstructures. Limited evidence indicates similar properties for the absorption of HNO 3 . Water ice lattices saturated with acid cannot be a significant local reservoir for HCl in the polar stratosphere.