Columbia Engineering's compact, chip - scale dual comb spectrometer was able to measure a broad spectrum
of dichloromethane in just 20 microseconds (there are 1,000,000 microseconds in one second), a task that would have taken at least several seconds with conventional spectrometers.
Although the future trajectory
of dichloromethane is uncertain, without any regulations on emissions, it is likely concentrations will fall somewhere in between the ranges presented here.
On the broader implications of the findings and outlook, Dr Hossaini said: «Ozone is an important climate gas and changes to its abundance, including due to the increasing influence
of dichloromethane, could be relevant for refining future climate predictions.
Measurements
of dichloromethane in the atmosphere over the past two decades, provided by scientists from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in the United States, were also analysed.
Not exact matches
«While ozone depletion from
dichloromethane is currently quite modest, it is uncertain how the amount
of this gas in the atmosphere will change in the future.
Dr Ryan Hossaini
of Lancaster University and colleagues use simulations with a global chemical transport model to examine the sensitivity
of future stratospheric chlorine and ozone levels to sustained
dichloromethane growth.
At present, the long - term recovery
of the Ozone Layer from the effects
of CFCs is still on track, but the presence
of increasing
dichloromethane will add some uncertainty to our future predictions
of ozone and climate.»
Study lead author Dr Ryan Hossaini, from the Lancaster Environment Centre at Lancaster University, said: «
Dichloromethane is a human - made ozone - depleting chemical that has a range
of industrial applications.
At present, the long - term recovery
of the Ozone Layer from the effects
of CFCs is still on track, but the presence
of increasing
dichloromethane will lead to uncertainty in our future predictions
of ozone and climate.»
The amount
of this substance in the atmosphere decreased in the 1990s and early 2000s, but over the past decade
dichloromethane became approximately 60 % more abundant.
The maze runners, placed at the entrance
of the labyrinths, were millimeter - wide droplets
of either mineral oil or the organic solvent
dichloromethane, both loaded with a weak acid and red dye.
Using this dual comb, Lipson's and Gaeta's groups demonstrated real - time spectroscopy
of the chemical
dichloromethane at very high speeds, over a broad frequency range.
Dichloromethane breaks down in the atmosphere in about four months and its harmful degradation products are completely removed from the atmosphere within a few years
of their emissions.
«Because
of its very short - lived nature, and the unlikely scenario
of the emissions sustaining a high growth rate, it's highly unlikely
dichloromethane would have a major impact on the ozone layer,» said Liang.
One
of these substances called
dichloromethane has come under recent scrutiny because
of its increasing emission rates over the last few years.
While its production, use and destruction are accurately monitored and reported, it also forms as a by - product in the production lines
of chloroform and
dichloromethane.
These new ozone - busters include
dichloromethane (DCM), a common and cheap paint stripper, also used in foam - blowing agents and, ironically, in the manufacture
of «ozone - friendly» alternatives to CFCs.
Extraction
of 5 — 10 g
of freeze - dried sediments was carried out using an accelerated solvent extractor (DIONEX, ASE200; 100 °C, 5 min, 1000 psi) with
dichloromethane: methanol (2:1, v / v) as a solvent.