Impact of halogen monoxide chemistry upon boundary layer OH and HO2 concentrations at a coastal site -: art. no. L06814

The impact of iodine oxide chemistry upon OH and HO2 concentrations in the coastal marine boundary layer has been evaluated using data from the NAMBLEX (North Atlantic Marine Boundary Layer Experiment) campaign, conducted at Mace Head, Ireland during the summer of 2002. Observationally constrained calculations show that under low NOx conditions experienced during NAMBLEX (NO <= 50 pptv), the reaction IO + HO2 --> HOI + O-2 accounted for up to 40% of the total HO2 radical sink, and the subsequent photolysis of HOI to form OH + I comprised up to 15% of the total midday OH production rate. The XO + HO2 (X = Br, I) reactions may in part account for model overestimates of measured HO2 concentrations in previous studies at Mace Head, and should be considered in model studies of HOx chemistry at similar coastal locations.