Experimental CO2 absorption coefficients at high pressure and high temperature

Abstract

Here we present a laboratory study of CO2 absorption spectra, obtained at high temperatures and pressures, similar to those encountered in the Venusian atmosphere. These spectra have been recorded using a Fourier Transform InfraRed (FT-IR) spectrometer , which is equipped to operate from 800 to 30,000cm−1 (0.33–12.5μm) with a resolution from 0.06 to 10cm−1. A dedicated gas cell, designed to support pressures up to 200bar and temperatures up to 350°C, has been coupled to the FT-IR. Starting from a realistic vertical pressure–temperature profile of the Venus' atmosphere, based on measurements performed with atmospheric probes, we have recorded a series of absorption spectra of CO2, varying the pressure and temperature from 1 to 50bar and from 294 to 650K.