Abstract
Abstract. The physical, chemical, and biological processes involving organics in ice in the environment impact a number of atmospheric and biogeochemical cycles. Organic material in snow or ice may be biological in origin, deposited from aerosols or atmospheric gases, or formed chemically in situ. In this manuscript, we review the current state of knowledge regarding the sources, properties, and chemistry of organic materials in environmental ices. Several outstanding questions remain to be resolved and fundamental data gathered before an accurate model of transformations and transport of organic species in the cryosphere will be possible. For example, more information is needed regarding the quantitative impacts of chemical and biological processes, ice morphology, and snow formation on the fate of organic material in cold regions. Interdisciplinary work at the interfaces of chemistry, physics and biology is needed in order to fully characterize the nature and evolution of organics in the cryosphere and predict the effects of climate change on the Earth's carbon cycle.
Highlights
From cirrus ice particles in the atmosphere to sea ice and snow on the Earth’s surface, ice is a key component of the biogeochemical cycle of carbon
Organic materials present in snow and ice are often light-absorbing species, akin to “brown carbon” in atmospheric aerosols. This absorbing material contributes up to 40 % of the integrated absorbance between 300–750 nm (Doherty et al, 2010; Hegg et al, 2010). This contribution adds to the absorbance of black carbon (BC), the main absorber in snow, which is calculated for observed concentrations to reduce the albedo by 2–5 % on Himalayan glaciers (Yasunari et al, 2010)
In further support of these observations, Barret et al (2011a) showed that the seasonal snowpack near Barrow, Alaska, was a source of HCHO and that, while most of the HCHO produced was released to the atmosphere, a small fraction was incorporated into surface snow crystals by solid state diffusion
Summary
From cirrus ice particles in the atmosphere to sea ice and snow on the Earth’s surface, ice is a key component of the biogeochemical cycle of carbon. VOCs impact the surrounding environment in a number of ways: they control the oxidizing capacity of the atmosphere (Perrier et al, 2002), contribute to the formation of secondary organic aerosol (Seinfeld and Pankow, 2003; Ervens and Volkamer, 2010) and can produce humic-like substances in snow and ice (Guzman et al, 2007) This is the first review to comprehensively present the chemical and physical issues that arise at the molecular level when organic species become associated with snow and ice. We discuss the current state of knowledge regarding the presence of organic materials in environmental ices, their sources, chemistry, and local, regional and global impacts on the cryospheric organic carbon cycle.
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
