Experimental evidence supporting the insensitivity of cloud droplet formation to the mass accommodation coefficient for condensation of water vapor to liquid water Geophysical Research Letters

The mass accommodation coefficient for uptake of water vapor to liquid water, a(M), has been constrained using photoacoustic measurements of aqueous absorbing aerosol. Measurements performed over a range of relative humidities and pressures were compared to detailed model calculations treating coupled heat and mass transfer occurring during photoacoustic laser heating cycles. The strengths and weaknesses of this technique are very different to those for droplet growth/evaporation experiments that have typically been applied to these measurements, making this a useful complement to existing studies. Our measurements provide robust evidence that a(M) is greater than 0.1 for all humidities tested and greater than 0.3 for data obtained at relative humidities greater than 88% where the aerosol surface was most like pure water. These values of a(M) are above the threshold at which kinetic limitations are expected to impact the activation and growth of aerosol particles in warm cloud formation.