Fate of ammonia in the atmosphere--a review for applicability to hazardous releases.

The physical and chemical mechanisms responsible for the removal of ammonia from the atmosphere have been reviewed. Capture by atmospheric moisture (clouds, rain, fog), surface water (rivers, lakes, seas), and deposition on vegetation and soil constitute the main pathways for ammonia removal from the troposphere. Ammonia catalyzes the atmospheric oxidation of sulfur dioxide to sulfur trioxide and reacts rapidly with acidic components of the atmosphere (sulfuric, nitric, and hydrochloric acids). The ammonium salts formed are the main components of smog aerosols and thus affect the opacity of the atmosphere and the earth radiation budget. Slow oxidation of ammonia in the atmosphere plays only a minor role in its removal. The data obtained for ammonia reactions under normal atmospheric conditions are generally applicable to model chemical reactions occurring during massive release of ammonia in the atmosphere, provided the impact of high ammonia concentration on the mass transfer processes that control some of these reactions, are taken into account.