APPENDIX A

Units and Physical Constants

The units used in this text are more or less those of the International System of Units (SI).
We have chosen not to adhere strictly to the SI system because in several areas of the book
the use of SI units would lead to cumbersome and unfamiliar magnitudes of quantities. We
have attempted to use, as much as possible, a consistent set of units throughout the book
while attempting not to deviate markedly from the units commonly used in the particular
area. For an excellent discussion of units in atmospheric chemistry we refer the reader to
Schwartz and Warneck (1995).

A.1 SI BASE UNITS

Table A. 1 gives the seven base quantities, assumed to be mutually independent, on which the
SI is founded, and the names and symbols of their respective units, called "SI base units."

TABLE A.1 SI Base Units

SI Base Unit
Base Quantity Name Symbol
Length meter m
Mass kilogram kg
Time second s
Electric current ampere A
Thermodynamic temperature kelvin K
Amount of substance mole mol
Luminous intensity candela cd

A.2 SI DERIVED UNITS

Derived units are expressed algebraically in terms of base units or other derived units
(including the radian and steradian, which are the two supplementary units). For example,
the derived unit for the derived quantity molar mass (mass divided by amount of
substance) is the kilogram per mole, symbol kg mol -1 . Additional examples of derived
units expressed in terms of SI base units are given in Table A.2.

Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics: From Air Pollution to Climate Change, Second Edition, by John H. Seinfeld
and Spyros N. Pandis. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

1175
1176 APPENDIX A

TABLE A.2 Examples of SI Derived Units Expressed in Terms of SI Base Units

SI Derived Unit
Derived Quantity Name Symbol
Area square meter m2
Volume cubic meter m3
Speed, velocity meter per second m s-1
Acceleration meter per second squared m s-2
Wavenumber reciprocal meter m- 1
Mass density (density) kilogram per cubic meter kg m-3
Specific volume cubic meter per kilogram m3 kg - 1
Current density ampere per square meter A m-2
Magnetic field strength ampere per meter A m-1
Amount-of-substance concentration (concentration) mole per cubic meter mol m-3
Luminance candela per square meter cd m - 2

Certain SI derived units have special names and symbols; these are given in Table A.3.
Table A.4 presents examples of SI derived units expressed with the aid of SI derived units
having special names and symbols. Table A.5 presents standard prefixes.
Concentration units are used in connection with chemical reaction rates and optical
extinction. Traditional concentration units are mol L-1 (the SI unit of the liter is the cubic
decimeter, dm3), mol cm - 3 , or mol m-3. Concentrations are also expressed as number

TABLE A.3 SI Derived Units with Special Names and Symbols, Including
the Radian and Steradian
SI Derived Unit
Expression in Expression in
Special Special Terms of Terms of SI
Derived Quantity Name Symbol Other SI Units Base Units
Plane angle radian rad m m-1 = 1
Solid angle steradian sr m2 m-2 = 1
Frequency hertz Hz s-1
Force newton N m kg s~2
Pressure, stress pascal Pa N m-2 m - 1 kg s-2
Energy, work, quantity of heat joule J Nm m2 kg s - 2
Power, radiant flux watt W J s-1 m2 kg s - 3
Electric charge, quantity of electricity coulomb C sA
Electric potential, potential volt V W A-1 m2 kg s-3 A-1
difference, electromotive force
Capacitance farad F C V-1 m-1 kg-1 s4 A2
Electric resistance ohm Ω VA -1 m2 kg s-3 A-2
Electric conductance Siemens s AV-1 m-2 kg-1 s 3 A 2
Magnetic flux weber Wb Vs m2 kg s-2 A-1
Magnetic flux density tesla T Wb m-2 kg s-2 A-1
Inductance henry H Wb A - 1 m2 kg s-2 A-2
Celsius temperature degree °C K
Celsius
Luminous flux lumen lm cd sr cd sr
Illuminance lux lx lm m - 2 m - 2 cd sr
 SI DERIVED UNITS 1177

TABLE A.4 Examples of SI Derived Units Expressed with the Aid of SI Derived Units
Having Special Names and Symbols
SI Derived Unit
Expression in Terms
Derived Quantity Name Symbol of SI Base Units
Angular velocity radian per second rad s-1 m m - 1 s-1 = s-1
Angular acceleration radian per second squared rad s-2 m m-1 s-2 = s-2
Dynamic viscosity pascal second Pa s m-1 kg s-1
Moment of force newton meter Nm m2 kg s - 2
Surface tension newton per meter N m-1 kg s-2
Heat flux density, irradiance watt per square meter W m-2 kg s-3
Radiant intensity watt per steradian W sr-1 m2 kg s-3 sr-1
Radiance watt per square meter W(m 2 sr)-1 kg s - 3 sr-1
steradian
Heat capacity, entropy joule per kelvin J K-1 m2 kg s-2 K-1
Specific-heat capacity, joule per kilogram kelvin J (kg K)-1 m2 s-2 K-1
specific entropy
Specific energy joule per kilogram J kg-1 m2 s-2
Thermal conductivity watt per meter kelvin W(mK)- 1 m kg s-3 K-1
Energy density joule per cubic meter J m-3 m-1 kg s-2
Electric field strength volt per meter V m-1 m kg s-3 A - 1
Electric charge density coulomb per cubic meter Cm-3 m-3 s A
Electric flux density coulomb per square meter Cm-2 m-2 s A
Permittivity farad per meter F m-1 m-3 kg-1 s4A2
Permeability henry per meter H m-1 m kg s - 2 A - 2
Molar energy joule per mole J mol-1 m2 kg s-2 mol-1
Molar entropy, molar joule per mole kelvin J(mol K)-1 m2 kgs-2 K-1 mol-1
heat capacity

TABLE A.5 Standard Prefixes

Factor Prefix Symbol

-18
10 atto a
10-15 femto f
10-12 pico P
10-9 nano n
10-6 micro µ
10-3 milli m
10-2 centi c
10-1 deci d
101 deca da
102 hecto h
103 kilo k
106 mega M
109 giga G
10 12 tera T
1015 peta P
1018 exa E
1178 APPENDIX A

concentration, molecules cm - 3 . (In expressing number concentration, centimeter-based

units are more widely used than meter-based units.)

A.3 FUNDAMENTAL PHYSICAL CONSTANTS

Fundamental physical constants used in this book are given in Table A.6.

TABLE A.6 Fundamental Physical Constants

Speed of light in vacuum c 2.9979 x 108 m s-1

Planck constant h 6.626 x 10-34 Js
Elementary charge e 1.602 x 10-19 C
Electron mass me 9.109 x 10-31 kg
Avogadro constant NA 6.022 x 1023 mol -1
Faraday constant F 96485 C mol -1
Molar gas constant R 8.314 J mol-1 K -1
Boltzmann constant k 1.381 x 10-23 J K-1
Molar volume (ideal gas), RT/p Vm 22.414 x 10-3 m3 mol-1
(at 273.15 K, 101.325 x 103 Pa)
Stefan-Boltzmann constant σ 5.671 x 10-8 W m-2 K-4
Standard acceleration of gravity 8 9.807 m s-2
Source: Cohen and Taylor (1995).

A.4 PROPERTIES OF THE ATMOSPHERE AND WATER

Tables A.7-A.9 give properties of the atmosphere and water.

TABLE A.7 Properties of the Atmospherea

Standard temperature T0 = 0°C = 273.15 K

Standard pressure p0 = 760 mm Hg
= 1013.25 millibar (mbar)
Standard gravity g0 = 9.807 m s - 2
Air density p 0 =1.29kgm- 3
Molecular weight M0 = 28.97 g mol -1
Mean molecular mass = 4.81 x 10 -23 g
Molecular root-mean-square velocity (3RT0/M0)1/2 = 4.85 x 104 cm s-1
Speed of sound (γRT 0 /M 0 ) 1/2 = 3.31 x 104 cm s-1
Specific heats* p = 1005 J K - 1 kg-1
v = 717 J K-1 kg-1
Ratio p /v = γ = 1.401
Air molecules per cm3 N = 2.688 x 1019 (at 273 K)
= 2.463 x 1019 (at 298 K)
Air molecular diameter σ = 3.46 x 10 - 8 cm
Air mean free path ( π N σ 2 ) - 1 λa = 6.98 x 10 -6 cm
Viscosity µ= 1.72 x 10 - 4 g cm-1 s-1
Thermal conductivity k = 2.40 x 10-2 J m-1 s-1 K-1
Refractive index (real part) (n - 1) x 108 = 6.43 x 103
(λ in µm)
a
Dry air at T = 273 K and 1 atm.
 PROPERTIES OF THE ATMOSPHERE AND WATER 1179

TABLE A.8 U.S. Standard Atmosphere, 1976

Water Vapor
Height, Pressure, Temperature, Density, Moist Stratosphere, Dry Stratosphere,
km hPa K g m-3 g m-3 g m-3
0 1.013 x 103 288 1.225 x 103 5.9 5.9
1 8.98 x 102 282 1.112 x 103 4.2 4.2
2 7.950 x 102 275 1.007 x 103 2.9 2.9
3 7.012 x 102 269 9.093 x 102 1.8 1.8
4 6.166 x 102 262 8.194 x 102 1.1 1.1
5 5.405 x 102 256 7.364 x 102 6.4 x 10-1 6.4 x 10-1
6 4.722 x 102 249 6.601 x 102 3.8 x 10-1 3.8 x 10-1
7 4.111 x 102 243 5.900 x 102 2.1 x 10-1 2.1 x 10-1
8 3.565 x 102 236 5.258 x 102 1.2 x 10 -1 1.2 x 10-1
9 3.080 x 102 230 4.671 x 102 4.6 x 10 -2 4.6 x 10-2
10 2.650 x 102 223 4.135 x 102 1.8 x 10 -2 1.8 x 10-2
11 2.270 x 102 217 3.648 x 102 8.2 x 10 - 3 8.2 x 10-3
12 1.940 x 102 217 3.119 x 102 3.7 x 10 -3 3.7 x 10-3
13 1.658 x 102 217 2.666 x 102 1.8 x 10 -3 1.8 x 10-3
14 1.417 x 102 217 2.279 x 102 8.4 x 10 -4 8.4 x 10-4
15 1.211 x 102 217 1.948 x 102 7.2 x 10 - 4 7.2 x 10-4
16 1.035 x 102 217 1.665 x 102 5.5 x 10 -4 3.3 x 10 -4
17 8.850 x 101 217 1.423 x 102 4.7 x 10 - 4 2.8 x 10 - 4
18 7.565 x 101 217 1.217 x 102 4.0 x 10 - 4 2.4 x 10 -4
19 6.467 x 101 217 1.040 x 102 4.1 x 10 -4 2.1 x 10 -4
20 5.529 x 101 217 8.891 x 101 4.0 x 10 - 4 1.8 x 10 - 4
21 4.729 x 101 218 7.572 x 101 4.4 x 10 -4 1.5 x 10-4
22 4.048 x 101 219 6.450 x 101 4.6 x 10 -4 1.3 x 10 -4
23 3.467 x 101 220 5.501 x 101 5.2 x 10 - 4 1.1 x 10 - 4
24 2.972 x 101 221 4.694 x 101 5.4 x 10 - 4 9.4 x 10 -5
25 2.549 x 101 222 4.008 x 101 6.1 x 10 -4 8.0 x 10 - 5
30 1.197 x 101 227 1.841 x 101 3.2 x 10 - 4 3.7 x 10 - 5
35 5.746 237 8.463 1.3 x 10 -4 1.7 x 10 -5
40 2.871 253 3.996 4.8 x 10 -5 7.9 x 10 - 6
45 1.491 264 1.966 2.2 x 10 -5 3.9 x 10 - 6
50 7.978 x 10 -1 271 1.027 7.8 x 10 -6 2.1 x 10 -6
70 5.220 x 10 - 2 220 8.283 x 10 -2 1.2 x 10 -7 1.8 x 10 -7
100 3.008 x 10 - 4 210 4.990 x 10 - 4 3.0 x 10 -4 1.0 x 10 - 9

TABLE A.9 Properties of Water

Mass Basis Molar Basis
Specific heat of water vapor at constant pressure, pw -1
1952 J kg K -1
35.14 J mol-1 K-1
Specific heat of water vapor at constant volume, vw, 1463 J kg-1 K - 1 26.33 J mol-1 K-1
Specific heat of liquid H2O at 273 K 4218 J kg-1 K - 1 75.92 J mol-1 K - 1
Latent heat of vaporization
At 273 K 2.5 x 106 J kg - 1 4.5 x 104 J mol-1
At 373 K 2.25 x 106J kg-1 4.05 x 104 J mol -1
Latent heat of fusion, 273 K 3.3 x 105 J kg-1 5.94 x 103 J mol-1
Surface tension (water vs. air) 0.073 J m-2
1180 APPENDIX A

TABLE A.10 Typical Ranges of Values in Atmospheric Chemistry

Molecule, cm3 Mole, m3
System Units Units
Concentration 104-1019 10 -14 -10
unit molecule cm - 3 mol m - 3
Bimolecular rate constant 10-18 -10-10 1-108
unit cm3 molecule-1 s - 1 m3 mol -1 s - 1
Termolecular rate constant 10-36 - 10 -29 1-107
unit cm6 molecule -2 s - 1 m6 mol -2 s - 1
Source: Schwartz and Warneck (1995).

A.5 UNITS FOR REPRESENTING CHEMICAL REACTIONS

The rate of a bimolecular reaction between substances A and B may be written as

where cA and cB are the concentrations of A and B, respectively. The second-order rate
constant k has units concentration-1 time -1 . Possible units for k are

cm3 molecule-1 s-1

m3 mol-1 s-1

Table A.10 compares ranges of concentrations and bimolecular and termolecular rate
constants pertinent to atmospheric chemistry for, these two units. For example, the hy-
droxyl (OH) radical has an average tropospheric concentration of about 8 x 105 molecule
cm - 3 . This is equivalent to 1.3 x 10 -12 mol m - 3 (1.3 pmol m - 3 ).

A.6 CONCENTRATIONS IN THE AQUEOUS PHASE

Concentrations of substances dissolved in water droplets and present in particulate matter
are of great importance in atmospheric chemistry. A commonly used unit of concentration
in the chemical thermodynamics of solutions is molality, mole of solute per kilogram of
solvent (mol kg - 1 ). One advantage of the use of molality is that the value is unaffected by
changes in the density of solution as temperature changes.
For aqueous-phase chemical reactions the commonly used concentration unit is mol L - 1 .
Aqueous solutions in cloud and raindrops are characterized by concentrations in the range of
µmol L - 1 . For a dilute aqueous solution molality (mol kg - 1 ) is approximately equal to
molarity (mol L - 1 ). The conversion between molar concentration c and molality m is

where p is the density of solution, kg m - 3 ; M is the molecular weight of solute, kg mol -1 ;

and c is concentration, mol m - 3 .
 REFERENCES 1181

A.7 SYMBOLS FOR CONCENTRATION

The following symbols for concentration are used in this book:

nA Gas-phase number concentration of species A, molecule cm - 3

cA or [A] Gas-phase molar concentration of species A, mol m - 3
[A] Aqueous-phase concentration of solute A, mol L - 1
mA Molality of solute A, mol kg - 1

REFERENCES

Cohen, E. R., and Taylor, B. N. (1995) The fundamental physical constants, Phys. Today Aug.,
BG9-BG16.
Schwartz, S. E.,and Warneck, P. (1995) Units for use in atmospheric chemistry, Pure Appl. Chem. 67,
1377-1406.