H2S ice sublimation dynamics: experimentally constrained binding energies, entrapment efficiencies, and snowlines

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Hauptverfasser: Santos, Julia C., Piacentino, Elettra L., Bergner, Jennifer B., Rajappan, Mahesh, Öberg, Karin I.
Format: Preprint
Veröffentlicht: 2025
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author Santos, Julia C.
Piacentino, Elettra L.
Bergner, Jennifer B.
Rajappan, Mahesh
Öberg, Karin I.
author_facet Santos, Julia C.
Piacentino, Elettra L.
Bergner, Jennifer B.
Rajappan, Mahesh
Öberg, Karin I.
contents Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is thought to be an important sulfur reservoir in interstellar ices. It serves as a key precursor to complex sulfur-bearing organics, and has been proposed to play a significant role in the origin of life. Although models and observations both suggest H2S to be present in ices in non-negligible amounts, its sublimation dynamics remain poorly constrained. In this work, we present a comprehensive experimental characterization of the sublimation behavior of H2S ice under astrophysically-relevant conditions. The sublimation behavior of H2S was monitored with a quadrupole mass spectrometer (QMS) during temperature-programmed desorption (TPD) experiments. These experiments are used to determine binding energies and entrapment efficiencies of H2S, which are then employed to estimate its snowline positions in a protoplanetary disk midplane. We derive mean binding energies of 3159\pm46 K for pure H2S ice and 3392\pm56 K for submonolayer H2S desorbing from a compact amorphous solid water (cASW) surface. These values correspond to sublimation temperatures of around 64 K and 69 K in the disk midplane, placing its sublimation fronts at radii just interior to the CO2 snowline. We also investigate the entrapment of H2S in water ice and find it to be highly efficient, with ~75-85% of H2S remaining trapped past its sublimation temperature for H2O:H2S mixing ratios of ~5-17:1. We discuss potential mechanisms behind this efficient entrapment. Our findings imply that, in protoplanetary disks, H2S will mostly be retained in the ice phase until water crystallizes, at radii near the water snowline, if it forms mixed into water ice. This has significant implications for the possibility of H2S being incorporated into icy planetesimals and its potential delivery to terrestrial planets, which we discuss in detail.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2504_14010
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle H2S ice sublimation dynamics: experimentally constrained binding energies, entrapment efficiencies, and snowlines
Santos, Julia C.
Piacentino, Elettra L.
Bergner, Jennifer B.
Rajappan, Mahesh
Öberg, Karin I.
Earth and Planetary Astrophysics
Astrophysics of Galaxies
Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is thought to be an important sulfur reservoir in interstellar ices. It serves as a key precursor to complex sulfur-bearing organics, and has been proposed to play a significant role in the origin of life. Although models and observations both suggest H2S to be present in ices in non-negligible amounts, its sublimation dynamics remain poorly constrained. In this work, we present a comprehensive experimental characterization of the sublimation behavior of H2S ice under astrophysically-relevant conditions. The sublimation behavior of H2S was monitored with a quadrupole mass spectrometer (QMS) during temperature-programmed desorption (TPD) experiments. These experiments are used to determine binding energies and entrapment efficiencies of H2S, which are then employed to estimate its snowline positions in a protoplanetary disk midplane. We derive mean binding energies of 3159\pm46 K for pure H2S ice and 3392\pm56 K for submonolayer H2S desorbing from a compact amorphous solid water (cASW) surface. These values correspond to sublimation temperatures of around 64 K and 69 K in the disk midplane, placing its sublimation fronts at radii just interior to the CO2 snowline. We also investigate the entrapment of H2S in water ice and find it to be highly efficient, with ~75-85% of H2S remaining trapped past its sublimation temperature for H2O:H2S mixing ratios of ~5-17:1. We discuss potential mechanisms behind this efficient entrapment. Our findings imply that, in protoplanetary disks, H2S will mostly be retained in the ice phase until water crystallizes, at radii near the water snowline, if it forms mixed into water ice. This has significant implications for the possibility of H2S being incorporated into icy planetesimals and its potential delivery to terrestrial planets, which we discuss in detail.
title H2S ice sublimation dynamics: experimentally constrained binding energies, entrapment efficiencies, and snowlines
topic Earth and Planetary Astrophysics
Astrophysics of Galaxies
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2504.14010