TY - JOUR
T1 - Isotope effects (Cl, O, C) of heterogeneous electrochemistry induced by Martian dust activities
AU - Sturchio, Neil C.
AU - Yan, Hao
AU - Wang, Alian
AU - Jackson, W. Andrew
AU - Bao, Huiming
AU - Yan, Chuck Y.C.
AU - Heraty, Linnea J.
AU - Wei, Yu
AU - Qu, Quincy H.K.
AU - Olsen, Kevin S.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2025 The Author(s).
PY - 2026/2/15
Y1 - 2026/2/15
N2 - Some oxidized compounds in Martian soils may form through heterogeneous electrochemistry (HEC) stimulated by electrostatic discharge (ESD) during dust storms and dust devils. To test this hypothesis, we conducted medium-strength ESD experiments in a Mars simulation chamber and analyzed the Cl, O, and C isotopic compositions of the resulting chloride, (per)chlorate, and carbonate products. These ESD products exhibit substantial mass-dependent depletions in heavy isotopes relative to the reactants: ε37Cl from -11.3 ‰ to +2.0 ‰, ε18O from -34.5 ‰ to -12.9 ‰, and ε13C around -11.4 ‰. These results, when compared with isotopic measurements from recent Mars missions (ESA’s ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter and the Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument package aboard NASA’s Curiosity rover) and Martian meteorites, indicate that HEC induced by Martian dust activities can account for a substantial portion of the (per)chlorates and carbonates identified at the surface of Mars and the HCl in its atmosphere.
AB - Some oxidized compounds in Martian soils may form through heterogeneous electrochemistry (HEC) stimulated by electrostatic discharge (ESD) during dust storms and dust devils. To test this hypothesis, we conducted medium-strength ESD experiments in a Mars simulation chamber and analyzed the Cl, O, and C isotopic compositions of the resulting chloride, (per)chlorate, and carbonate products. These ESD products exhibit substantial mass-dependent depletions in heavy isotopes relative to the reactants: ε37Cl from -11.3 ‰ to +2.0 ‰, ε18O from -34.5 ‰ to -12.9 ‰, and ε13C around -11.4 ‰. These results, when compared with isotopic measurements from recent Mars missions (ESA’s ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter and the Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument package aboard NASA’s Curiosity rover) and Martian meteorites, indicate that HEC induced by Martian dust activities can account for a substantial portion of the (per)chlorates and carbonates identified at the surface of Mars and the HCl in its atmosphere.
KW - Dust activity
KW - Electrostatic discharge
KW - Heterogeneous electrochemistry
KW - Kinetic isotope effects
KW - Mars surface-atmosphere interactions
UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105025033427
U2 - 10.1016/j.epsl.2025.119784
DO - 10.1016/j.epsl.2025.119784
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:105025033427
SN - 0012-821X
VL - 676
JO - Earth and Planetary Science Letters
JF - Earth and Planetary Science Letters
M1 - 119784
ER -