Abstract
The paper presents an electrochemical approach to cloud droplet charging through enhanced carbon dioxide absorption from the air by submicron droplets (aerosols), dissociation of resulting carbonic acid, and separation of charges by diffusion during elastic collisions of droplets with aerosols at wind speeds above 100 km/hour ( \(>\) 27 m/s). Electrochemical electrification of warm clouds includes separation of electric charges during a rapid passage of cloud masses through aerosol columns as opposed to electrification in convection cells, where cold clouds acquire electric charges at the site of their formation. When comparing numerical estimates for various electrostatic equilibria with published experimental data, it was revealed that the maximum cloud droplet charge is limited by the occurrence of electron avalanches between droplets, when the electric field of a cloud, which is proportional to its thickness, becomes strong enough. Lightning occurs when the thickness of the cloud layer increases up to 6–8 km. The electrochemical mechanism of electrification allows explaining on a single basis several chemical phenomena accompanying electrical processes in the atmosphere.
