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(CFCs) Very stable chemical compound, used in
refrigerants, solvent, and (in the past in the U.S.) aerosols, which release
chlorine (important) and fluorine (less important) into the upper atmosphere. In
the stratosphere, CFCs are photolyzed (by incoming solar UV) to form carbon
dioxide, CO2, hydrogen fluoride, HF, and ultimately (after multiple
UV absorption events) chlorine radicals. These chlorine species are crucial in
the destruction of the ozone layer over Antarctica and probably elsewhere (see
chlorine).
[Environmental Science and Technology; v 28; pages 1619-1622; 1994.]
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