Summer Internship Projects Portal - BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

Project ID

BITS-SRIP/ECB6B5/2026

Project Title

Interaction and Reaction of SO2

Project Description

Sulfur dioxide (SO2) is an important atmospheric molecule released from natural processes and anthropogenic sources and acts as a precursor for several sulfur-containing products. In the atmosphere, SO2 is oxidized in the presence of water vapor, oxygen, and oxidizing agents. This oxidation produces sulfuric acid and sulfate aerosols. SO2 interacts with surrounding molecules through weak non-covalent interactions that influence its stability and chemical reactivity. SO2 can participate in chalcogen bonding due to the presence of an electron-deficient region on the sulfur atom. This enables SO2 to interact with electron-rich atmospheric species, including water molecules, oxygen, and nitrogen-containing compounds. Chalcogen bonding influences molecular orientation and stabilizes pre-reactive complexes, promoting clustering in atmospheric environments. Such molecular arrangements facilitate chemical transformations, leading to the conversion of SO2 into environmentally significant sulfur-containing products. In this way, chalcogen bonding provides a molecular framework for understanding SO2 reactivity under atmospheric conditions. Experiment and theory would be combined to understand the interactions of SO2 with other atmospherically relevant molecules and its reactions under different atmospheric conditions.

Project Discipline

Chemistry/Physics

Faculty Name

Shamik Chakraborty

Department

Department of Chemistry

Project Details