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Publications

VULCAN is built on two layers of published methodology. The core kinetics framework and thermochemical network are described in Tsai et al. (2017); the full photochemical extension with C–H–N–O–S networks, condensation, and temperature-dependent cross sections is described in Tsai et al. (2021). The equilibrium-chemistry initialization relies on the embedded FastChem code, developed independently by Stock, Kitzmann & Patzer; the version bundled with VULCAN is 2.0 (Stock et al. 2022). Full references are given below.

VULCAN

  • Tsai, S. M., Malik, M., Kitzmann, D., Lyons, J. R., Fateev, A., Lee, E., & Heng, K. (2021). A comparative study of atmospheric chemistry with VULCAN. The Astrophysical Journal, 923(2), 264. https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ac29bc

  • Tsai, S. M., Lyons, J. R., Grosheintz, L., Rimmer, P. B., Kitzmann, D., & Heng, K. (2017). VULCAN: an open-source, validated chemical kinetics Python code for exoplanetary atmospheres. The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series, 228(2), 20. https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4365/228/2/20

FastChem

Version 1.0:

  • Stock, J. W., Kitzmann, D., Patzer, A. B. C., & Sedlmayr, E. (2018). FastChem: A computer program for efficient complex chemical equilibrium calculations in the neutral/ionized gas phase with applications to stellar and planetary atmospheres. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, 479(1), 865-874. https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/sty1531

Version 2.0:

  • Stock, J. W., Kitzmann, D., & Patzer, A. B. C. (2022). FastChem 2: an improved computer program to determine the gas-phase chemical equilibrium composition for arbitrary element distributions. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, 517(3), 4070-4080. https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stac2623

Version 3.0:

  • Kitzmann, D., Stock, J. W., & Patzer, A. B. C. (2024). FASTCHEM COND: equilibrium chemistry with condensation and rainout for cool planetary and stellar environments. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, 527(3), 7263-7283. https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stad3515

Version 4.0 (paper submitted):