The circumstellar envelope of the C-rich post-AGB star HD 56126

dc.creatorHony, S.
dc.creatorTielens, A. G. G. M.
dc.creatorWaters, L. B. F. M.
dc.creatorde Koter, A.
dc.date2003-02-21
dc.date.accessioned2026-07-07T10:26:52Z
dc.date.available2026-07-07T10:26:52Z
dc.descriptionWe present a detailed study of the circumstellar envelope of the post-asymptotic giant branch ``21 micron object'' HD 56126. We build a detailed dust radiative transfer model of the circumstellar envelope in order to derive the dust composition and mass, and the mass-loss history of the star. To model the emission of the dust we use amorphous carbon, hydrogenated amorphous carbon, magnesium sulfide and titanium carbide. We present a detailed parametrisation of the optical properties of hydrogenated amorphous carbon as a function of H/C content. The mid-infrared imaging and spectroscopy is best reproduced by a single dust shell from 1.2 to 2.6 arcsec radius around the central star. This shell originates from a short period during which the mass-loss rate exceeded 10^(-4) M_sun/yr. We find that the strength of the ``21'' micron feature poses a problem for the TiC identification. The low abundance of Ti requires very high absorption cross-sections in the ultraviolet and visible wavelength range to explain the strength of the feature. Other nano-crystalline metal carbides should be considered as well. We find that hydrogenated amorphous carbon in radiative equilibrium with the local radiation field does not reach a high enough temperature to explain the strength of the 3.3-3.4 and 6-9 micron hydrocarbon features relative to the 11-17 micron hydrocarbon features. We propose that the carriers of these hydrocarbon features are not in radiative equilibrium but are transiently heated to high temperature. We find that 2 per cent of the dust mass is required to explain the strength of the ``30'' micron feature, which fits well within the measured atmospheric abundance of Mg and S. This further strengthens the MgS identification of the ``30'' micron feature.
dc.description20 Pages, 10 Figures, accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysics
dc.identifierhttps://arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0302448
dc.identifierhttp://arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0302448
dc.identifierAstron.Astrophys.402:211-228,2003
dc.identifierdoi:10.1051/0004-6361:20030240
dc.identifier.urihttp://salesiana.dossiersoluciones.com/handle/123456789/176991
dc.subjectAstrophysics
dc.titleThe circumstellar envelope of the C-rich post-AGB star HD 56126
dc.typetext

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