Articles | Volume 23, issue 24
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-15643-2023
© Author(s) 2023. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-15643-2023
© Author(s) 2023. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
20 Dec 2023
Research article |
| 20 Dec 2023
| 20 Dec 2023
Characterization of water-soluble brown carbon chromophores from wildfire plumes in the western USA using size-exclusion chromatography
Lisa Azzarello
Department of Chemistry, York University, Toronto, ON M3J 1P3, Canada
Rebecca A. Washenfelder
Chemical Sciences Laboratory, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 325 Broadway, Boulder, CO 80305, USA
Michael A. Robinson
Chemical Sciences Laboratory, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 325 Broadway, Boulder, CO 80305, USA
Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES), University of Colorado, Boulder, Boulder, CO 80309, USA
Alessandro Franchin
Chemical Sciences Laboratory, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 325 Broadway, Boulder, CO 80305, USA
Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES), University of Colorado, Boulder, Boulder, CO 80309, USA
now at: National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, CO 80305, USA
Caroline C. Womack
Chemical Sciences Laboratory, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 325 Broadway, Boulder, CO 80305, USA
Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES), University of Colorado, Boulder, Boulder, CO 80309, USA
Christopher D. Holmes
Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Science, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 32304, USA
Steven S. Brown
Chemical Sciences Laboratory, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 325 Broadway, Boulder, CO 80305, USA
Department of Chemistry, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO 80309, USA
Ann Middlebrook
Chemical Sciences Laboratory, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 325 Broadway, Boulder, CO 80305, USA
Tim Newberger
Global Monitoring Laboratory, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 325 Broadway, Boulder, CO 80305, USA
Colm Sweeney
Global Monitoring Laboratory, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 325 Broadway, Boulder, CO 80305, USA
Department of Chemistry, York University, Toronto, ON M3J 1P3, Canada
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John W. Halfacre, Lewis Marden, Marvin D. Shaw, Lucy J. Carpenter, Emily Matthews, Thomas J. Bannan, Hugh Coe, Scott C. Herndon, Joseph R. Roscioli, Christoph Dyroff, Tara I. Yacovitch, Patrick R. Veres, Michael A. Robinson, Steven S. Brown, and Pete M. Edwards
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-831, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-831, 2025
This preprint is open for discussion and under review for Atmospheric Measurement Techniques (AMT).
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Nitryl chloride (ClNO2) is a reservoir of chlorine atoms and nitrogen oxides, both of which play important roles in atmospheric chemistry. However, all ambient ClNO2 observations so far have been made by a single technique, mass spectrometry, which needs complex calibrations. Here, we present a laser-based method that detects ClNO2 (TD-TILDAS) without the need for complicated calibrations. The results show excellent agreement between these two methods from both laboratory and ambient samples.
Hendrik Fuchs, Aaron Stainsby, Florian Berg, René Dubus, Michelle Färber, Andreas Hofzumahaus, Frank Holland, Kelvin H. Bates, Steven S. Brown, Matthew M. Coggon, Glenn S. Diskin, Georgios I. Gkatzelis, Christopher M. Jernigan, Jeff Peischl, Michael A. Robinson, Andrew W. Rollins, Nell B. Schafer, Rebecca H. Schwantes, Chelsea E. Stockwell, Patrick R. Veres, Carsten Warneke, Eleanor M. Waxman, Lu Xu, Kristen Zuraski, Andreas Wahner, and Anna Novelli
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 18, 881–895, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-18-881-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-18-881-2025, 2025
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Significant improvements have been made to the instruments used to measure OH reactivity, which is equivalent to the sum of air pollutant concentrations. Accurate and precise measurements with a high time resolution have been achieved, allowing use on aircraft, as demonstrated during flights in the USA.
Chelsea E. Stockwell, Matthew M. Coggon, Rebecca H. Schwantes, Colin Harkins, Bert Verreyken, Congmeng Lyu, Qindan Zhu, Lu Xu, Jessica B. Gilman, Aaron Lamplugh, Jeff Peischl, Michael A. Robinson, Patrick R. Veres, Meng Li, Andrew W. Rollins, Kristen Zuraski, Sunil Baidar, Shang Liu, Toshihiro Kuwayama, Steven S. Brown, Brian C. McDonald, and Carsten Warneke
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 1121–1143, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-1121-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-1121-2025, 2025
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In urban areas, emissions from everyday products like paints, cleaners, and personal care products, along with non-traditional sources such as cooking, are increasingly important and impact air quality. This study uses a box model to evaluate how these emissions impact ozone in the Los Angeles Basin and quantifies the impact of gaseous cooking emissions. Accurate representation of these and other anthropogenic sources in inventories is crucial for informing effective air quality policies.
Fernando Chouza, Thierry Leblanc, Patrick Wang, Steven S. Brown, Kristen Zuraski, Wyndom Chace, Caroline C. Womack, Jeff Peischl, John Hair, Taylor Shingler, and John Sullivan
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 18, 405–419, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-18-405-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-18-405-2025, 2025
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The JPL lidar group developed the SMOL (Small Mobile Ozone Lidar), an affordable ozone differential absorption lidar (DIAL) system covering all altitudes from 200 m to 10 km a.g.l. The comparison with airborne in situ and lidar measurements shows very good agreement. An additional comparison with nearby surface ozone measuring instruments indicates unbiased measurements by the SMOL lidars down to 200 m a.g.l.
Olivia G. Norman, Colette L. Heald, Solomon Bililign, Pedro Campuzano-Jost, Hugh Coe, Marc N. Fiddler, Jaime R. Green, Jose L. Jimenez, Katharina Kaiser, Jin Liao, Ann M. Middlebrook, Benjamin A. Nault, John B. Nowak, Johannes Schneider, and André Welti
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 771–795, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-771-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-771-2025, 2025
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This study finds that one component of secondary inorganic aerosols, nitrate, is greatly overestimated by a global atmospheric chemistry model compared to observations from 11 flight campaigns. None of the loss and production pathways explored can explain the nitrate bias alone. The model’s inability to capture the variability in the observations remains and requires future investigation to avoid biases in policy-related studies (i.e., air quality, health, climate impacts of these aerosols).
Anam M. Khan, Olivia E. Clifton, Jesse O. Bash, Sam Bland, Nathan Booth, Philip Cheung, Lisa Emberson, Johannes Flemming, Erick Fredj, Stefano Galmarini, Laurens Ganzeveld, Orestis Gazetas, Ignacio Goded, Christian Hogrefe, Christopher D. Holmes, Laszlo Horvath, Vincent Huijnen, Qian Li, Paul A. Makar, Ivan Mammarella, Giovanni Manca, J. William Munger, Juan L. Perez-Camanyo, Jonathan Pleim, Limei Ran, Roberto San Jose, Donna Schwede, Sam J. Silva, Ralf Staebler, Shihan Sun, Amos P. K. Tai, Eran Tas, Timo Vesala, Tamas Weidinger, Zhiyong Wu, Leiming Zhang, and Paul C. Stoy
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-3038, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-3038, 2024
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Vegetation removes tropospheric ozone through stomatal uptake, and accurately modeling the stomatal uptake of ozone is important for modeling dry deposition and air quality. We evaluated the stomatal component of ozone dry deposition modeled by atmospheric chemistry models at six sites. We find that models and observation-based estimates agree at times during the growing season at all sites, but some models overestimated the stomatal component during the dry summers at a seasonally dry site.
Kouji Adachi, Jack E. Dibb, Joseph M. Katich, Joshua P. Schwarz, Hongyu Guo, Pedro Campuzano-Jost, Jose L. Jimenez, Jeff Peischl, Christopher D. Holmes, and James Crawford
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 10985–11004, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-10985-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-10985-2024, 2024
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We examined aerosol particles from wildfires and identified tarballs (TBs) from the Fire Influence on Regional to Global Environments and Air Quality (FIREX-AQ) campaign. This study reveals the compositions, abundance, sizes, and mixing states of TBs and shows that TBs formed as the smoke aged for up to 5 h. This study provides measurements of TBs from various biomass-burning events and ages, enhancing our knowledge of TB emissions and our understanding of their climate impact.
Randall Chiu, Florian Obersteiner, Alessandro Franchin, Teresa Campos, Adriana Bailey, Christopher Webster, Andreas Zahn, and Rainer Volkamer
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 17, 5731–5746, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-5731-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-5731-2024, 2024
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The ozone sink into oceans and marine clouds is seldom studied and highly uncertain. Calculations suggest O3 destruction at aqueous surfaces (ocean, droplets) may be strongly accelerated, but field evidence is missing. Here we compare three fast airborne O3 instruments to measure eddy covariance fluxes of O3 over the remote ocean, in clear and cloudy air. We find O3 fluxes below clouds are consistently directed into clouds, while O3 fluxes into oceans are much smaller and spatially variable.
Andrew O. Langford, Raul J. Alvarez II, Kenneth C. Aikin, Sunil Baidar, W. Alan Brewer, Steven S. Brown, Matthew M. Coggan, Patrick D. Cullis, Jessica Gilman, Georgios I. Gkatzelis, Detlev Helmig, Bryan J. Johnson, K. Emma Knowland, Rajesh Kumar, Aaron D. Lamplugh, Audra McClure-Begley, Brandi J. McCarty, Ann M. Middlebrook, Gabriele Pfister, Jeff Peischl, Irina Petropavlovskikh, Pamela S. Rickley, Andrew W. Rollins, Scott P. Sandberg, Christoph J. Senff, and Carsten Warneke
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-1938, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-1938, 2024
Preprint withdrawn
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High ozone (O3) formed by reactions of nitrogen oxides (NOx) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) can harm human health and welfare. High O3 is usually associated with hot summer days, but under certain conditions, high O3 can also form under winter conditions. In this study, we describe a high O3 event that occurred in Colorado during the COVID-19 quarantine that was caused in part by the decrease in traffic, and in part by a shallow inversion created by descent of stratospheric air.
Edward J. Strobach, Sunil Baidar, Brian J. Carroll, Steven S. Brown, Kristen Zuraski, Matthew Coggon, Chelsea E. Stockwell, Lu Xu, Yelena L. Pichugina, W. Alan Brewer, Carsten Warneke, Jeff Peischl, Jessica Gilman, Brandi McCarty, Maxwell Holloway, and Richard Marchbanks
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 9277–9307, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-9277-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-9277-2024, 2024
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Large-scale weather patterns are isolated from local patterns to study the impact that different weather scales have on air quality measurements. While impacts from large-scale meteorology were evaluated by separating ozone (O3) exceedance (>70 ppb) and non-exceedance (<70 ppb) days, we developed a technique that allows direct comparisons of small temporal variations between chemical and dynamics measurements under rapid dynamical transitions.
Alessia A. Colussi, Daniel Persaud, Melodie Lao, Bryan K. Place, Rachel F. Hems, Susan E. Ziegler, Kate A. Edwards, Cora J. Young, and Trevor C. VandenBoer
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 17, 3697–3718, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-3697-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-3697-2024, 2024
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A new modular and affordable instrument was developed to automatically collect wet deposition continuously with an off-grid solar top-up power package. Monthly collections were performed across the Newfoundland and Labrador Boreal Ecosystem Latitudinal Transect of experimental forest sites from 2015 to 2016. The proof-of-concept systems were validated with baseline measurements of pH and conductivity and then applied to dissolved organic carbon as an analyte of emerging biogeochemical interest.
Qindan Zhu, Rebecca H. Schwantes, Matthew Coggon, Colin Harkins, Jordan Schnell, Jian He, Havala O. T. Pye, Meng Li, Barry Baker, Zachary Moon, Ravan Ahmadov, Eva Y. Pfannerstill, Bryan Place, Paul Wooldridge, Benjamin C. Schulze, Caleb Arata, Anthony Bucholtz, John H. Seinfeld, Carsten Warneke, Chelsea E. Stockwell, Lu Xu, Kristen Zuraski, Michael A. Robinson, J. Andrew Neuman, Patrick R. Veres, Jeff Peischl, Steven S. Brown, Allen H. Goldstein, Ronald C. Cohen, and Brian C. McDonald
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 5265–5286, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-5265-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-5265-2024, 2024
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Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) fuel the production of air pollutants like ozone and particulate matter. The representation of VOC chemistry remains challenging due to its complexity in speciation and reactions. Here, we develop a chemical mechanism, RACM2B-VCP, that better represents VOC chemistry in urban areas such as Los Angeles. We also discuss the contribution of VOCs emitted from volatile chemical products and other anthropogenic sources to total VOC reactivity and O3.
James M. Roberts, Siyuan Wang, Patrick R. Veres, J. Andrew Neuman, Michael A. Robinson, Ilann Bourgeois, Jeff Peischl, Thomas B. Ryerson, Chelsea R. Thompson, Hannah M. Allen, John D. Crounse, Paul O. Wennberg, Samuel R. Hall, Kirk Ullmann, Simone Meinardi, Isobel J. Simpson, and Donald Blake
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 3421–3443, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-3421-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-3421-2024, 2024
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We measured cyanogen bromide (BrCN) in the troposphere for the first time. BrCN is a product of the same active bromine chemistry that destroys ozone and removes mercury in polar surface environments and is a previously unrecognized sink for active Br compounds. BrCN has an apparent lifetime against heterogeneous loss in the range 1–10 d, so it serves as a cumulative marker of Br-radical chemistry. Accounting for BrCN chemistry is an important part of understanding polar Br cycling.
Linia Tashmim, William C. Porter, Qianjie Chen, Becky Alexander, Charles H. Fite, Christopher D. Holmes, Jeffrey R. Pierce, Betty Croft, and Sakiko Ishino
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 3379–3403, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-3379-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-3379-2024, 2024
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Dimethyl sulfide (DMS) is mostly emitted from ocean surfaces and represents the largest natural source of sulfur for the atmosphere. Once in the atmosphere, DMS forms stable oxidation products such as SO2 and H2SO4, which can subsequently contribute to airborne particle formation and growth. In this study, we update the DMS oxidation mechanism in the chemical transport model GEOS-Chem and describe resulting changes in particle growth as well as the overall global sulfur budget.
Georgios I. Gkatzelis, Matthew M. Coggon, Chelsea E. Stockwell, Rebecca S. Hornbrook, Hannah Allen, Eric C. Apel, Megan M. Bela, Donald R. Blake, Ilann Bourgeois, Steven S. Brown, Pedro Campuzano-Jost, Jason M. St. Clair, James H. Crawford, John D. Crounse, Douglas A. Day, Joshua P. DiGangi, Glenn S. Diskin, Alan Fried, Jessica B. Gilman, Hongyu Guo, Johnathan W. Hair, Hannah S. Halliday, Thomas F. Hanisco, Reem Hannun, Alan Hills, L. Gregory Huey, Jose L. Jimenez, Joseph M. Katich, Aaron Lamplugh, Young Ro Lee, Jin Liao, Jakob Lindaas, Stuart A. McKeen, Tomas Mikoviny, Benjamin A. Nault, J. Andrew Neuman, John B. Nowak, Demetrios Pagonis, Jeff Peischl, Anne E. Perring, Felix Piel, Pamela S. Rickly, Michael A. Robinson, Andrew W. Rollins, Thomas B. Ryerson, Melinda K. Schueneman, Rebecca H. Schwantes, Joshua P. Schwarz, Kanako Sekimoto, Vanessa Selimovic, Taylor Shingler, David J. Tanner, Laura Tomsche, Krystal T. Vasquez, Patrick R. Veres, Rebecca Washenfelder, Petter Weibring, Paul O. Wennberg, Armin Wisthaler, Glenn M. Wolfe, Caroline C. Womack, Lu Xu, Katherine Ball, Robert J. Yokelson, and Carsten Warneke
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 929–956, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-929-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-929-2024, 2024
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This study reports emissions of gases and particles from wildfires. These emissions are related to chemical proxies that can be measured by satellite and incorporated into models to improve predictions of wildfire impacts on air quality and climate.
Olivia E. Clifton, Donna Schwede, Christian Hogrefe, Jesse O. Bash, Sam Bland, Philip Cheung, Mhairi Coyle, Lisa Emberson, Johannes Flemming, Erick Fredj, Stefano Galmarini, Laurens Ganzeveld, Orestis Gazetas, Ignacio Goded, Christopher D. Holmes, László Horváth, Vincent Huijnen, Qian Li, Paul A. Makar, Ivan Mammarella, Giovanni Manca, J. William Munger, Juan L. Pérez-Camanyo, Jonathan Pleim, Limei Ran, Roberto San Jose, Sam J. Silva, Ralf Staebler, Shihan Sun, Amos P. K. Tai, Eran Tas, Timo Vesala, Tamás Weidinger, Zhiyong Wu, and Leiming Zhang
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 23, 9911–9961, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-9911-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-9911-2023, 2023
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A primary sink of air pollutants is dry deposition. Dry deposition estimates differ across the models used to simulate atmospheric chemistry. Here, we introduce an effort to examine dry deposition schemes from atmospheric chemistry models. We provide our approach’s rationale, document the schemes, and describe datasets used to drive and evaluate the schemes. We also launch the analysis of results by evaluating against observations and identifying the processes leading to model–model differences.
Paul Veers, Carlo L. Bottasso, Lance Manuel, Jonathan Naughton, Lucy Pao, Joshua Paquette, Amy Robertson, Michael Robinson, Shreyas Ananthan, Thanasis Barlas, Alessandro Bianchini, Henrik Bredmose, Sergio González Horcas, Jonathan Keller, Helge Aagaard Madsen, James Manwell, Patrick Moriarty, Stephen Nolet, and Jennifer Rinker
Wind Energ. Sci., 8, 1071–1131, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-1071-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-8-1071-2023, 2023
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Critical unknowns in the design, manufacturing, and operation of future wind turbine and wind plant systems are articulated, and key research activities are recommended.
Joey C. Y. Lam, Amos P. K. Tai, Jason A. Ducker, and Christopher D. Holmes
Geosci. Model Dev., 16, 2323–2342, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-16-2323-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-16-2323-2023, 2023
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We developed a new component within an atmospheric chemistry model to better simulate plant ecophysiological processes relevant for ozone air quality. We showed that it reduces simulated biases in plant uptake of ozone in prior models. The new model enables us to explore how future climatic changes affect air quality via affecting plants, examine ozone–vegetation interactions and feedbacks, and evaluate the impacts of changing atmospheric chemistry and climate on vegetation productivity.
John W. Halfacre, Jordan Stewart, Scott C. Herndon, Joseph R. Roscioli, Christoph Dyroff, Tara I. Yacovitch, Michael Flynn, Stephen J. Andrews, Steven S. Brown, Patrick R. Veres, and Pete M. Edwards
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 1407–1429, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-1407-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-1407-2023, 2023
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This study details a new sampling method for the optical detection of hydrogen chloride (HCl). HCl is an important atmospheric reservoir for chlorine atoms, which can affect nitrogen oxide cycling and the lifetimes of volatile organic compounds and ozone. However, HCl has a high affinity for interacting with surfaces, thereby preventing fast, quantitative measurements. The sampling technique in this study minimizes these surface interactions and provides a high-quality measurement of HCl.
Philip T. M. Carlsson, Luc Vereecken, Anna Novelli, François Bernard, Steven S. Brown, Bellamy Brownwood, Changmin Cho, John N. Crowley, Patrick Dewald, Peter M. Edwards, Nils Friedrich, Juliane L. Fry, Mattias Hallquist, Luisa Hantschke, Thorsten Hohaus, Sungah Kang, Jonathan Liebmann, Alfred W. Mayhew, Thomas Mentel, David Reimer, Franz Rohrer, Justin Shenolikar, Ralf Tillmann, Epameinondas Tsiligiannis, Rongrong Wu, Andreas Wahner, Astrid Kiendler-Scharr, and Hendrik Fuchs
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 23, 3147–3180, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-3147-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-3147-2023, 2023
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The investigation of the night-time oxidation of the most abundant hydrocarbon, isoprene, in chamber experiments shows the importance of reaction pathways leading to epoxy products, which could enhance particle formation, that have so far not been accounted for. The chemical lifetime of organic nitrates from isoprene is long enough for the majority to be further oxidized the next day by daytime oxidants.
Teles C. Furlani, RenXi Ye, Jordan Stewart, Leigh R. Crilley, Peter M. Edwards, Tara F. Kahan, and Cora J. Young
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 181–193, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-181-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-181-2023, 2023
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This study describes a new technique to measure total gaseous chlorine, which is the sum of gas-phase chlorine-containing chemicals. The method converts any chlorine-containing molecule to hydrogen chloride that can be detected in real time using a cavity ring-down spectrometer. The new method was validated through laboratory experiments, as well as by making measurements of ambient outdoor air and indoor air during cleaning with a chlorine-based cleaner.
Lu Xu, Matthew M. Coggon, Chelsea E. Stockwell, Jessica B. Gilman, Michael A. Robinson, Martin Breitenlechner, Aaron Lamplugh, John D. Crounse, Paul O. Wennberg, J. Andrew Neuman, Gordon A. Novak, Patrick R. Veres, Steven S. Brown, and Carsten Warneke
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 7353–7373, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-7353-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-7353-2022, 2022
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We describe the development and operation of a chemical ionization mass spectrometer using an ammonium–water cluster (NH4+·H2O) as a reagent ion. NH4+·H2O is a highly versatile reagent ion for measurements of a wide range of oxygenated organic compounds. The major product ion is the cluster with NH4+ produced via ligand-switching reactions. The instrumental sensitivities of analytes depend on the binding energy of the analyte–NH4+ cluster; sensitivities can be estimated using voltage scanning.
Caroline C. Womack, Steven S. Brown, Steven J. Ciciora, Ru-Shan Gao, Richard J. McLaughlin, Michael A. Robinson, Yinon Rudich, and Rebecca A. Washenfelder
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 6643–6652, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-6643-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-6643-2022, 2022
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We present a new miniature instrument to measure nitrogen dioxide (NO2) using cavity-enhanced spectroscopy. NO2 contributes to the formation of pollutants such as ozone and particulate matter, and its concentration can vary widely near sources. We developed this lightweight (3.05 kg) low-power (<35 W) instrument to measure NO2 on uncrewed aircraft vehicles (UAVs) and demonstrate that it has the accuracy and precision needed for atmospheric field measurements.
William F. Swanson, Chris D. Holmes, William R. Simpson, Kaitlyn Confer, Louis Marelle, Jennie L. Thomas, Lyatt Jaeglé, Becky Alexander, Shuting Zhai, Qianjie Chen, Xuan Wang, and Tomás Sherwen
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 14467–14488, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-14467-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-14467-2022, 2022
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Radical bromine molecules are seen at higher concentrations during the Arctic spring. We use the global model GEOS-Chem to test whether snowpack and wind-blown snow sources can explain high bromine concentrations. We run this model for the entire year of 2015 and compare results to observations of bromine from floating platforms on the Arctic Ocean and at Utqiaġvik. We find that the model performs best when both sources are enabled but may overestimate bromine production in summer and fall.
Ilann Bourgeois, Jeff Peischl, J. Andrew Neuman, Steven S. Brown, Hannah M. Allen, Pedro Campuzano-Jost, Matthew M. Coggon, Joshua P. DiGangi, Glenn S. Diskin, Jessica B. Gilman, Georgios I. Gkatzelis, Hongyu Guo, Hannah A. Halliday, Thomas F. Hanisco, Christopher D. Holmes, L. Gregory Huey, Jose L. Jimenez, Aaron D. Lamplugh, Young Ro Lee, Jakob Lindaas, Richard H. Moore, Benjamin A. Nault, John B. Nowak, Demetrios Pagonis, Pamela S. Rickly, Michael A. Robinson, Andrew W. Rollins, Vanessa Selimovic, Jason M. St. Clair, David Tanner, Krystal T. Vasquez, Patrick R. Veres, Carsten Warneke, Paul O. Wennberg, Rebecca A. Washenfelder, Elizabeth B. Wiggins, Caroline C. Womack, Lu Xu, Kyle J. Zarzana, and Thomas B. Ryerson
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 4901–4930, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-4901-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-4901-2022, 2022
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Understanding fire emission impacts on the atmosphere is key to effective air quality management and requires accurate measurements. We present a comparison of airborne measurements of key atmospheric species in ambient air and in fire smoke. We show that most instruments performed within instrument uncertainties. In some cases, further work is needed to fully characterize instrument performance. Comparing independent measurements using different techniques is important to assess their accuracy.
Michael A. Robinson, J. Andrew Neuman, L. Gregory Huey, James M. Roberts, Steven S. Brown, and Patrick R. Veres
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 4295–4305, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-4295-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-4295-2022, 2022
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Iodide chemical ionization mass spectrometry (CIMS) is commonly used in atmospheric chemistry laboratory studies and field campaigns. Deployment of the NOAA iodide CIMS instrument in the summer of 2021 indicated a significant and overlooked temperature dependence of the instrument sensitivity. This work explores which analytes are influenced by this phenomena. Additionally, we recommend controls to reduce this effect for future field deployments.
Christopher D. Holmes
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 9011–9015, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-9011-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-9011-2022, 2022
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Cloud water and ice enable reactions that lead to acid rain and alter atmospheric oxidants, among other impacts. This work develops and evaluates an efficient method of simulating cloud chemistry within global and regional atmospheric models in order to better understand the role of clouds in atmospheric chemistry.
Shihan Sun, Amos P. K. Tai, David H. Y. Yung, Anthony Y. H. Wong, Jason A. Ducker, and Christopher D. Holmes
Biogeosciences, 19, 1753–1776, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-1753-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-1753-2022, 2022
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We developed and used a terrestrial biosphere model to compare and evaluate widely used empirical dry deposition schemes with different stomatal approaches and found that using photosynthesis-based stomatal approaches can reduce biases in modeled dry deposition velocities in current chemical transport models. Our study shows systematic errors in current dry deposition schemes and the importance of representing plant ecophysiological processes in models under a changing climate.
Andrew O. Langford, Christoph J. Senff, Raul J. Alvarez II, Ken C. Aikin, Sunil Baidar, Timothy A. Bonin, W. Alan Brewer, Jerome Brioude, Steven S. Brown, Joel D. Burley, Dani J. Caputi, Stephen A. Conley, Patrick D. Cullis, Zachary C. J. Decker, Stéphanie Evan, Guillaume Kirgis, Meiyun Lin, Mariusz Pagowski, Jeff Peischl, Irina Petropavlovskikh, R. Bradley Pierce, Thomas B. Ryerson, Scott P. Sandberg, Chance W. Sterling, Ann M. Weickmann, and Li Zhang
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 1707–1737, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-1707-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-1707-2022, 2022
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The Fires, Asian, and Stratospheric Transport–Las Vegas Ozone Study (FAST-LVOS) combined lidar, aircraft, and in situ measurements with global models to investigate the contributions of stratospheric intrusions, regional and Asian pollution, and wildfires to background ozone in the southwestern US during May and June 2017 and demonstrated that these processes contributed to background ozone levels that exceeded 70 % of the US National Ambient Air Quality Standard during the 6-week campaign.
Jin Liao, Glenn M. Wolfe, Reem A. Hannun, Jason M. St. Clair, Thomas F. Hanisco, Jessica B. Gilman, Aaron Lamplugh, Vanessa Selimovic, Glenn S. Diskin, John B. Nowak, Hannah S. Halliday, Joshua P. DiGangi, Samuel R. Hall, Kirk Ullmann, Christopher D. Holmes, Charles H. Fite, Anxhelo Agastra, Thomas B. Ryerson, Jeff Peischl, Ilann Bourgeois, Carsten Warneke, Matthew M. Coggon, Georgios I. Gkatzelis, Kanako Sekimoto, Alan Fried, Dirk Richter, Petter Weibring, Eric C. Apel, Rebecca S. Hornbrook, Steven S. Brown, Caroline C. Womack, Michael A. Robinson, Rebecca A. Washenfelder, Patrick R. Veres, and J. Andrew Neuman
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 18319–18331, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-18319-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-18319-2021, 2021
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Formaldehyde (HCHO) is an important oxidant precursor and affects the formation of O3 and other secondary pollutants in wildfire plumes. We disentangle the processes controlling HCHO evolution from wildfire plumes sampled by NASA DC-8 during FIREX-AQ. We find that OH abundance rather than normalized OH reactivity is the main driver of fire-to-fire variability in HCHO secondary production and estimate an effective HCHO yield per volatile organic compound molecule oxidized in wildfire plumes.
Nicole Jacobs, William R. Simpson, Kelly A. Graham, Christopher Holmes, Frank Hase, Thomas Blumenstock, Qiansi Tu, Matthias Frey, Manvendra K. Dubey, Harrison A. Parker, Debra Wunch, Rigel Kivi, Pauli Heikkinen, Justus Notholt, Christof Petri, and Thorsten Warneke
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 16661–16687, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-16661-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-16661-2021, 2021
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Spatial patterns of carbon dioxide seasonal cycle amplitude and summer drawdown timing derived from the OCO-2 satellite over northern high latitudes agree well with corresponding estimates from two models. The Asian boreal forest is anomalous with the largest amplitude and earliest seasonal drawdown. Modeled land contact tracers suggest that accumulated CO2 exchanges during atmospheric transport play a major role in shaping carbon dioxide seasonality in northern high-latitude regions.
Zachary C. J. Decker, Michael A. Robinson, Kelley C. Barsanti, Ilann Bourgeois, Matthew M. Coggon, Joshua P. DiGangi, Glenn S. Diskin, Frank M. Flocke, Alessandro Franchin, Carley D. Fredrickson, Georgios I. Gkatzelis, Samuel R. Hall, Hannah Halliday, Christopher D. Holmes, L. Gregory Huey, Young Ro Lee, Jakob Lindaas, Ann M. Middlebrook, Denise D. Montzka, Richard Moore, J. Andrew Neuman, John B. Nowak, Brett B. Palm, Jeff Peischl, Felix Piel, Pamela S. Rickly, Andrew W. Rollins, Thomas B. Ryerson, Rebecca H. Schwantes, Kanako Sekimoto, Lee Thornhill, Joel A. Thornton, Geoffrey S. Tyndall, Kirk Ullmann, Paul Van Rooy, Patrick R. Veres, Carsten Warneke, Rebecca A. Washenfelder, Andrew J. Weinheimer, Elizabeth Wiggins, Edward Winstead, Armin Wisthaler, Caroline Womack, and Steven S. Brown
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 16293–16317, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-16293-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-16293-2021, 2021
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To understand air quality impacts from wildfires, we need an accurate picture of how wildfire smoke changes chemically both day and night as sunlight changes the chemistry of smoke. We present a chemical analysis of wildfire smoke as it changes from midday through the night. We use aircraft observations from the FIREX-AQ field campaign with a chemical box model. We find that even under sunlight typical
nighttimechemistry thrives and controls the fate of key smoke plume chemical processes.
Stefano Galmarini, Paul Makar, Olivia E. Clifton, Christian Hogrefe, Jesse O. Bash, Roberto Bellasio, Roberto Bianconi, Johannes Bieser, Tim Butler, Jason Ducker, Johannes Flemming, Alma Hodzic, Christopher D. Holmes, Ioannis Kioutsioukis, Richard Kranenburg, Aurelia Lupascu, Juan Luis Perez-Camanyo, Jonathan Pleim, Young-Hee Ryu, Roberto San Jose, Donna Schwede, Sam Silva, and Ralf Wolke
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 15663–15697, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-15663-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-15663-2021, 2021
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This technical note presents the research protocols for phase 4 of the Air Quality Model Evaluation International Initiative (AQMEII4). This initiative has three goals: (i) to define the state of wet and dry deposition in regional models, (ii) to evaluate how dry deposition influences air concentration and flux predictions, and (iii) to identify the causes for prediction differences. The evaluation compares LULC-specific dry deposition and effective conductances and fluxes.
Quanfu He, Zheng Fang, Ofir Shoshanim, Steven S. Brown, and Yinon Rudich
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 14927–14940, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-14927-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-14927-2021, 2021
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Rayleigh scattering and absorption cross sections for CO2, N2O, SF6, O2, and CH4 were measured between 307 and 725 nm. New dispersion relations for N2O, SF6, and CH4 in the UV–vis range were derived. This study provides refractive index dispersion relations, scattering, and absorption cross sections which are highly needed for accurate instrument calibration and for improved accuracy of Rayleigh scattering parameterizations for major greenhouse gases in Earth's atmosphere.
Linghan Zeng, Amy P. Sullivan, Rebecca A. Washenfelder, Jack Dibb, Eric Scheuer, Teresa L. Campos, Joseph M. Katich, Ezra Levin, Michael A. Robinson, and Rodney J. Weber
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 6357–6378, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-6357-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-6357-2021, 2021
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Three online systems for measuring water-soluble brown carbon are compared. A mist chamber and two different particle-into-liquid samplers were deployed on separate research aircraft targeting wildfires and followed a similar detection method using a long-path liquid waveguide with a spectrometer to measure the light absorption from 300 to 700 nm. Detection limits, signal hysteresis and other sampling issues are compared, and further improvements of these liquid-based systems are provided.
Xuan Wang, Daniel J. Jacob, William Downs, Shuting Zhai, Lei Zhu, Viral Shah, Christopher D. Holmes, Tomás Sherwen, Becky Alexander, Mathew J. Evans, Sebastian D. Eastham, J. Andrew Neuman, Patrick R. Veres, Theodore K. Koenig, Rainer Volkamer, L. Gregory Huey, Thomas J. Bannan, Carl J. Percival, Ben H. Lee, and Joel A. Thornton
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 13973–13996, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-13973-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-13973-2021, 2021
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Halogen radicals have a broad range of implications for tropospheric chemistry, air quality, and climate. We present a new mechanistic description and comprehensive simulation of tropospheric halogens in a global 3-D model and compare the model results with surface and aircraft measurements. We find that halogen chemistry decreases the global tropospheric burden of ozone by 11 %, NOx by 6 %, and OH by 4 %.
Yangang Ren, Li Zhou, Abdelwahid Mellouki, Véronique Daële, Mahmoud Idir, Steven S. Brown, Branko Ruscic, Robert S. Paton, Max R. McGillen, and A. R. Ravishankara
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 13537–13551, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-13537-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-13537-2021, 2021
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Aromatic aldehydes are a family of compounds emitted into the atmosphere from both anthropogenic and biogenic sources that are formed from the degradation of aromatic hydrocarbons. Their atmospheric degradation may impact air quality. We report on their atmospheric degradation through reaction with NO3, which is useful to estimate their atmospheric lifetimes. We have also attempted to elucidate the mechanism of these reactions via studies of isotopic substitution and quantum chemistry.
Teles C. Furlani, Patrick R. Veres, Kathryn E. R. Dawe, J. Andrew Neuman, Steven S. Brown, Trevor C. VandenBoer, and Cora J. Young
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 5859–5871, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-5859-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-5859-2021, 2021
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This study characterized and validated a commercial spectroscopic instrument for the measurement of hydrogen chloride (HCl) in the atmosphere. Near the Earth’s surface, HCl acts as the dominant reservoir for other chlorine-containing reactive chemicals that play an important role in atmospheric chemistry. The properties of HCl make it challenging to measure. This instrument can overcome many of these challenges, enabling reliable HCl measurements.
Rongrong Wu, Luc Vereecken, Epameinondas Tsiligiannis, Sungah Kang, Sascha R. Albrecht, Luisa Hantschke, Defeng Zhao, Anna Novelli, Hendrik Fuchs, Ralf Tillmann, Thorsten Hohaus, Philip T. M. Carlsson, Justin Shenolikar, François Bernard, John N. Crowley, Juliane L. Fry, Bellamy Brownwood, Joel A. Thornton, Steven S. Brown, Astrid Kiendler-Scharr, Andreas Wahner, Mattias Hallquist, and Thomas F. Mentel
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 10799–10824, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-10799-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-10799-2021, 2021
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Isoprene is the biogenic volatile organic compound with the largest emissions rates. The nighttime reaction of isoprene with the NO3 radical has a large potential to contribute to SOA. We classified isoprene nitrates into generations and proposed formation pathways. Considering the potential functionalization of the isoprene nitrates we propose that mainly isoprene dimers contribute to SOA formation from the isoprene NO3 reactions with at least a 5 % mass yield.
Amy Hrdina, Jennifer G. Murphy, Anna Gannet Hallar, John C. Lin, Alexander Moravek, Ryan Bares, Ross C. Petersen, Alessandro Franchin, Ann M. Middlebrook, Lexie Goldberger, Ben H. Lee, Munkh Baasandorj, and Steven S. Brown
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 8111–8126, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-8111-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-8111-2021, 2021
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Wintertime air pollution in the Salt Lake Valley is primarily composed of ammonium nitrate, which is formed when gas-phase ammonia and nitric acid react. The major point in this work is that the chemical composition of snow tells a very different story to what we measured in the atmosphere. With the dust–sea salt cations observed in PM2.5 and particle sizing data, we can estimate how much nitric acid may be lost to dust–sea salt that is not accounted for and how much more PM2.5 this could form.
Caroline C. Womack, Katherine M. Manfred, Nicholas L. Wagner, Gabriela Adler, Alessandro Franchin, Kara D. Lamb, Ann M. Middlebrook, Joshua P. Schwarz, Charles A. Brock, Steven S. Brown, and Rebecca A. Washenfelder
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 7235–7252, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-7235-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-7235-2021, 2021
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Microscopic particles interact with sunlight and affect the earth's climate in ways that are not fully understood. Aerosols from wildfire smoke present particular challenges due to their complexity in shape and composition. We demonstrate that we can experimentally measure aerosol optical properties for many types of smoke particles, using measurements of smoke from controlled burns, but that the method does not work well for smoke with high soot content.
Melodie Lao, Leigh R. Crilley, Leyla Salehpoor, Teles C. Furlani, Ilann Bourgeois, J. Andrew Neuman, Andrew W. Rollins, Patrick R. Veres, Rebecca A. Washenfelder, Caroline C. Womack, Cora J. Young, and Trevor C. VandenBoer
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 5873–5890, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-5873-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-5873-2020, 2020
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Nitrous acid (HONO) is a key intermediate in the generation of oxidants and fate of nitrogen oxides in the atmosphere. High-purity calibration sources that produce stable atmospherically relevant levels under field conditions have not been made to date, reducing measurement accuracy. In this study a simple salt-coated tube humidified with water vapor is demonstrated to produce pure stable low levels of HONO, with modifications allowing the generation of higher amounts.
Aikaterini Bougiatioti, Athanasios Nenes, Jack J. Lin, Charles A. Brock, Joost A. de Gouw, Jin Liao, Ann M. Middlebrook, and André Welti
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 12163–12176, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-12163-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-12163-2020, 2020
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The number concentration of droplets in clouds in the summertime in the southeastern United States is influenced by aerosol variations but limited by the strong competition for supersaturated water vapor. Concurrent variations in vertical velocity magnify the response of cloud droplet number to aerosol increases by up to a factor of 5. Omitting the covariance of vertical velocity with aerosol number may therefore bias estimates of the cloud albedo effect from aerosols.
Li Zhang, Meiyun Lin, Andrew O. Langford, Larry W. Horowitz, Christoph J. Senff, Elizabeth Klovenski, Yuxuan Wang, Raul J. Alvarez II, Irina Petropavlovskikh, Patrick Cullis, Chance W. Sterling, Jeff Peischl, Thomas B. Ryerson, Steven S. Brown, Zachary C. J. Decker, Guillaume Kirgis, and Stephen Conley
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 10379–10400, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-10379-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-10379-2020, 2020
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Measuring and quantifying the sources of elevated springtime ozone in the southwestern US is challenging but relevant to the implications for control policy. Here we use intensive field measurements and two global models to study ozone sources in the region. We find that ozone from the stratosphere, wildfires, and Asia is an important source of high-ozone events in the region. Our analysis also helps understand the uncertainties in ozone simulations with individual models.
Patrick Dewald, Jonathan M. Liebmann, Nils Friedrich, Justin Shenolikar, Jan Schuladen, Franz Rohrer, David Reimer, Ralf Tillmann, Anna Novelli, Changmin Cho, Kangming Xu, Rupert Holzinger, François Bernard, Li Zhou, Wahid Mellouki, Steven S. Brown, Hendrik Fuchs, Jos Lelieveld, and John N. Crowley
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 10459–10475, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-10459-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-10459-2020, 2020
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We present direct measurements of NO3 reactivity resulting from the oxidation of isoprene by NO3 during an intensive simulation chamber study. Measurements were in excellent agreement with values calculated from measured isoprene amounts and the rate coefficient for the reaction of NO3 with isoprene. Comparison of the measurement with NO3 reactivities from non-steady-state and model calculations suggests that isoprene-derived RO2 and HO2 radicals account to ~ 50 % of overall NO3 losses.
James M. Roberts, Chelsea E. Stockwell, Robert J. Yokelson, Joost de Gouw, Yong Liu, Vanessa Selimovic, Abigail R. Koss, Kanako Sekimoto, Matthew M. Coggon, Bin Yuan, Kyle J. Zarzana, Steven S. Brown, Cristina Santin, Stefan H. Doerr, and Carsten Warneke
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 8807–8826, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-8807-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-8807-2020, 2020
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We measured total reactive nitrogen, Nr, in lab fires from western North American fuels, along with measurements of individual nitrogen compounds. We measured the amount of N that gets converted to inactive compounds (avg. 70 %), and the amount that is accounted for by individual species (85 % of remaining N). We provide guidelines for how the reactive nitrogen is distributed among individual compounds such as NOx and ammonia. This will help estimates and predictions of wildfire emissions.
Andrew W. Rollins, Pamela S. Rickly, Ru-Shan Gao, Thomas B. Ryerson, Steven S. Brown, Jeff Peischl, and Ilann Bourgeois
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 2425–2439, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-2425-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-2425-2020, 2020
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Nitric oxide (NO) is a key atmospheric constituent controlling atmospheric oxidation chemistry and tropospheric ozone formation. Existing instrumentation capable of quantifying NO at very low mixing ratios is uncommon and typically relies on chemiluminescence. We describe and demonstrate a new laser-based technique (LIF) with significant practical and technical advantages to CL. This technique is expected to allow for advances in understanding of atmospheric radical chemistry.
Chuan Yu, Zhe Wang, Men Xia, Xiao Fu, Weihao Wang, Yee Jun Tham, Tianshu Chen, Penggang Zheng, Hongyong Li, Ye Shan, Xinfeng Wang, Likun Xue, Yan Zhou, Dingli Yue, Yubo Ou, Jian Gao, Keding Lu, Steven S. Brown, Yuanhang Zhang, and Tao Wang
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 4367–4378, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-4367-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-4367-2020, 2020
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This study provides a holistic picture of N2O5 heterogeneous uptake on ambient aerosols and the influencing factors under various climatic and chemical conditions in China, and it proposes an observation-based empirical parameterization. The empirical parameterization can be used in air quality models to improve the prediction of PM2.5 and photochemical pollution in China and similar polluted regions of the world.
Becky Alexander, Tomás Sherwen, Christopher D. Holmes, Jenny A. Fisher, Qianjie Chen, Mat J. Evans, and Prasad Kasibhatla
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 3859–3877, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-3859-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-3859-2020, 2020
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Nitrogen oxides are important for the formation of tropospheric oxidants and are removed from the atmosphere mainly through the formation of nitrate. We compare observations of the oxygen isotopes of nitrate with a global model to test our understanding of the chemistry nitrate formation. We use the model to quantify nitrate formation pathways in the atmosphere and identify key uncertainties and their relevance for the oxidation capacity of the atmosphere.
Sidhant J. Pai, Colette L. Heald, Jeffrey R. Pierce, Salvatore C. Farina, Eloise A. Marais, Jose L. Jimenez, Pedro Campuzano-Jost, Benjamin A. Nault, Ann M. Middlebrook, Hugh Coe, John E. Shilling, Roya Bahreini, Justin H. Dingle, and Kennedy Vu
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 2637–2665, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-2637-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-2637-2020, 2020
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Aerosols in the atmosphere have significant health and climate impacts. Organic aerosol (OA) accounts for a large fraction of the total aerosol burden, but models have historically struggled to accurately simulate it. This study compares two very different OA model schemes and evaluates them against a suite of globally distributed airborne measurements with the goal of providing insight into the strengths and weaknesses of each approach across different environments.
Alexander Moravek, Jennifer G. Murphy, Amy Hrdina, John C. Lin, Christopher Pennell, Alessandro Franchin, Ann M. Middlebrook, Dorothy L. Fibiger, Caroline C. Womack, Erin E. McDuffie, Randal Martin, Kori Moore, Munkhbayar Baasandorj, and Steven S. Brown
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 19, 15691–15709, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-15691-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-15691-2019, 2019
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Ammonium nitrate is a major component of fine particulate matter of wintertime air pollution in the Great Salt Lake Region (UT, USA). We investigate the sources of ammonia in the region by using aircraft observations and comparing them to modelled ammonia mixing ratios based on emission inventory estimates. The results suggest that ammonia emissions are underestimated, specifically in regions with high agricultural activity, while ammonia in Salt Lake City is mainly of local origin.
Matthew M. Coggon, Christopher Y. Lim, Abigail R. Koss, Kanako Sekimoto, Bin Yuan, Jessica B. Gilman, David H. Hagan, Vanessa Selimovic, Kyle J. Zarzana, Steven S. Brown, James M. Roberts, Markus Müller, Robert Yokelson, Armin Wisthaler, Jordan E. Krechmer, Jose L. Jimenez, Christopher Cappa, Jesse H. Kroll, Joost de Gouw, and Carsten Warneke
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 19, 14875–14899, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-14875-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-14875-2019, 2019
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Wildfire emissions significantly contribute to adverse air quality; however, the chemical processes that lead to hazardous pollutants, such as ozone, are not fully understood. In this study, we describe laboratory experiments where we simulate the atmospheric chemistry of smoke emitted from a range of biomass fuels. We show that certain understudied compounds, such as furans and phenolic compounds, are significant contributors to pollutants formed as a result of typical atmospheric oxidation.
Jiajue Chai, David J. Miller, Eric Scheuer, Jack Dibb, Vanessa Selimovic, Robert Yokelson, Kyle J. Zarzana, Steven S. Brown, Abigail R. Koss, Carsten Warneke, and Meredith Hastings
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 12, 6303–6317, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-6303-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-6303-2019, 2019
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Isotopic analysis offers a potential tool to distinguish between sources and interpret transformation pathways of atmospheric species. We applied recently developed techniques in our lab to characterize the isotopic composition of reactive nitrogen species (NOx, HONO, HNO3, pNO3-) in fresh biomass burning emissions. Intercomparison with other techniques confirms the suitability of our methods, allowing for future applications of our techniques in a variety of environments.
Karl D. Froyd, Daniel M. Murphy, Charles A. Brock, Pedro Campuzano-Jost, Jack E. Dibb, Jose-Luis Jimenez, Agnieszka Kupc, Ann M. Middlebrook, Gregory P. Schill, Kenneth L. Thornhill, Christina J. Williamson, James C. Wilson, and Luke D. Ziemba
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 12, 6209–6239, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-6209-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-6209-2019, 2019
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Single-particle mass spectrometer (SPMS) instruments characterize the composition of individual aerosol particles in real time. We present a new method that combines SPMS composition with independently measured particle size distributions to determine absolute number, surface area, volume, and mass concentrations of mineral dust, biomass burning, sea salt, and other climate-relevant atmospheric particle types, with a fast time response applicable to aircraft sampling.
Erin E. McDuffie, Caroline C. Womack, Dorothy L. Fibiger, William P. Dube, Alessandro Franchin, Ann M. Middlebrook, Lexie Goldberger, Ben H. Lee, Joel A. Thornton, Alexander Moravek, Jennifer G. Murphy, Munkhbayar Baasandorj, and Steven S. Brown
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 19, 9287–9308, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-9287-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-9287-2019, 2019
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Populated mountain basins, including the Salt Lake Valley (SLV) in Utah, suffer from wintertime stagnation events that trap emissions near the surface and cause fine particulate matter (PM2.5) concentrations to reach unhealthy levels. Previously limited by a lack of nighttime measurements, this study uses 2017 UWFPS aircraft campaign data, in combination with a box model, to show that nitrogen chemistry above the surface at night is a major source of PM2.5 during a wintertime event in the SLV.
Xin Chen, Dylan B. Millet, Hanwant B. Singh, Armin Wisthaler, Eric C. Apel, Elliot L. Atlas, Donald R. Blake, Ilann Bourgeois, Steven S. Brown, John D. Crounse, Joost A. de Gouw, Frank M. Flocke, Alan Fried, Brian G. Heikes, Rebecca S. Hornbrook, Tomas Mikoviny, Kyung-Eun Min, Markus Müller, J. Andrew Neuman, Daniel W. O'Sullivan, Jeff Peischl, Gabriele G. Pfister, Dirk Richter, James M. Roberts, Thomas B. Ryerson, Stephen R. Shertz, Chelsea R. Thompson, Victoria Treadaway, Patrick R. Veres, James Walega, Carsten Warneke, Rebecca A. Washenfelder, Petter Weibring, and Bin Yuan
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 19, 9097–9123, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-9097-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-9097-2019, 2019
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Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) affect air quality and modify the lifetimes of other pollutants. We combine a high-resolution 3-D atmospheric model with an ensemble of aircraft observations to perform an integrated analysis of the VOC budget over North America. We find that biogenic emissions provide the main source of VOC reactivity even in most major cities. Our findings point to key gaps in current models related to oxygenated VOCs and to the distribution of VOCs in the free troposphere.
Nick Jordan, Connie Z. Ye, Satyaki Ghosh, Rebecca A. Washenfelder, Steven S. Brown, and Hans D. Osthoff
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 12, 1277–1293, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-1277-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-1277-2019, 2019
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A new spectrometer to measure abundances of the atmospheric trace gases nitrogen dioxide and iodine is described. The spectrometer uses a light-emitting diode between 470 and 540 nm and two highly reflective mirrors to yield an effective absorption path of 6.3 km. We remeasured scattering cross sections of common atmospheric gases in the cyan region and present sample NO2 measurements that agreed with those made with a laser-based instrument.
Alessandro Franchin, Dorothy L. Fibiger, Lexie Goldberger, Erin E. McDuffie, Alexander Moravek, Caroline C. Womack, Erik T. Crosman, Kenneth S. Docherty, William P. Dube, Sebastian W. Hoch, Ben H. Lee, Russell Long, Jennifer G. Murphy, Joel A. Thornton, Steven S. Brown, Munkhbayar Baasandorj, and Ann M. Middlebrook
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 17259–17276, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-17259-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-17259-2018, 2018
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We present the results of aerosol and trace gas measurements from airborne and ground-based platforms. The measurements took place in January–February 2017 in northern Utah as part of the Utah Winter Fine Particulate Study (UWFPS). We characterized the chemical composition of PM1 on a regional scale, also probing the vertical dimension. We used a thermodynamic model to study the effectiveness of limiting total ammonium or total nitrate as a strategy to control aerosol concentrations.
Kyle J. Zarzana, Vanessa Selimovic, Abigail R. Koss, Kanako Sekimoto, Matthew M. Coggon, Bin Yuan, William P. Dubé, Robert J. Yokelson, Carsten Warneke, Joost A. de Gouw, James M. Roberts, and Steven S. Brown
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 15451–15470, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-15451-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-15451-2018, 2018
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Emissions of glyoxal and methylglyoxal from fuels common to the western United States were measured using cavity-enhanced spectroscopy, which provides a more selective measurement of those compounds than was previously available. Primary emissions of glyoxal were lower than previously reported and showed variability between the different fuel groups. However, emissions of glyoxal relative to formaldehyde were constant across almost all the fuel groups at 6 %–7 %.
Daniela Wimmer, Stephany Buenrostro Mazon, Hanna Elina Manninen, Juha Kangasluoma, Alessandro Franchin, Tuomo Nieminen, John Backman, Jian Wang, Chongai Kuang, Radovan Krejci, Joel Brito, Fernando Goncalves Morais, Scot Turnbull Martin, Paulo Artaxo, Markku Kulmala, Veli-Matti Kerminen, and Tuukka Petäjä
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 13245–13264, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-13245-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-13245-2018, 2018
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This work focuses on understanding the production of very small airborne particles in the undisturbed environment of the Amazon basin. Computer models have shown that up to 70 % of these tiny particles are responsible for cloud formation on a global scale. The processes behind the production of these very small particles have been studied intensely recently. Their appearance has been observed almost all over the world. We directly measure sub-3 nm aerosols for the first time in the Amazon basin.
Jason A. Ducker, Christopher D. Holmes, Trevor F. Keenan, Silvano Fares, Allen H. Goldstein, Ivan Mammarella, J. William Munger, and Jordan Schnell
Biogeosciences, 15, 5395–5413, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-15-5395-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-15-5395-2018, 2018
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We have developed an accurate method (SynFlux) to estimate ozone deposition and stomatal uptake across 103 flux tower sites (43 US, 60 Europe), where ozone concentrations and fluxes have not been measured. In all, the SynFlux public dataset provides monthly values of ozone dry deposition for 926 site years across a wide array of ecosystems. The SynFlux dataset will promote further applications to ecosystem, air quality, or climate modeling across the geoscience community.
James M. Mattila, Patrick Brophy, Jeffrey Kirkland, Samuel Hall, Kirk Ullmann, Emily V. Fischer, Steve Brown, Erin McDuffie, Alex Tevlin, and Delphine K. Farmer
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 12315–12327, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-12315-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-12315-2018, 2018
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Molecular acids in the atmosphere have implications for human health and air quality. Measurements of various acidic molecules were performed in the Colorado Front Range. Atmospheric concentrations of many acids increased during the day, indicative of sunlight-related production sources. A surface-level source of many acids persisting throughout day and night was observed. Traffic and agricultural activity were important anthropogenic sources of several acids near the measurement site.
Juliane L. Fry, Steven S. Brown, Ann M. Middlebrook, Peter M. Edwards, Pedro Campuzano-Jost, Douglas A. Day, José L. Jimenez, Hannah M. Allen, Thomas B. Ryerson, Ilana Pollack, Martin Graus, Carsten Warneke, Joost A. de Gouw, Charles A. Brock, Jessica Gilman, Brian M. Lerner, William P. Dubé, Jin Liao, and André Welti
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 11663–11682, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-11663-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-11663-2018, 2018
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This paper uses measurements made during research aircraft flights through power plant smokestack emissions plumes as a natural laboratory in the field experiment. We investigated a specific source of airborne particulate matter from the combination of human-produced NOx pollutant emissions (the smokestack plumes) with isoprene emitted by naturally by trees in the southeastern United States. These field-based yields appear to be higher than those typically measured in chamber studies.
Kanako Sekimoto, Abigail R. Koss, Jessica B. Gilman, Vanessa Selimovic, Matthew M. Coggon, Kyle J. Zarzana, Bin Yuan, Brian M. Lerner, Steven S. Brown, Carsten Warneke, Robert J. Yokelson, James M. Roberts, and Joost de Gouw
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 9263–9281, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-9263-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-9263-2018, 2018
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We found that on average 85 % of the VOC emissions from biomass burning across various fuels representative of the western US (including various coniferous and chaparral fuels) can be explained using only two emission profiles: (i) a high-temperature pyrolysis profile and (ii) a low-temperature pyrolysis profile. The high-temperature profile is quantitatively similar between different fuel types (r2 > 0.84), and likewise for the low-temperature profile.
Chelsea E. Stockwell, Agnieszka Kupc, Bartłomiej Witkowski, Ranajit K. Talukdar, Yong Liu, Vanessa Selimovic, Kyle J. Zarzana, Kanako Sekimoto, Carsten Warneke, Rebecca A. Washenfelder, Robert J. Yokelson, Ann M. Middlebrook, and James M. Roberts
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 11, 2749–2768, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-2749-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-2749-2018, 2018
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This work investigates the total conversion of particle-bound nitrogen and organic carbon across platinum and molybdenum catalysts followed by NO–O3 chemiluminescence and nondispersive infrared CO2 detection. We show the instrument is an accurate particle mass measurement method and demonstrate its ability to calibrate particle mass measurement instrumentation through comparisons with a calibrated particle-into-liquid sampler coupled to an electrospray ionization source of a mass spectrometer.
Heidi M. Pickard, Alison S. Criscitiello, Christine Spencer, Martin J. Sharp, Derek C. G. Muir, Amila O. De Silva, and Cora J. Young
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 5045–5058, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-5045-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-5045-2018, 2018
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Perfluoroalkyl acids (PFAAs) are persistent, bioaccumulative compounds found in the environment far from source regions, including the remote Arctic. We collected a 15 m ice core from the Canadian High Arctic to measure a 38-year deposition record of PFAAs, proving information about major pollutant sources and production changes over time. Our results demonstrate that PFAAs have continuous and increasing deposition, despite recent North American regulations and phase-outs.
Abigail R. Koss, Kanako Sekimoto, Jessica B. Gilman, Vanessa Selimovic, Matthew M. Coggon, Kyle J. Zarzana, Bin Yuan, Brian M. Lerner, Steven S. Brown, Jose L. Jimenez, Jordan Krechmer, James M. Roberts, Carsten Warneke, Robert J. Yokelson, and Joost de Gouw
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 3299–3319, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-3299-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-3299-2018, 2018
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Non-methane organic gases (NMOGs) were detected by proton-transfer-reaction mass spectrometry (PTR-ToF) during an extensive laboratory characterization of wildfire emissions. Identifications for PTR-ToF ion masses are proposed and supported by a combination of techniques. Overall excellent agreement with other instrumentation is shown. Scalable emission factors and ratios are reported for many newly reported reactive species. An analysis of chemical characteristics is presented.
Jingqiu Mao, Annmarie Carlton, Ronald C. Cohen, William H. Brune, Steven S. Brown, Glenn M. Wolfe, Jose L. Jimenez, Havala O. T. Pye, Nga Lee Ng, Lu Xu, V. Faye McNeill, Kostas Tsigaridis, Brian C. McDonald, Carsten Warneke, Alex Guenther, Matthew J. Alvarado, Joost de Gouw, Loretta J. Mickley, Eric M. Leibensperger, Rohit Mathur, Christopher G. Nolte, Robert W. Portmann, Nadine Unger, Mika Tosca, and Larry W. Horowitz
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 2615–2651, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-2615-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-2615-2018, 2018
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This paper is aimed at discussing progress in evaluating, diagnosing, and improving air quality and climate modeling using comparisons to SAS observations as a guide to thinking about improvements to mechanisms and parameterizations in models.
Katherine M. Manfred, Rebecca A. Washenfelder, Nicholas L. Wagner, Gabriela Adler, Frank Erdesz, Caroline C. Womack, Kara D. Lamb, Joshua P. Schwarz, Alessandro Franchin, Vanessa Selimovic, Robert J. Yokelson, and Daniel M. Murphy
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 1879–1894, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-1879-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-1879-2018, 2018
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In this study, we use a new laser imaging nephelometer to measure the bulk aerosol scattering phase function for biomass burning aerosol from controlled fires. By comparing measurements to models for spherical and fractal particles, we demonstrate that the dominant morphology varies by fuel type. This instrument has unique capabilities to directly measure how morphology affects optical properties, and can be used in the future for important validations of remote sensing retrievals.
Lihua Wang, Michael J. Newchurch, Raul J. Alvarez II, Timothy A. Berkoff, Steven S. Brown, William Carrion, Russell J. De Young, Bryan J. Johnson, Rene Ganoe, Guillaume Gronoff, Guillaume Kirgis, Shi Kuang, Andrew O. Langford, Thierry Leblanc, Erin E. McDuffie, Thomas J. McGee, Denis Pliutau, Christoph J. Senff, John T. Sullivan, Grant Sumnicht, Laurence W. Twigg, and Andrew J. Weinheimer
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 10, 3865–3876, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-3865-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-3865-2017, 2017
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Intercomparisons have been made between three TOLNet ozone lidars and between the lidars and other ozone instruments during the 2014 DISCOVER-AQ and FRAPPÉ campaigns in Colorado. Overall, the TOLNet lidars are capable of measuring 5 min tropospheric ozone variations with accuracy better than ±15 % in terms of their vertical resolving capability and better than ±5 % in terms of their column average measurement. These results indicate very good measurement accuracy for the three TOLNet lidars.
Jin Liao, Charles A. Brock, Daniel M. Murphy, Donna T. Sueper, André Welti, and Ann M. Middlebrook
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 10, 3801–3820, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-3801-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-3801-2017, 2017
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The Aerodyne aerosol mass spectrometer (AMS) has emerged as a widely used method for measuring the real-time, submicron, nonrefractory aerosol composition. A large uncertainty in accurate measurements with the AMS (the collection efficiency due to particle bounce) is evaluated in this paper using in situ measurements of particle light scattering. Current calculations of the collection efficiency reasonably predict this effect in acidic environments, resulting in more confidence for AMS results.
Linda M. J. Kooijmans, Kadmiel Maseyk, Ulli Seibt, Wu Sun, Timo Vesala, Ivan Mammarella, Pasi Kolari, Juho Aalto, Alessandro Franchin, Roberta Vecchi, Gianluigi Valli, and Huilin Chen
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 17, 11453–11465, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-11453-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-11453-2017, 2017
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Carbon cycle studies rely on the accuracy of models to estimate the amount of CO2 being taken up by vegetation. The gas carbonyl sulfide (COS) can serve as a tool to estimate the vegetative CO2 uptake by scaling the ecosystem uptake of COS to that of CO2. Here we investigate the nighttime fluxes of COS. The relationships found in this study will aid in implementing nighttime COS uptake in models, which is key to obtain accurate estimates of vegetative CO2 uptake with the use of COS.
Bianca C. Baier, William H. Brune, David O. Miller, Donald Blake, Russell Long, Armin Wisthaler, Christopher Cantrell, Alan Fried, Brian Heikes, Steven Brown, Erin McDuffie, Frank Flocke, Eric Apel, Lisa Kaser, and Andrew Weinheimer
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 17, 11273–11292, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-11273-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-11273-2017, 2017
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Ozone production rates were measured using the Measurement of Ozone Production Sensor (MOPS). Measurements are compared to modeled ozone production rates using two different chemical mechanisms. At high nitric oxide levels, observed rates are higher than those modeled, prompting the need to revisit current model photochemistry. These direct measurements can add to our understanding of the ozone chemistry within air quality models and can be used to guide government regulatory strategies.
Abigail Koss, Bin Yuan, Carsten Warneke, Jessica B. Gilman, Brian M. Lerner, Patrick R. Veres, Jeff Peischl, Scott Eilerman, Rob Wild, Steven S. Brown, Chelsea R. Thompson, Thomas Ryerson, Thomas Hanisco, Glenn M. Wolfe, Jason M. St. Clair, Mitchell Thayer, Frank N. Keutsch, Shane Murphy, and Joost de Gouw
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 10, 2941–2968, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-2941-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-2941-2017, 2017
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Oil and gas extraction activity can cause air quality issues through emission of reactive chemicals. VOCs related to extraction operations in the United States were measured by PTR-ToF-MS from aircraft during the SONGNEX campaign in March–April 2015. The detailed analysis in this work provides a guide to interpreting PTR-ToF measurements in oil- and gas-producing regions, and it includes fundamental observations of VOC speciation and mixing ratios.
Georgios Tsagkogeorgas, Pontus Roldin, Jonathan Duplissy, Linda Rondo, Jasmin Tröstl, Jay G. Slowik, Sebastian Ehrhart, Alessandro Franchin, Andreas Kürten, Antonio Amorim, Federico Bianchi, Jasper Kirkby, Tuukka Petäjä, Urs Baltensperger, Michael Boy, Joachim Curtius, Richard C. Flagan, Markku Kulmala, Neil M. Donahue, and Frank Stratmann
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 17, 8923–8938, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-8923-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-8923-2017, 2017
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The H2SO4 vapour pressure plays key role in Earth's and Venus' atmospheres. In regions where RH is low and stabilising bases are scarce, H2SO4 can evaporate from particles; however the H2SO4 vapour pressure at low RH is uncertain. To address this, we measured H2SO4 evaporation versus T and RH in the CLOUD chamber and constrained the equilibrium constants for dissociation and dehydration of H2SO4. This study is important for nucleation, particle growth and H2SO4 formation occurring in atmosphere.
Christopher Chan Miller, Daniel J. Jacob, Eloise A. Marais, Karen Yu, Katherine R. Travis, Patrick S. Kim, Jenny A. Fisher, Lei Zhu, Glenn M. Wolfe, Thomas F. Hanisco, Frank N. Keutsch, Jennifer Kaiser, Kyung-Eun Min, Steven S. Brown, Rebecca A. Washenfelder, Gonzalo González Abad, and Kelly Chance
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 17, 8725–8738, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-8725-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-8725-2017, 2017
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The use of satellite glyoxal observations for estimating isoprene emissions has been limited by knowledge of the glyoxal yield from isoprene. We use SENEX aircraft observations over the southeast US to evaluate glyoxal yields from isoprene in a 3-D atmospheric model. The SENEX observations support a pathway for glyoxal formation in pristine regions that we propose here, which may have implications for improving isoprene emissions estimates from upcoming high-resolution geostationary satellites.
Caroline C. Womack, J. Andrew Neuman, Patrick R. Veres, Scott J. Eilerman, Charles A. Brock, Zachary C. J. Decker, Kyle J. Zarzana, William P. Dube, Robert J. Wild, Paul J. Wooldridge, Ronald C. Cohen, and Steven S. Brown
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 10, 1911–1926, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-1911-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-1911-2017, 2017
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The accurate detection of reactive nitrogen species (NOy) is key to understanding tropospheric ozone production. Typically, NOy is detected by thermal conversion to NO2, followed by NO2 detection. Here, we assess the conversion efficiency of several NOy species to NO2 in a thermal dissociation cavity ring-down spectrometer and discuss how this conversion efficiency is affected by certain experimental conditions, such as oven residence time, and interferences from non-NOy species.
Brett B. Palm, Pedro Campuzano-Jost, Douglas A. Day, Amber M. Ortega, Juliane L. Fry, Steven S. Brown, Kyle J. Zarzana, William Dube, Nicholas L. Wagner, Danielle C. Draper, Lisa Kaser, Werner Jud, Thomas Karl, Armin Hansel, Cándido Gutiérrez-Montes, and Jose L. Jimenez
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 17, 5331–5354, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-5331-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-5331-2017, 2017
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Ambient forest air was oxidized by OH, O3, or NO3 inside an oxidation flow reactor, leading to formation of particulate matter from any gaseous precursors found in the air. Closure was achieved between the amount of particulate mass formed from O3 and NO3 oxidation and the amount predicted from speciated gaseous precursors, which was in contrast to previous results for OH oxidation (Palm et al., 2016). Elemental analysis of the particulate mass formed in the reactor is presented.
Chantelle R. Lonsdale, Jennifer D. Hegarty, Karen E. Cady-Pereira, Matthew J. Alvarado, Daven K. Henze, Matthew D. Turner, Shannon L. Capps, John B. Nowak, J. Andy Neuman, Ann M. Middlebrook, Roya Bahreini, Jennifer G. Murphy, Milos Z. Markovic, Trevor C. VandenBoer, Lynn M. Russell, and Amy Jo Scarino
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 17, 2721–2739, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-2721-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-2721-2017, 2017
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This study takes advantage of the high-resolution observations of NH3(g) made by the TES satellite instrument over Bakersfield during the CalNex campaign, along with campaign measurements, to compare CMAQ model results in the San Joaquin Valley, California. Additionally we evaluate the CMAQ bi-directional ammonia flux results using the CARB emissions inventory against these satellite and campaign measurements, not previously explored in combination.
Nga Lee Ng, Steven S. Brown, Alexander T. Archibald, Elliot Atlas, Ronald C. Cohen, John N. Crowley, Douglas A. Day, Neil M. Donahue, Juliane L. Fry, Hendrik Fuchs, Robert J. Griffin, Marcelo I. Guzman, Hartmut Herrmann, Alma Hodzic, Yoshiteru Iinuma, José L. Jimenez, Astrid Kiendler-Scharr, Ben H. Lee, Deborah J. Luecken, Jingqiu Mao, Robert McLaren, Anke Mutzel, Hans D. Osthoff, Bin Ouyang, Benedicte Picquet-Varrault, Ulrich Platt, Havala O. T. Pye, Yinon Rudich, Rebecca H. Schwantes, Manabu Shiraiwa, Jochen Stutz, Joel A. Thornton, Andreas Tilgner, Brent J. Williams, and Rahul A. Zaveri
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 17, 2103–2162, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-2103-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-2103-2017, 2017
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Oxidation of biogenic volatile organic compounds by NO3 is an important interaction between anthropogenic
and natural emissions. This review results from a June 2015 workshop and includes the recent literature
on kinetics, mechanisms, organic aerosol yields, and heterogeneous chemistry; advances in analytical
instrumentation; the current state NO3-BVOC chemistry in atmospheric models; and critical needs for
future research in modeling, field observations, and laboratory studies.
Hendrik Fuchs, Zhaofeng Tan, Keding Lu, Birger Bohn, Sebastian Broch, Steven S. Brown, Huabin Dong, Sebastian Gomm, Rolf Häseler, Lingyan He, Andreas Hofzumahaus, Frank Holland, Xin Li, Ying Liu, Sihua Lu, Kyung-Eun Min, Franz Rohrer, Min Shao, Baolin Wang, Ming Wang, Yusheng Wu, Limin Zeng, Yinson Zhang, Andreas Wahner, and Yuanhang Zhang
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 17, 645–661, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-645-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-645-2017, 2017
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OH reactivity was measured during a 1-month long campaign at a rural site in the North China Plain in 2014. OH reactivity measurements are compared to calculations using OH reactant measurements. Good agreement is found indicating that all important OH reactants were measured. In addition, the chemical OH budget is analyzed. In contrast to previous campaigns in China in 2006, no significant imbalance between OH production and destruction is found.
J. Kaiser, K. M. Skog, K. Baumann, S. B. Bertman, S. B. Brown, W. H. Brune, J. D. Crounse, J. A. de Gouw, E. S. Edgerton, P. A. Feiner, A. H. Goldstein, A. Koss, P. K. Misztal, T. B. Nguyen, K. F. Olson, J. M. St. Clair, A. P. Teng, S. Toma, P. O. Wennberg, R. J. Wild, L. Zhang, and F. N. Keutsch
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 16, 9349–9359, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-16-9349-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-16-9349-2016, 2016
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OH reactivity can be used to assess the amount of reactive carbon in an air mass. “Missing” reactivity is commonly found in forested environments and is attributed to either direct emissions of unmeasured volatile organic compounds or to unmeasured/underpredicted oxidation products. Using a box model and measurements from the 2013 SOAS campaign, we find only small discrepancies in measured and calculated reactivity. Our results suggest the discrepancies stem from unmeasured direct emissions.
Carsten Warneke, Michael Trainer, Joost A. de Gouw, David D. Parrish, David W. Fahey, A. R. Ravishankara, Ann M. Middlebrook, Charles A. Brock, James M. Roberts, Steven S. Brown, Jonathan A. Neuman, Brian M. Lerner, Daniel Lack, Daniel Law, Gerhard Hübler, Iliana Pollack, Steven Sjostedt, Thomas B. Ryerson, Jessica B. Gilman, Jin Liao, John Holloway, Jeff Peischl, John B. Nowak, Kenneth C. Aikin, Kyung-Eun Min, Rebecca A. Washenfelder, Martin G. Graus, Mathew Richardson, Milos Z. Markovic, Nick L. Wagner, André Welti, Patrick R. Veres, Peter Edwards, Joshua P. Schwarz, Timothy Gordon, William P. Dube, Stuart A. McKeen, Jerome Brioude, Ravan Ahmadov, Aikaterini Bougiatioti, Jack J. Lin, Athanasios Nenes, Glenn M. Wolfe, Thomas F. Hanisco, Ben H. Lee, Felipe D. Lopez-Hilfiker, Joel A. Thornton, Frank N. Keutsch, Jennifer Kaiser, Jingqiu Mao, and Courtney D. Hatch
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 9, 3063–3093, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-9-3063-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-9-3063-2016, 2016
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In this paper we describe the experimental approach, the science goals and early results of the NOAA SENEX campaign, which was focused on studying the interactions between biogenic and anthropogenic emissions to form secondary pollutants.
During SENEX, the NOAA WP-3D aircraft conducted 20 research flights between 27 May and 10 July 2013 based out of Smyrna, TN. The SENEX flights included day- and nighttime flights in the Southeast as well as flights over areas with intense shale gas extraction.
Paul S. Romer, Kaitlin C. Duffey, Paul J. Wooldridge, Hannah M. Allen, Benjamin R. Ayres, Steven S. Brown, William H. Brune, John D. Crounse, Joost de Gouw, Danielle C. Draper, Philip A. Feiner, Juliane L. Fry, Allen H. Goldstein, Abigail Koss, Pawel K. Misztal, Tran B. Nguyen, Kevin Olson, Alex P. Teng, Paul O. Wennberg, Robert J. Wild, Li Zhang, and Ronald C. Cohen
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 16, 7623–7637, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-16-7623-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-16-7623-2016, 2016
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The lifetime of nitrogen oxides (NOx) is evaluated by analysis of field measurements from the southeastern United States. At warm temperatures in the daytime boundary layer, NOx interconverts rapidly with both PAN and alkyl and multifunctional nitrates (RONO2), and the relevant lifetime is the combined lifetime of these three classes. We find that the production of RONO2, followed by hydrolysis to produce nitric acid, is the dominant pathway for NOx removal in an isoprene dominated forest.
Charles A. Brock, Nicholas L. Wagner, Bruce E. Anderson, Alexis R. Attwood, Andreas Beyersdorf, Pedro Campuzano-Jost, Annmarie G. Carlton, Douglas A. Day, Glenn S. Diskin, Timothy D. Gordon, Jose L. Jimenez, Daniel A. Lack, Jin Liao, Milos Z. Markovic, Ann M. Middlebrook, Nga L. Ng, Anne E. Perring, Matthews S. Richardson, Joshua P. Schwarz, Rebecca A. Washenfelder, Andre Welti, Lu Xu, Luke D. Ziemba, and Daniel M. Murphy
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 16, 4987–5007, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-16-4987-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-16-4987-2016, 2016
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Microscopic pollution particles make the atmosphere look hazy and also cool the earth by sending sunlight back to space. When the air is moist, these particles swell with water and scatter even more sunlight. We showed that particles formed from organic material – which dominates particulate pollution in the southeastern U.S. – does not take up water very effectively, toward the low end of most previous studies. We also found a better way to mathematically describe this swelling process.
Charles A. Brock, Nicholas L. Wagner, Bruce E. Anderson, Andreas Beyersdorf, Pedro Campuzano-Jost, Douglas A. Day, Glenn S. Diskin, Timothy D. Gordon, Jose L. Jimenez, Daniel A. Lack, Jin Liao, Milos Z. Markovic, Ann M. Middlebrook, Anne E. Perring, Matthews S. Richardson, Joshua P. Schwarz, Andre Welti, Luke D. Ziemba, and Daniel M. Murphy
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 16, 5009–5019, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-16-5009-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-16-5009-2016, 2016
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Two research aircraft made dozens of vertical profiles over rural areas in the southeastern US in summer 2013. These measurements show that, in addition to how much pollution was present and how moist the atmosphere was, the size of the pollutant particles affected how much sunlight was reflected back to space. These measurements will help climate modelers determine which characteristics of pollution are important to predict with accuracy.
Sean Coburn, Barbara Dix, Eric Edgerton, Christopher D. Holmes, Douglas Kinnison, Qing Liang, Arnout ter Schure, Siyuan Wang, and Rainer Volkamer
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 16, 3743–3760, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-16-3743-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-16-3743-2016, 2016
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Here we present a day of case study measurements of the vertical distribution of bromine monoxide over the coastal region of the Gulf of Mexico. These measurements are used to assess the contribution of bromine radicals to the oxidation of elemental mercury in the troposphere. We find that the measured levels of bromine in the troposphere are sufficient to quickly oxidize mercury, which has significant implications for our understanding of atmospheric mercury processes.
Bin Yuan, John Liggio, Jeremy Wentzell, Shao-Meng Li, Harald Stark, James M. Roberts, Jessica Gilman, Brian Lerner, Carsten Warneke, Rui Li, Amy Leithead, Hans D. Osthoff, Robert Wild, Steven S. Brown, and Joost A. de Gouw
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 16, 2139–2153, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-16-2139-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-16-2139-2016, 2016
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We describe high-resolution measurements of nitrated phenols using a time-of-flight chemical ionization mass spectrometer (ToF-CIMS). Strong diurnal profiles were observed for nitrated phenols, with concentration maxima at night. Box model simulations were able to reproduce the measured nitrated phenols.
K.-E. Min, R. A. Washenfelder, W. P. Dubé, A. O. Langford, P. M. Edwards, K. J. Zarzana, J. Stutz, K. Lu, F. Rohrer, Y. Zhang, and S. S. Brown
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 9, 423–440, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-9-423-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-9-423-2016, 2016
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We have developed a two-channel broadband cavity enhanced absorption spectrometer for field measurements of glyoxal, methylglyoxal, nitrous acid, nitrogen dioxide, and water. We have successfully deployed this instrument during two aircraft and two ground-based field campaigns. The demonstrated precision (2σ) for retrievals of CHOCHO, HONO, and NO2 are 34, 350, and 80 parts per trillion (pptv) in 5 s, with accuracy of 5.8, 9.0 and 5.0 %.
R. J. Wild, P. M. Edwards, T. S. Bates, R. C. Cohen, J. A. de Gouw, W. P. Dubé, J. B. Gilman, J. Holloway, J. Kercher, A. R. Koss, L. Lee, B. M. Lerner, R. McLaren, P. K. Quinn, J. M. Roberts, J. Stutz, J. A. Thornton, P. R. Veres, C. Warneke, E. Williams, C. J. Young, B. Yuan, K. J. Zarzana, and S. S. Brown
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 16, 573–583, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-16-573-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-16-573-2016, 2016
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High wintertime ozone levels have been observed in the Uintah Basin, Utah, a sparsely populated rural region with intensive oil and gas operations. The reactive nitrogen budget plays an important role in tropospheric ozone formation, and we find that nighttime chemistry has a large effect on its partitioning. Much of the oxidation of reactive nitrogen during a high-ozone year occurred via heterogeneous uptake onto aerosol at night, keeping NOx at concentrations comparable to a low-ozone year.
R. A. Washenfelder, A. R. Attwood, J. M. Flores, K. J. Zarzana, Y. Rudich, and S. S. Brown
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 9, 41–52, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-9-41-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-9-41-2016, 2016
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Formaldehyde is the most abundant aldehyde in the atmosphere and plays an important role in photochemistry. Broadband cavity-enhanced absorption spectroscopy uses a high finesse cavity to obtain effective path lengths of kilometers. We use a diode-pumped plasma lamp and custom cavity mirrors to extend this technique further into the ultraviolet spectral region, and we achieve detection limits of hundreds of parts per trillion in 1 min for formaldehyde and nitrogen dioxide.
B. R. Ayres, H. M. Allen, D. C. Draper, S. S. Brown, R. J. Wild, J. L. Jimenez, D. A. Day, P. Campuzano-Jost, W. Hu, J. de Gouw, A. Koss, R. C. Cohen, K. C. Duffey, P. Romer, K. Baumann, E. Edgerton, S. Takahama, J. A. Thornton, B. H. Lee, F. D. Lopez-Hilfiker, C. Mohr, P. O. Wennberg, T. B. Nguyen, A. Teng, A. H. Goldstein, K. Olson, and J. L. Fry
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 15, 13377–13392, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-13377-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-13377-2015, 2015
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This paper reports atmospheric gas- and aerosol-phase field measurements from the southeastern United States in summer 2013 to demonstrate that the oxidation of biogenic volatile organic compounds by nitrate radical produces a substantial amount of secondary organic aerosol in this region. This process, driven largely by monoterpenes, results in a comparable aerosol nitrate production rate to inorganic nitrate formation by heterogeneous uptake of HNO3 onto dust particles.
L. Lee, P. J. Wooldridge, J. deGouw, S. S. Brown, T. S. Bates, P. K. Quinn, and R. C. Cohen
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 15, 9313–9325, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-9313-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-9313-2015, 2015
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Secondary organic aerosol affects both the environment and human health. We characterized the aerosol composition in Uintah Basin by measuring the concentration of nitrooxy group moiety which is produced through chemical interaction of volatile organic compounds and NOx emitted largely from local human activity. We found nitrooxy compounds to be a persistent, if not dominant, portion of fine aerosol mass. Similar results may be expected from emissions due to traffic in cities.
P. R. Veres, J. M. Roberts, R. J. Wild, P. M. Edwards, S. S. Brown, T. S. Bates, P. K. Quinn, J. E. Johnson, R. J. Zamora, and J. de Gouw
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 15, 8101–8114, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-8101-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-8101-2015, 2015
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In this paper laboratory work is documented establishing iodide ion chemical ionization mass spectrometry (I- CIMS) as a sensitive method for the unambiguous detection of peroxynitric acid (HO2NO2; PNA). A dynamic calibration source for HO2NO2, HO2, and HONO was developed and calibrated using a novel total NOy detector (NOy CaRDS). The ambient observations of HO2NO2 using I- CIMS made during the 2013 and 2014 Uintah Basin Wintertime Ozone Study (UBWOS) are presented.
J. Kaiser, G. M. Wolfe, K. E. Min, S. S. Brown, C. C. Miller, D. J. Jacob, J. A. deGouw, M. Graus, T. F. Hanisco, J. Holloway, J. Peischl, I. B. Pollack, T. B. Ryerson, C. Warneke, R. A. Washenfelder, and F. N. Keutsch
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 15, 7571–7583, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-7571-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-7571-2015, 2015
N. L. Wagner, C. A. Brock, W. M. Angevine, A. Beyersdorf, P. Campuzano-Jost, D. Day, J. A. de Gouw, G. S. Diskin, T. D. Gordon, M. G. Graus, J. S. Holloway, G. Huey, J. L. Jimenez, D. A. Lack, J. Liao, X. Liu, M. Z. Markovic, A. M. Middlebrook, T. Mikoviny, J. Peischl, A. E. Perring, M. S. Richardson, T. B. Ryerson, J. P. Schwarz, C. Warneke, A. Welti, A. Wisthaler, L. D. Ziemba, and D. M. Murphy
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 15, 7085–7102, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-7085-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-7085-2015, 2015
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This paper investigates the summertime vertical profile of aerosol over the southeastern US using in situ measurements collected from aircraft. We use a vertical mixing model and measurements of CO to predict the vertical profile of aerosol that we would expect from vertical mixing alone and compare with the observed aerosol profile. We found a modest enhancement of aerosol in the cloudy transition layer during shallow cumulus convection and attribute the enhancement to local aerosol formation.
P. L. Hayes, A. G. Carlton, K. R. Baker, R. Ahmadov, R. A. Washenfelder, S. Alvarez, B. Rappenglück, J. B. Gilman, W. C. Kuster, J. A. de Gouw, P. Zotter, A. S. H. Prévôt, S. Szidat, T. E. Kleindienst, J. H. Offenberg, P. K. Ma, and J. L. Jimenez
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 15, 5773–5801, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-5773-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-5773-2015, 2015
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(1) Four different parameterizations for the formation and chemical evolution of secondary organic aerosol (SOA) are evaluated using a box model representing the Los Angeles region during the CalNex campaign.
(2) The SOA formed only from the oxidation of VOCs is insufficient to explain the observed SOA concentrations.
(3) The amount of SOA mass formed from diesel vehicle emissions is estimated to be 16-27%.
(4) Modeled SOA depends strongly on the P-S/IVOC volatility distribution.
A. R. Koss, J. de Gouw, C. Warneke, J. B. Gilman, B. M. Lerner, M. Graus, B. Yuan, P. Edwards, S. S. Brown, R. Wild, J. M. Roberts, T. S. Bates, and P. K. Quinn
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 15, 5727–5741, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-5727-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-5727-2015, 2015
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Extraction of natural gas and oil is associated with a range of possible atmospheric environmental issues. Here we present an analysis of gas-phase hydrocarbon measurements taken in an oil and natural gas extraction area in Utah during a period of high wintertime ozone. We are able to constrain important chemical parameters related to emission sources and rates, hydrocarbon photochemistry, and VOC composition.
P. A. Cleary, N. Fuhrman, L. Schulz, J. Schafer, J. Fillingham, H. Bootsma, J. McQueen, Y. Tang, T. Langel, S. McKeen, E. J. Williams, and S. S. Brown
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 15, 5109–5122, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-5109-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-5109-2015, 2015
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This study examines ozone mixing ratios over Lake Michigan as measured on the Lake Express ferry, by shoreline differential optical absorption spectroscopy (DOAS) observations in southeastern Wisconsin, and as predicted by the Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) model. Over water, ozone was determined to be an average of 3.8ppb higher than shoreline observations but overpredicted by the CMAQ model by as much as 11-16ppb midday.
B. Yuan, P. R. Veres, C. Warneke, J. M. Roberts, J. B. Gilman, A. Koss, P. M. Edwards, M. Graus, W. C. Kuster, S.-M. Li, R. J. Wild, S. S. Brown, W. P. Dubé, B. M. Lerner, E. J. Williams, J. E. Johnson, P. K. Quinn, T. S. Bates, B. Lefer, P. L. Hayes, J. L. Jimenez, R. J. Weber, R. Zamora, B. Ervens, D. B. Millet, B. Rappenglück, and J. A. de Gouw
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 15, 1975–1993, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-1975-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-1975-2015, 2015
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In this work, secondary formation of formic acid at an urban site and a site in an oil and gas production region is studied. We investigated various gas phase formation pathways of formic acid, including those recently proposed, using a box model. The contributions from aerosol-related processes, fog events and air-snow exchange to formic acid are also quantified.
R. Ahmadov, S. McKeen, M. Trainer, R. Banta, A. Brewer, S. Brown, P. M. Edwards, J. A. de Gouw, G. J. Frost, J. Gilman, D. Helmig, B. Johnson, A. Karion, A. Koss, A. Langford, B. Lerner, J. Olson, S. Oltmans, J. Peischl, G. Pétron, Y. Pichugina, J. M. Roberts, T. Ryerson, R. Schnell, C. Senff, C. Sweeney, C. Thompson, P. R. Veres, C. Warneke, R. Wild, E. J. Williams, B. Yuan, and R. Zamora
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 15, 411–429, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-411-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-411-2015, 2015
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High 2013 wintertime O3 pollution events associated with oil/gas production within the Uinta Basin are studied using a 3D model. It's able quantitatively to reproduce these events using emission estimates of O3 precursors based on ambient measurements (top-down approach), but unable to reproduce them using a recent bottom-up emission inventory for the oil/gas industry. The role of various physical and meteorological processes, chemical species and pathways contributing to high O3 are quantified.
C. Warneke, F. Geiger, P. M. Edwards, W. Dube, G. Pétron, J. Kofler, A. Zahn, S. S. Brown, M. Graus, J. B. Gilman, B. M. Lerner, J. Peischl, T. B. Ryerson, J. A. de Gouw, and J. M. Roberts
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 14, 10977–10988, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-14-10977-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-14-10977-2014, 2014
J. D. Fast, J. Allan, R. Bahreini, J. Craven, L. Emmons, R. Ferrare, P. L. Hayes, A. Hodzic, J. Holloway, C. Hostetler, J. L. Jimenez, H. Jonsson, S. Liu, Y. Liu, A. Metcalf, A. Middlebrook, J. Nowak, M. Pekour, A. Perring, L. Russell, A. Sedlacek, J. Seinfeld, A. Setyan, J. Shilling, M. Shrivastava, S. Springston, C. Song, R. Subramanian, J. W. Taylor, V. Vinoj, Q. Yang, R. A. Zaveri, and Q. Zhang
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 14, 10013–10060, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-14-10013-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-14-10013-2014, 2014
C. Knote, A. Hodzic, J. L. Jimenez, R. Volkamer, J. J. Orlando, S. Baidar, J. Brioude, J. Fast, D. R. Gentner, A. H. Goldstein, P. L. Hayes, W. B. Knighton, H. Oetjen, A. Setyan, H. Stark, R. Thalman, G. Tyndall, R. Washenfelder, E. Waxman, and Q. Zhang
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 14, 6213–6239, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-14-6213-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-14-6213-2014, 2014
T. P. Riedel, G. M. Wolfe, K. T. Danas, J. B. Gilman, W. C. Kuster, D. M. Bon, A. Vlasenko, S.-M. Li, E. J. Williams, B. M. Lerner, P. R. Veres, J. M. Roberts, J. S. Holloway, B. Lefer, S. S. Brown, and J. A. Thornton
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 14, 3789–3800, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-14-3789-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-14-3789-2014, 2014
C. J. Young, R. A. Washenfelder, P. M. Edwards, D. D. Parrish, J. B. Gilman, W. C. Kuster, L. H. Mielke, H. D. Osthoff, C. Tsai, O. Pikelnaya, J. Stutz, P. R. Veres, J. M. Roberts, S. Griffith, S. Dusanter, P. S. Stevens, J. Flynn, N. Grossberg, B. Lefer, J. S. Holloway, J. Peischl, T. B. Ryerson, E. L. Atlas, D. R. Blake, and S. S. Brown
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 14, 3427–3440, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-14-3427-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-14-3427-2014, 2014
C. L. Hagen, B. C. Lee, I. S. Franka, J. L. Rath, T. C. VandenBoer, J. M. Roberts, S. S. Brown, and A. P. Yalin
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 7, 345–357, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-7-345-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-7-345-2014, 2014
S. S. Brown, W. P. Dubé, R. Bahreini, A. M. Middlebrook, C. A. Brock, C. Warneke, J. A. de Gouw, R. A. Washenfelder, E. Atlas, J. Peischl, T. B. Ryerson, J. S. Holloway, J. P. Schwarz, R. Spackman, M. Trainer, D. D. Parrish, F. C. Fehshenfeld, and A. R. Ravishankara
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 13, 11317–11337, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-13-11317-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-13-11317-2013, 2013
U. S. Nair, Y. Wu, C. D. Holmes, A. Ter Schure, G. Kallos, and J. T. Walters
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 13, 10143–10157, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-13-10143-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-13-10143-2013, 2013
P. M. Edwards, C. J. Young, K. Aikin, J. deGouw, W. P. Dubé, F. Geiger, J. Gilman, D. Helmig, J. S. Holloway, J. Kercher, B. Lerner, R. Martin, R. McLaren, D. D. Parrish, J. Peischl, J. M. Roberts, T. B. Ryerson, J. Thornton, C. Warneke, E. J. Williams, and S. S. Brown
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 13, 8955–8971, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-13-8955-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-13-8955-2013, 2013
J. L. Fry, D. C. Draper, K. J. Zarzana, P. Campuzano-Jost, D. A. Day, J. L. Jimenez, S. S. Brown, R. C. Cohen, L. Kaser, A. Hansel, L. Cappellin, T. Karl, A. Hodzic Roux, A. Turnipseed, C. Cantrell, B. L. Lefer, and N. Grossberg
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 13, 8585–8605, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-13-8585-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-13-8585-2013, 2013
H.-P. Dorn, R. L. Apodaca, S. M. Ball, T. Brauers, S. S. Brown, J. N. Crowley, W. P. Dubé, H. Fuchs, R. Häseler, U. Heitmann, R. L. Jones, A. Kiendler-Scharr, I. Labazan, J. M. Langridge, J. Meinen, T. F. Mentel, U. Platt, D. Pöhler, F. Rohrer, A. A. Ruth, E. Schlosser, G. Schuster, A. J. L. Shillings, W. R. Simpson, J. Thieser, R. Tillmann, R. Varma, D. S. Venables, and A. Wahner
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 6, 1111–1140, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-6-1111-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-6-1111-2013, 2013
R. A. Washenfelder, J. M. Flores, C. A. Brock, S. S. Brown, and Y. Rudich
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 6, 861–877, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-6-861-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-6-861-2013, 2013
J. Brioude, W. M. Angevine, R. Ahmadov, S.-W. Kim, S. Evan, S. A. McKeen, E.-Y. Hsie, G. J. Frost, J. A. Neuman, I. B. Pollack, J. Peischl, T. B. Ryerson, J. Holloway, S. S. Brown, J. B. Nowak, J. M. Roberts, S. C. Wofsy, G. W. Santoni, T. Oda, and M. Trainer
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 13, 3661–3677, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-13-3661-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-13-3661-2013, 2013
D. A. Lack, R. Bahreini, J. M. Langridge, J. B. Gilman, and A. M. Middlebrook
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 13, 2415–2422, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-13-2415-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-13-2415-2013, 2013
Related subject area
Subject: Aerosols | Research Activity: Field Measurements | Altitude Range: Troposphere | Science Focus: Chemistry (chemical composition and reactions)
The critical role of aqueous-phase processes in aromatic-derived nitrogen-containing organic aerosol formation in cities with different energy consumption patterns
Characterization of atmospheric water-soluble brown carbon in the Athabasca oil sands region, Canada
Sensitivity of aerosol and cloud properties to coupling strength of marine boundary layer clouds over the northwest Atlantic
Burning conditions and transportation pathways determine biomass-burning aerosol properties in the Ascension Island marine boundary layer
Observations of high-time-resolution and size-resolved aerosol chemical composition and microphysics in the central Arctic: implications for climate-relevant particle properties
Measurement report: Brown carbon aerosol in rural Germany – sources, chemistry, and diurnal variations
Multiple eco-regions contribute to the seasonal cycle of Antarctic aerosol size distributions
Seasonal investigation of ultrafine-particle organic composition in an eastern Amazonian rainforest
High-resolution analyses of concentrations and sizes of refractory black carbon particles deposited in northwestern Greenland over the past 350 years – Part 2: Seasonal and temporal trends in refractory black carbon originated from fossil fuel combustion and biomass burning
Significant role of biomass burning in heavy haze formation in Nanjing, a megacity in China: molecular-level insights from intensive PM2.5 sampling on winter hazy days
Widespread trace bromine and iodine in remote tropospheric non-sea-salt aerosols
Formation and chemical evolution of secondary organic aerosol in two different environments: a dual-chamber study
Non biogenic source is an important but overlooked contributor to aerosol isoprene-derived organosulfates during winter in northern China
Technical note: Quantified organic aerosol subsaturated hygroscopicity by a simple optical scatter monitor system through field measurements
Measurement report: Oxidation potential of water-soluble aerosol components in the south and north of Beijing
Enhanced daytime secondary aerosol formation driven by gas–particle partitioning in downwind urban plumes
Understanding the mechanism and importance of brown carbon bleaching across the visible spectrum in biomass burning plumes from the WE-CAN campaign
Influence of terrestrial and marine air mass on the constituents and intermixing of bioaerosols over a coastal atmosphere
A multi-site passive approach to studying the emissions and evolution of smoke from prescribed fires
The annual cycle and sources of relevant aerosol precursor vapors in the central Arctic during the MOSAiC expedition
Measurement Report: Vertically resolved Atmospheric Properties Observed over the Southern Great Plains with Uncrewed Aerial System – ArcticShark
Opinion: How will advances in aerosol science inform our understanding of the health impacts of outdoor particulate pollution?
Measurement report: Intra-annual variability of black carbon and brown carbon and their interrelation with meteorological conditions over Gangtok, Sikkim
Long-range transport of air pollutants increases the concentration of hazardous components of PM2.5 in northern South America
Molecular characterization of organic aerosols in urban and forested areas of Paris using high resolution mass spectrometry
Dominant influence of biomass combustion and cross-border transport on nitrogen-containing organic compound levels in the southeastern Tibetan Plateau
Measurement report: Wintertime aerosol characterization at an urban traffic site in Helsinki Finland
Impacts of elevated anthropogenic emissions on physicochemical characteristics of black-carbon-containing particles over the Tibetan Plateau
Online characterization of primary and secondary emissions of particulate matter and acidic molecules from a modern fleet of city buses
Atmospheric evolution of environmentally persistent free radicals in the rural North China Plain: effects on water solubility and PM2.5 oxidative potential
Two distinct ship emission profiles for organic-sulfate source apportionment of PM in sulfur emission control areas
Automated compound speciation, cluster analysis, and quantification of organic vapors and aerosols using comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography and mass spectrometry
Marine Organic Aerosols at Mace Head: Effects from Phytoplankton and Source Region Variability
Measurement report: Occurrence of aminiums in PM2.5 during winter in China – aminium outbreak during polluted episodes and potential constraints
Bridging gas and aerosol properties between the northeastern US and Bermuda: analysis of eight transit flights
The behaviour of charged particles (ions) during new particle formation events in urban Leipzig, Germany
Formation of Highly Absorptive Secondary Brown Carbon Through Nighttime Multiphase Chemistry of Biomass Burning Emissions
Exploring the sources of light-absorbing carbonaceous aerosols by integrating observational and modeling results: insights from Northeast China
Measurement report: Characteristics of airborne black-carbon-containing particles during the 2021 summer COVID-19 lockdown in a typical Yangtze River Delta city, China
Aerosol optical properties within the atmospheric boundary layer predicted from ground-based observations compared to Raman lidar retrievals during RITA-2021
Hygroscopic growth and activation changed submicron aerosol composition and properties in the North China Plain
Measurement report: Formation of tropospheric brown carbon in a lifting air mass
Vertical variability of aerosol properties and trace gases over a remote marine region: a case study over Bermuda
Source apportionment and ecotoxicity of particulate pollution events in a Major Southern Hemisphere Megacity: influence of biomass burning and a biofuel impacted fleet
Differences in aerosol and cloud properties along the central California coast when winds change from northerly to southerly
International airport emissions and their impact on local air quality: chemical speciation of ambient aerosols at Madrid–Barajas Airport during the AVIATOR campaign
The local ship speed reduction effect on black carbon emissions measured at a remote marine station
High-altitude aerosol chemical characterization and source identification: insights from the CALISHTO campaign
Measurement report: Impact of emission control measures on environmental persistent free radicals and reactive oxygen species – a short-term case study in Beijing
Characterizing water solubility of fresh and aged secondary organic aerosol in PM2.5 with the stable carbon isotope technique
Yi-Jia Ma, Yu Xu, Ting Yang, Lin Gui, Hong-Wei Xiao, Hao Xiao, and Hua-Yun Xiao
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 2763–2780, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-2763-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-2763-2025, 2025
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The abundance, potential precursors, and main formation mechanisms of nitrogen-containing organic compounds (NOCs) in PM2.5 during winter were compared among cities with different energy consumption patterns. The aerosol NOC pollution during winter in China is closely associated with the intensity of precursor emissions and the aqueous-phase processes. Our results highlight the importance of emission reduction strategies in controlling aerosol NOCs pollution during winter in China.
Dane Blanchard, Mark Gordon, Duc Huy Dang, Paul Andrew Makar, and Julian Aherne
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 2423–2442, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-2423-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-2423-2025, 2025
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This study offers the first known evaluation of water-soluble brown carbon aerosols in the Athabasca oil sands region (AOSR), Canada. Fluorescence spectroscopy analysis of aerosol samples from five regional sites (collected during the summer of 2021) identified oil sands operations as a measurable brown carbon source. Industrial aerosol emissions were unlikely to impact regional radiative forcing. These findings show that fluorescence spectroscopy can be used to monitor brown carbon in the AOSR.
Kira Zeider, Kayla McCauley, Sanja Dmitrovic, Leong Wai Siu, Yonghoon Choi, Ewan C. Crosbie, Joshua P. DiGangi, Glenn S. Diskin, Simon Kirschler, John B. Nowak, Michael A. Shook, Kenneth L. Thornhill, Christiane Voigt, Edward L. Winstead, Luke D. Ziemba, Paquita Zuidema, and Armin Sorooshian
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 2407–2422, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-2407-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-2407-2025, 2025
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In situ aircraft data collected over the northwest Atlantic Ocean are utilized to compare aerosol conditions and turbulence between near-surface and below-cloud-base altitudes for different regimes of coupling strength between those two levels, along with how cloud microphysical properties vary across those regimes. Stronger coupling yields more homogenous aerosol structure vertically along with higher cloud drop concentrations and sea salt influence in clouds.
Amie Dobracki, Ernie R. Lewis, Arthur J. Sedlacek III, Tyler Tatro, Maria A. Zawadowicz, and Paquita Zuidema
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 2333–2363, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-2333-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-2333-2025, 2025
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Biomass-burning aerosol is commonly present in the marine boundary layer over the southeast Atlantic Ocean between June and October. Our research indicates that burning conditions, aerosol transport pathways, and prolonged oxidation processes (heterogeneous and aqueous phases) determine the chemical, microphysical, and optical properties of the boundary layer aerosol. Notably, we find that the aerosol optical properties can be estimated from the chemical properties alone.
Benjamin Heutte, Nora Bergner, Hélène Angot, Jakob B. Pernov, Lubna Dada, Jessica A. Mirrielees, Ivo Beck, Andrea Baccarini, Matthew Boyer, Jessie M. Creamean, Kaspar R. Daellenbach, Imad El Haddad, Markus M. Frey, Silvia Henning, Tiia Laurila, Vaios Moschos, Tuukka Petäjä, Kerri A. Pratt, Lauriane L. J. Quéléver, Matthew D. Shupe, Paul Zieger, Tuija Jokinen, and Julia Schmale
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 2207–2241, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-2207-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-2207-2025, 2025
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Limited aerosol measurements in the central Arctic hinder our understanding of aerosol–climate interactions in the region. Our year-long observations of aerosol physicochemical properties during the MOSAiC expedition reveal strong seasonal variations in aerosol chemical composition, where the short-term variability is heavily affected by storms in the Arctic. Local wind-generated particles are shown to be an important source of cloud seeds, especially in autumn.
Feng Jiang, Harald Saathoff, Uzoamaka Ezenobi, Junwei Song, Hengheng Zhang, Linyu Gao, and Thomas Leisner
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 1917–1930, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-1917-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-1917-2025, 2025
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The chemical composition of brown carbon in the particle and gas phase was determined by mass spectrometry. BrC in the gas phase was mainly controlled by secondary formation and particle-to-gas partitioning. BrC in the particle phase was mainly from secondary formation. This work helps to get a better understanding of diurnal variations and the sources of brown carbon aerosol at a rural location in central Europe.
James Brean, David C. S. Beddows, Eija Asmi, Aki Virkkula, Lauriane L. J. Quéléver, Mikko Sipilä, Floortje Van Den Heuvel, Thomas Lachlan-Cope, Anna Jones, Markus Frey, Angelo Lupi, Jiyeon Park, Young Jun Yoon, Rolf Weller, Giselle L. Marincovich, Gabriela C. Mulena, Roy M. Harrison, and Manuel Dall'Osto
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 1145–1162, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-1145-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-1145-2025, 2025
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Our results emphasise how understanding the geographical variation in surface types across the Antarctic is key to understanding secondary aerosol sources.
Adam E. Thomas, Hayley S. Glicker, Alex B. Guenther, Roger Seco, Oscar Vega Bustillos, Julio Tota, Rodrigo A. F. Souza, and James N. Smith
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 959–977, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-959-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-959-2025, 2025
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We present measurements of the organic composition of ultrafine particles collected from the eastern Amazon, an understudied region that is subjected to increasing human influence. We find that while isoprene chemistry is likely significant for ultrafine-particle growth throughout the year, compounds related to other sources, such as biological-spore emissions and biomass burning, exhibit striking seasonal differences, implying extensive variation in regional ultrafine-particle sources.
Kumiko Goto-Azuma, Yoshimi Ogawa-Tsukagawa, Kaori Fukuda, Koji Fujita, Motohiro Hirabayashi, Remi Dallmayr, Jun Ogata, Nobuhiro Moteki, Tatsuhiro Mori, Sho Ohata, Yutaka Kondo, Makoto Koike, Sumito Matoba, Moe Kadota, Akane Tsushima, Naoko Nagatsuka, and Teruo Aoki
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 657–683, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-657-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-657-2025, 2025
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Monthly ice core records spanning 350 years from Greenland show trends in refractory black carbon (rBC) concentrations and sizes. rBC levels have increased since the 1870s due to the inflow of anthropogenic rBC, with larger diameters than those from biomass burning (BB) rBC. High summer BB rBC peaks may reduce the ice sheet albedo, but BB rBC showed no increase until the early 2000s. These results are vital for validating aerosol and climate models.
Mingjie Kang, Mengying Bao, Wenhuai Song, Aduburexiati Abulimiti, Changliu Wu, Fang Cao, Sönke Szidat, and Yanlin Zhang
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 73–91, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-73-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-73-2025, 2025
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Reports on molecular-level knowledge of high-temporal-resolution particulate matter ≤2.5 µm in diameter (PM2.5) on hazy days are limited. We investigated various PM2.5 species and their sources. The results show biomass burning (BB) was the main source of organic carbon. Moreover, BB enhanced fungal spore emissions and secondary aerosol formation. The contribution of non-fossil sources increased with increasing haze pollution, suggesting BB may be an important driver of haze events in winter.
Gregory P. Schill, Karl D. Froyd, Daniel M. Murphy, Christina J. Williamson, Charles A. Brock, Tomás Sherwen, Mat J. Evans, Eric A. Ray, Eric C. Apel, Rebecca S. Hornbrook, Alan J. Hills, Jeff Peischl, Thomas B. Ryerson, Chelsea R. Thompson, Ilann Bourgeois, Donald R. Blake, Joshua P. DiGangi, and Glenn S. Diskin
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 45–71, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-45-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-45-2025, 2025
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Using single-particle mass spectrometry, we show that trace concentrations of bromine and iodine are ubiquitous in remote tropospheric aerosol and suggest that aerosols are an important part of the global reactive iodine budget. Comparisons to a global climate model with detailed iodine chemistry are favorable in the background atmosphere; however, the model cannot replicate our measurements near the ocean surface, in biomass burning plumes, and in the stratosphere.
Andreas Aktypis, Dontavious J. Sippial, Christina N. Vasilakopoulou, Angeliki Matrali, Christos Kaltsonoudis, Andrea Simonati, Marco Paglione, Matteo Rinaldi, Stefano Decesari, and Spyros N. Pandis
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 13769–13791, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-13769-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-13769-2024, 2024
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A dual-chamber system was deployed in two different environments (Po Valley, Italy, and Pertouli forest, Greece) to study the potential of ambient air directly injected into the chambers, to form secondary organic aerosol (SOA). In the Po Valley, the system reacts rapidly, forming large amounts of SOA, while in Pertouli the SOA formation chemistry appears to have been practically terminated before the beginning of most experiments, so there is little additional SOA formation potential left.
Ting Yang, Yu Xu, Yu-Chen Wang, Yi-Jia Ma, Hong-Wei Xiao, Hao Xiao, and Hua-Yun Xiao
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-3823, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-3823, 2024
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Previous measurement-model comparisons of atmospheric isoprene levels showed a significant unidentified source of isoprene in some northern Chinese cities during winter. Here, the first combination of large-scale observations and field combustion experiments provides novel insights into biomass burning emissions as a significant source of isoprene-derived organosulfates during winter in northern cities, China.
Jie Zhang, Tianyu Zhu, Alexandra Catena, Yaowei Li, Margaret J. Schwab, Pengfei Liu, Akua Asa-Awuku, and James Schwab
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 13445–13456, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-13445-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-13445-2024, 2024
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This study shows the derived organic aerosol hygroscopicity under high-humidity conditions based on a simple optical scatter monitor system, including two nephelometric monitors (pDR-1500), when the aerosol chemical composition is already known.
Wei Yuan, Ru-Jin Huang, Chao Luo, Lu Yang, Wenjuan Cao, Jie Guo, and Huinan Yang
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 13219–13230, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-13219-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-13219-2024, 2024
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We characterized water-soluble oxidative potential (OP) levels in wintertime PM2.5 in the south and north of Beijing. Our results show that the volume-normalized dithiothreitol (DTTv) in the north was comparable to that in the south, while the mass-normalized dithiothreitol (DTTm) in the north was almost twice that in the south. Traffic-related emissions and biomass burning were the main sources of DTTv in the south, and traffic-related emissions contributed the most to DTTv in the north.
Mingfu Cai, Chenshuo Ye, Bin Yuan, Shan Huang, E Zheng, Suxia Yang, Zelong Wang, Yi Lin, Tiange Li, Weiwei Hu, Wei Chen, Qicong Song, Wei Li, Yuwen Peng, Baoling Liang, Qibin Sun, Jun Zhao, Duohong Chen, Jiaren Sun, Zhiyong Yang, and Min Shao
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 13065–13079, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-13065-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-13065-2024, 2024
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This study investigated the daytime secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation in urban plumes. We observed a significant daytime SOA formation through gas–particle partitioning when the site was affected by urban plumes. A box model simulation indicated that urban pollutants (nitrogen oxide and volatile organic compounds) could enhance the oxidizing capacity, while the elevated volatile organic compounds were mainly responsible for promoting daytime SOA formation.
Yingjie Shen, Rudra P. Pokhrel, Amy P. Sullivan, Ezra J. T. Levin, Lauren A. Garofalo, Delphine K. Farmer, Wade Permar, Lu Hu, Darin W. Toohey, Teresa Campos, Emily V. Fischer, and Shane M. Murphy
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 12881–12901, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-12881-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-12881-2024, 2024
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The magnitude and evolution of brown carbon (BrC) absorption remain unclear, with uncertainty in climate models. Data from the WE-CAN airborne experiment show that model parameterizations overestimate the mass absorption cross section (MAC) of BrC. Observed decreases in BrC absorption with chemical markers are due to decreasing organic aerosol (OA) mass rather than a decreasing BrC MAC, which is currently implemented in models. Water-soluble BrC contributes 23 % of total absorption at 660 nm.
Qun He, Zhaowen Wang, Houfeng Liu, Pengju Xu, Rongbao Duan, Caihong Xu, Jianmin Chen, and Min Wei
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 12775–12792, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-12775-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-12775-2024, 2024
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Coastal environments provide an ideal setting for investigating the intermixing of terrestrial and marine aerosols. Terrestrial air mass constituted a larger number of microbes from anthropogenic and soil emissions, whereas saprophytic and gut microbes were predominant in marine samples. Mixed air masses indicated a fusion of marine and terrestrial aerosols, characterized by alterations in the ratio of pathogenic and saprophytic microbes when compared to either terrestrial or marine samples.
Rime El Asmar, Zongrun Li, David J. Tanner, Yongtao Hu, Susan O'Neill, L. Gregory Huey, M. Talat Odman, and Rodney J. Weber
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 12749–12773, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-12749-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-12749-2024, 2024
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Prescribed burning is an important method for managing ecosystems and preventing wildfires. However, smoke from prescribed fires can have a significant impact on air quality. Here, using a network of fixed sites and sampling throughout an extended prescribed burning period in 2 different years, we characterize emissions and evolutions of up to 8 h of PM2.5 mass, black carbon (BC), and brown carbon (BrC) in smoke from burning of forested lands in the southeastern USA.
Matthew Boyer, Diego Aliaga, Lauriane L. J. Quéléver, Silvia Bucci, Hélène Angot, Lubna Dada, Benjamin Heutte, Lisa Beck, Marina Duetsch, Andreas Stohl, Ivo Beck, Tiia Laurila, Nina Sarnela, Roseline C. Thakur, Branka Miljevic, Markku Kulmala, Tuukka Petäjä, Mikko Sipilä, Julia Schmale, and Tuija Jokinen
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 12595–12621, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-12595-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-12595-2024, 2024
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We analyze the seasonal cycle and sources of gases that are relevant for the formation of aerosol particles in the central Arctic. Since theses gases can form new particles, they can influence Arctic climate. We show that the sources of these gases are associated with changes in the Arctic environment during the year, especially with respect to sea ice. Therefore, the concentration of these gases will likely change in the future as the Arctic continues to warm.
Fan Mei, Qi Zhang, Damao Zhang, Jerome Fast, Gourihar Kulkarni, Mikhail Pekour, Christopher Niedek, Susanne Glienke, Isarel Silber, Beat Schmid, Jason Tomlinson, Hardeep Mehta, Xena Mansoura, Zezhen Cheng, Gregory Vandergrift, Nurun Nahar Lata, Swarup China, and Zihua Zhu
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-3089, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-3089, 2024
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This study highlights the unique capability of the ArcticShark UAS in measuring vertically resolved atmospheric properties over the Southern Great Plains. Data from 32 research flights in 2023 reveal seasonal patterns and correlations with conventional measurements. The consistency and complementarity of in situ and remote sensing methods are highlighted. The study demonstrates the ArcticShark’s versatility in bridging data gaps and improving the understanding of vertical atmospheric structures.
Imad El Haddad, Danielle Vienneau, Kaspar R. Daellenbach, Robin Modini, Jay G. Slowik, Abhishek Upadhyay, Petros N. Vasilakos, David Bell, Kees de Hoogh, and Andre S. H. Prevot
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 11981–12011, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-11981-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-11981-2024, 2024
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This opinion paper explores how advances in aerosol science inform our understanding of the health impacts of outdoor particulate pollution. We advocate for a shift in the way we target PM pollution, focusing on the most harmful anthropogenic emissions. We highlight key observations, modelling developments, and emission measurements needed to achieve this shift.
Pramod Kumar, Khushboo Sharma, Ankita Malu, Rajeev Rajak, Aparna Gupta, Bidyutjyoti Baruah, Shailesh Yadav, Thupstan Angchuk, Jayant Sharma, Rakesh Kumar Ranjan, Anil Kumar Misra, and Nishchal Wanjari
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 11585–11601, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-11585-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-11585-2024, 2024
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This work monitors and assesses air pollution, especially black and brown carbon, its controlling factor, and its effect on the environment of Sikkim Himalayan region. The huge urban sprawl in recent decades has led to regional human-induced air pollution in the region. Black carbon was highest in April 2021 and March 2022, exceeding the WHO limit. The monsoon season causes huge rainfall over the region, which reduces the pollutants by scavenging (rainout and washout).
Maria P. Velásquez-García, K. Santiago Hernández, James A. Vergara-Correa, Richard J. Pope, Miriam Gómez-Marín, and Angela M. Rendón
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 11497–11520, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-11497-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-11497-2024, 2024
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In the Aburrá Valley, northern South America, local emissions determine air quality conditions. However, we found that external sources, such as regional fires, Saharan dust, and volcanic emissions, increase particulate concentrations and worsen chemical composition by introducing elements like heavy metals. Dry winds and source variability contribute to seasonal influences on these events. This study assesses the air quality risks posed by such events, which can affect broad regions worldwide.
Diana L. Pereira, Chiara Giorio, Aline Gratien, Alexander Zherebker, Gael Noyalet, Servanne Chevaillier, Stéphanie Alage, Elie Almarj, Antonin Bergé, Thomas Bertin, Mathieu Cazaunau, Patrice Coll, Ludovico Di Antonio, Sergio Harb, Johannes Heuser, Cécile Gaimoz, Oscar Guillemant, Brigitte Language, Olivier Lauret, Camilo Macias, Franck Maisonneuve, Bénédicte Picquet-Varrault, Raquel Torres, Sylvain Triquet, Pascal Zapf, Lelia Hawkins, Drew Pronovost, Sydney Riley, Pierre-Marie Flaud, Emilie Perraudin, Pauline Pouyes, Eric Villenave, Alexandre Albinet, Olivier Favez, Robin Aujay-Plouzeau, Vincent Michoud, Christopher Cantrell, Manuela Cirtog, Claudia Di Biagio, Jean-François Doussin, and Paola Formenti
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-3015, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-3015, 2024
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In order to study aerosols in environments influenced by anthropogenic and biogenic emissions, we performed analysis of samples collected during ACROSS (Atmospheric Chemistry Of the Suburban Forest) campaign in the summer 2022 in the Paris greater area. After analysis of the chemical composition by means of total carbon determination and high resolution mass spectrometry, this work highlights the influence of anthropogenic inputs into the chemical composition of both urban and forested areas.
Meng Wang, Qiyuan Wang, Steven Sai Hang Ho, Jie Tian, Yong Zhang, Shun-cheng Lee, and Junji Cao
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 11175–11189, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-11175-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-11175-2024, 2024
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We studied nitrogen-containing organic compounds (NOCs) in particulate matter <2.5 µm particles on the southeastern Tibetan Plateau. We found that biomass burning and transboundary transport are the main sources of NOCs in the high-altitude area. Understanding these aerosol sources informs how they add to regional and potentially global climate changes. Our findings could help shape effective environmental policies to enhance air quality and address climate impacts in this sensitive region.
Kimmo Teinilä, Sanna Saarikoski, Henna Lintusaari, Teemu Lepistö, Petteri Marjanen, Minna Aurela, Heidi Hellén, Toni Tykkä, Markus Lampimäki, Janne Lampilahti, Luis Barreira, Timo Mäkelä, Leena Kangas, Juha Hatakka, Sami Harni, Joel Kuula, Jarkko V. Niemi, Harri Portin, Jaakko Yli-Ojanperä, Ville Niemelä, Milja Jäppi, Katrianne Lehtipalo, Joonas Vanhanen, Liisa Pirjola, Hanna E. Manninen, Tuukka Petäjä, Topi Rönkkö, and Hilkka Timonen
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2235, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2235, 2024
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Physical and chemical properties of particulate matter and concentrations of trace gases were measured in a street canyon in Helsinki, Finland and an urban background site in January–February 2022 to investigate the effect of wintertime conditions on pollutants. State-of-the-art instruments, a mobile laboratory was used, and the measurement data was further analysed with modelling tools like positive matrix factorization (PMF) and pollution detection algorithm (PDA).
Jinbo Wang, Jiaping Wang, Yuxuan Zhang, Tengyu Liu, Xuguang Chi, Xin Huang, Dafeng Ge, Shiyi Lai, Caijun Zhu, Lei Wang, Qiaozhi Zha, Ximeng Qi, Wei Nie, Congbin Fu, and Aijun Ding
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 11063–11080, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-11063-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-11063-2024, 2024
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In this study, we found large spatial discrepancies in the physical and chemical properties of black carbon over the Tibetan Plateau (TP). Elevated anthropogenic emissions from low-altitude regions can significantly change the mass concentration, mixing state and chemical composition of black-carbon-containing aerosol in the TP region, further altering its light absorption ability. Our study emphasizes the vulnerability of remote plateau regions to intense anthropogenic influences.
Liyuan Zhou, Qianyun Liu, Christian M. Salvador, Michael Le Breton, Mattias Hallquist, Jian Zhen Yu, Chak K. Chan, and Åsa M. Hallquist
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 11045–11061, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-11045-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-11045-2024, 2024
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Our research on city bus emissions reveals that alternative fuels (compressed natural gas and biofuels) reduce fresh particle emissions compared to diesel. However, all fuels lead to secondary air pollution. Aiming at guiding better environmental policies, we studied 76 buses using advanced emission measurement techniques. This work sheds light on the complex effects of bus fuels on urban air quality, emphasizing the need for comprehensive evaluations of future transportation technologies.
Xu Yang, Fobang Liu, Shuqi Yang, Yuling Yang, Yanan Wang, Jingjing Li, Mingyu Zhao, Zhao Wang, Kai Wang, Chi He, and Haijie Tong
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 11029–11043, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-11029-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-11029-2024, 2024
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A study in the rural North China Plain showed environmentally persistent free radicals (EPFRs) in atmospheric particulate matter (PM), with a notable water-soluble fraction likely from atmospheric oxidation during transport. Significant positive correlations between EPFRs and the water-soluble oxidative potential of PM2.5 were found, primarily attributable to the water-soluble fractions of EPFRs. These findings emphasize understanding EPFRs' atmospheric evolution for climate and health impacts.
Kirsten N. Fossum, Chunshui Lin, Niall O'Sullivan, Lu Lei, Stig Hellebust, Darius Ceburnis, Aqeel Afzal, Anja Tremper, David Green, Srishti Jain, Steigvilė Byčenkienė, Colin O'Dowd, John Wenger, and Jurgita Ovadnevaite
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 10815–10831, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-10815-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-10815-2024, 2024
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The chemical composition and sources of submicron aerosol in the Dublin Port area were investigated over a month-long campaign. Two distinct types of ship emissions were identified and characterised: sulfate-rich plumes from the use of heavy fuel oil with scrubbers and organic-rich plumes from the use of low-sulfur fuels. The latter were more frequent, emitting double the particle number and having a typical V / Ni ratio for ship emission.
Xiao He, Xuan Zheng, Shuwen Guo, Lewei Zeng, Ting Chen, Bohan Yang, Shupei Xiao, Qiongqiong Wang, Zhiyuan Li, Yan You, Shaojun Zhang, and Ye Wu
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 10655–10666, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-10655-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-10655-2024, 2024
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This study introduces an innovative method for identifying and quantifying complex organic vapors and aerosols. By combining advanced analytical techniques and new algorithms, we categorized thousands of compounds from heavy-duty diesel vehicles and ambient air and highlighted specific tracers for emission sources. The innovative approach enhances peak identification, reduces quantification uncertainties, and offers new insights for air quality management and atmospheric chemistry.
Emmanuel Chevassus, Kirsten N. Fossum, Darius Ceburnis, Lu Lei, Chunshui Lin, Wei Xu, Colin D. O’ Dowd, and Jurgita Ovadnevaite
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2890, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2890, 2024
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This study presents the first source apportionment of OA at Mace Head via high-resolution mass spectrometry. Introducing transfer entropy as a novel method reveals that aged OA originate from open ocean ozonolysis and local peat burning oxidation. Methanesulphonic acid OA and primary marine OA both mirror phytoplankton activity as observed with their chemical makeup, with MSA-OA closely tied to coccolithophore blooms and PMOA linked to diatoms, chlorophytes, and cyanobacteria.
Yu Xu, Tang Liu, Yi-Jia Ma, Qi-Bin Sun, Hong-Wei Xiao, Hao Xiao, Hua-Yun Xiao, and Cong-Qiang Liu
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 10531–10542, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-10531-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-10531-2024, 2024
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This study investigates the characteristics of aminiums and ammonium in PM2.5 on clean and polluted winter days in 11 Chinese cities, highlighting the possibility of the competitive uptake of ammonia versus amines on acidic aerosols or the displacement of aminiums by ammonia under high-ammonia conditions. The overall results deepen the understanding of the spatiotemporal differences in aminium characteristics and formation in China.
Cassidy Soloff, Taiwo Ajayi, Yonghoon Choi, Ewan C. Crosbie, Joshua P. DiGangi, Glenn S. Diskin, Marta A. Fenn, Richard A. Ferrare, Francesca Gallo, Johnathan W. Hair, Miguel Ricardo A. Hilario, Simon Kirschler, Richard H. Moore, Taylor J. Shingler, Michael A. Shook, Kenneth L. Thornhill, Christiane Voigt, Edward L. Winstead, Luke D. Ziemba, and Armin Sorooshian
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 10385–10408, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-10385-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-10385-2024, 2024
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Using aircraft measurements over the northwestern Atlantic between the US East Coast and Bermuda and trajectory modeling of continental outflow, we identify trace gas and particle properties that exhibit gradients with offshore distance and quantify these changes with high-resolution measurements of concentrations and particle chemistry, size, and scattering properties. This work furthers our understanding of the complex interactions between continental and marine environments.
Alex Rowell, James Brean, David C. S. Beddows, Zongbo Shi, Avinash Kumar, Matti Rissanen, Miikka Dal Maso, Peter Mettke, Kay Weinhold, Maik Merkel, and Roy M. Harrison
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 10349–10361, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-10349-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-10349-2024, 2024
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Ions enhance the formation and growth rates of new particles, affecting the Earth's radiation budget. Despite these effects, there is little published data exploring the sources of ions in the urban environment and their role in new particle formation (NPF). Here we show that natural ion sources dominate in urban environments, while traffic is a secondary source. Ions contribute up to 12.7 % of the formation rate of particles, indicating that they are important for forming urban PM.
Ye Kuang, Biao Luo, Shan Huang, Junwen Liu, Weiwei Hu, Yuweng Peng, Duohong Chen, Dingli Yue, Wanyun Xu, Bin Yuan, and Min Shao
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2654, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2654, 2024
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This research reveals the potential importance of nighttime NO3 radical chemistry and aerosol water in the rapid formation of secondary brown carbon from biomass burning emissions. The findings enhance our understanding of nighttime biomass burning evolution and its implications for climate and regional air quality, especially regarding interactions with aerosol water and water-rich fogs and clouds.
Yuan Cheng, Xu-bing Cao, Sheng-qiang Zhu, Zhi-qing Zhang, Jiu-meng Liu, Hong-liang Zhang, Qiang Zhang, and Ke-bin He
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 9869–9883, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-9869-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-9869-2024, 2024
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The agreement between observational and modeling results is essential for the development of efficient air pollution control strategies. Here we constrained the modeling results of carbonaceous aerosols by field observation in Northeast China, a historically overlooked but recently targeted region of national clean-air actions. Our study suggested that the simulation of agricultural fire emissions and secondary organic aerosols remains challenging.
Yuan Dai, Junfeng Wang, Houjun Wang, Shijie Cui, Yunjiang Zhang, Haiwei Li, Yun Wu, Ming Wang, Eleonora Aruffo, and Xinlei Ge
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 9733–9748, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-9733-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-9733-2024, 2024
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Short-term strict emission control can improve air quality, but its effectiveness needs assessment. During the 2021 summer COVID-19 lockdown in Yangzhou, we found that PM2.5 levels did not decrease despite reduced primary emissions. Aged black-carbon particles increased substantially due to higher O3 levels and transported pollutants. High humidity and low wind also played key roles. The results highlight the importance of a regionally balanced control strategy for future air quality management.
Xinya Liu, Diego Alves Gouveia, Bas Henzing, Arnoud Apituley, Arjan Hensen, Danielle van Dinther, Rujin Huang, and Ulrike Dusek
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 9597–9614, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-9597-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-9597-2024, 2024
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The vertical distribution of aerosol optical properties is important for their effect on climate. This is usually measured by lidar, which has limitations, most notably the assumption of a lidar ratio. Our study shows that routine surface-level aerosol measurements are able to predict this lidar ratio reasonably well within the lower layers of the atmosphere and thus provide a relatively simple and cost-effective method to improve lidar measurements.
Weiqi Xu, Ye Kuang, Wanyun Xu, Zhiqiang Zhang, Biao Luo, Xiaoyi Zhang, Jiangchuang Tao, Hongqin Qiao, Li Liu, and Yele Sun
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 9387–9399, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-9387-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-9387-2024, 2024
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We deployed an advanced aerosol–fog sampling system at a rural site in the North China Plain to investigate impacts of aerosol hygroscopic growth and activation on the physicochemical properties of submicron aerosols. Observed results highlighted remarkably different aqueous processing of primary and secondary submicron aerosol components under distinct ambient relative humidity (RH) conditions and that RH levels significantly impact aerosol sampling through the aerosol swelling effect.
Can Wu, Xiaodi Liu, Ke Zhang, Si Zhang, Cong Cao, Jianjun Li, Rui Li, Fan Zhang, and Gehui Wang
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 9263–9275, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-9263-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-9263-2024, 2024
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Brown carbon (BrC) is prevalent in the troposphere and can efficiently absorb solar and terrestrial radiation. Our observations show that the enhanced light absorption of BrC relative to black carbon at the tropopause can be attributed to the formation of nitrogen-containing organic compounds through the aqueous-phase reactions of carbonyls with ammonium.
Taiwo Ajayi, Yonghoon Choi, Ewan C. Crosbie, Joshua P. DiGangi, Glenn S. Diskin, Marta A. Fenn, Richard A. Ferrare, Johnathan W. Hair, Miguel Ricardo A. Hilario, Chris A. Hostetler, Simon Kirschler, Richard H. Moore, Taylor J. Shingler, Michael A. Shook, Cassidy Soloff, Kenneth L. Thornhill, Christiane Voigt, Edward L. Winstead, Luke D. Ziemba, and Armin Sorooshian
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 9197–9218, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-9197-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-9197-2024, 2024
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This study uses airborne data to examine vertical profiles of trace gases, aerosol particles, and meteorological variables over a remote marine area (Bermuda). Results show distinct differences based on both air mass source region (North America, Ocean, Caribbean/North Africa) and altitude for a given air mass type. This work highlights the sensitivity of remote marine areas to long-range transport and the importance of considering the vertical dependence of trace gas and aerosol properties.
Guilherme Martins Pereira, Leonardo Yoshiaki Kamigauti, Rubens Fabio Pereira, Djacinto Monteiro dos Santos, Thayná da Silva Santos, José Vinicius Martins, Célia Alves, Cátia Gonçalves, Ismael Casotti Rienda, Nora Kováts, Thiago Nogueira, Luciana Rizzo, Paulo Artaxo, Regina Maura de Miranda, Marcia Akemi Yamasoe, Edmilson Dias de Freitas, Pérola de Castro Vasconcellos, and Maria de Fatima Andrade
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2212, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2212, 2024
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The chemical composition of fine particulate matter was studied in the megacity of São Paulo (Brazil) during a polluted period. Vehicular-related sources were dominant; however, a high contribution of biomass burning was observed and correlated with sample ecotoxicity. Emerging biomass burning sources, such as forest fires and sugarcane bagasse-based power plants, highlight the need for additional control measures alongside stricter rules concerning vehicular emissions.
Kira Zeider, Grace Betito, Anthony Bucholtz, Peng Xian, Annette Walker, and Armin Sorooshian
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 9059–9083, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-9059-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-9059-2024, 2024
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The predominant wind direction along the California coast (northerly) reverses several times during the summer (to southerly). The effects of these wind reversals on aerosol and cloud characteristics are not well understood. Using data from multiple datasets we found that southerly flow periods had enhanced signatures of anthropogenic emissions due to shipping and continental sources, and clouds had more but smaller droplets.
Saleh Alzahrani, Doğuşhan Kılıç, Michael Flynn, Paul I. Williams, and James Allan
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 9045–9058, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-9045-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-9045-2024, 2024
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This paper investigates emissions from aviation activities at an international airport to evaluate their impact on local air quality. The study provides detailed insights into the chemical composition of aerosols and key pollutants in the airport environment. Source apportionment analysis using positive matrix factorisation (PMF) identified three significant sources: less oxidised oxygenated organic aerosol, alkane organic aerosol, and more oxidised oxygenated organic aerosol.
Mikko Heikkilä, Krista Luoma, Timo Mäkelä, and Tiia Grönholm
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 8927–8941, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-8927-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-8927-2024, 2024
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Black carbon (BC) concentration was measured from 211 ship exhaust gas plumes at a remote marine station. Emission factors of BC were calculated in grams per kilogram of fuel. Ships with an exhaust gas cleaning system (EGCS) were found to have median BC emissions per fuel consumed 5 times lower than ships without an EGCS. However, this might be because of non-EGCS ships running at low engine loads rather than the EGCS itself. A local speed restriction would increase BC emissions of ships.
Olga Zografou, Maria Gini, Prodromos Fetfatzis, Konstantinos Granakis, Romanos Foskinis, Manousos Ioannis Manousakas, Fotios Tsopelas, Evangelia Diapouli, Eleni Dovrou, Christina N. Vasilakopoulou, Alexandros Papayannis, Spyros N. Pandis, Athanasios Nenes, and Konstantinos Eleftheriadis
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 8911–8926, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-8911-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-8911-2024, 2024
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Characterization of PM1 and positive matrix factorization (PMF) source apportionment of organic and inorganic fractions were conducted at the high-altitude station (HAC)2. Cloud presence reduced PM1, affecting sulfate more than organics. Free-troposphere (FT) conditions showed more black carbon (eBC) than planetary boundary layer (PBL) conditions.
Yuanyuan Qin, Xinghua Zhang, Wei Huang, Juanjuan Qin, Xiaoyu Hu, Yuxuan Cao, Tianyi Zhao, Yang Zhang, Jihua Tan, Ziyin Zhang, Xinming Wang, and Zhenzhen Wang
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 8737–8750, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-8737-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-8737-2024, 2024
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Environmental persistent free radicals (EPFRs) and reactive oxygen species (ROSs) play an active role in the atmosphere. Despite control measures having effectively reduced their emissions, reductions were less than in PM2.5. Emission control measures performed well in achieving Parade Blue, but reducing the impact of the atmosphere on human health remains challenging. Thus, there is a need to reassess emission control measures to better address the challenges posed by EPFRs and ROSs.
Fenghua Wei, Xing Peng, Liming Cao, Mengxue Tang, Ning Feng, Xiaofeng Huang, and Lingyan He
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 8507–8518, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-8507-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-8507-2024, 2024
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The water solubility of secondary organic aerosols (SOAs) is a crucial factor in determining their hygroscopicity and climatic impact. Stable carbon isotope and mass spectrometry techniques were combined to assess the water solubility of SOAs with different aging degrees in a coastal megacity in China. This work revealed a much higher water-soluble fraction of aged SOA compared to fresh SOA, indicating that the aging degree of SOA has considerable impacts on its water solubility.
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Short summary
We present a molecular size-resolved offline analysis of water-soluble brown carbon collected on an aircraft during FIREX-AQ. The smoke plumes were aged 0 to 5 h, where absorption was dominated by small molecular weight molecules, brown carbon absorption downwind did not consistently decrease, and the measurements differed from online absorption measurements of the same samples. We show how differences between online and offline absorption could be related to different measurement conditions.
We present a molecular size-resolved offline analysis of water-soluble brown carbon collected on...
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