Atmospheric emissions from oil sands development and their transport, transformation and deposition (ACP/AMT inter-journal SI)(ACP/AMT inter-journal SI)
Atmospheric emissions from oil sands development and their transport, transformation and deposition (ACP/AMT inter-journal SI)(ACP/AMT inter-journal SI)
Editor(s): J. W. Bottenheim, J. G. Murphy, J. Liggio, J. Brook, S.-M. Li, and R. Martin Special issue jointly organized between Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics and Atmospheric Measurement Techniques
The oil sands of Alberta, Canada, are of international interest due to the potential environmental impacts, from local to global scales, of their extraction and processing to provide non-conventional fossil fuels to consumers in North America and globally. The governments of Canada and the province of Alberta launched the Joint Oil Sands Monitoring (JOSM) program in 2012 to help address knowledge gaps regarding long-term cumulative effects of oil sands' development and production. JOSM is a regionally focused program; however, the knowledge gained is applicable to extra heavy oil production elsewhere, given the large known global reserves of heavy oil and bitumen.

The purpose of this special issue is to bring together the scientific results of atmospheric-related JOSM studies, which have been largely conducted since 2013, although some of the potential papers could involve data obtained in earlier years. Other submissions within this scope could also be considered. The results would be derived from measurements from the ground as well as aircraft and satellite overpasses. Applications and evaluations of high-resolution modeling will also be part of this research portfolio. While the studies are to be focused on emissions and ambient levels, as well as deposition, with regard to the oil sands region in Alberta, and therefore referring particularly to conditions in that area, results will have a broader relevance scientifically. This ranges from evaluation of new satellite retrievals, new trace gas and aerosol measurement methods and techniques for source apportionment and emission inventory evaluation, to process studies of deposition, secondary air pollutant formation (gas and particle) and black carbon coating and light absorption.

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02 Oct 2019
A large contribution of anthropogenic organo-nitrates to secondary organic aerosol in the Alberta oil sands
Alex K. Y. Lee, Max G. Adam, John Liggio, Shao-Meng Li, Kun Li, Megan D. Willis, Jonathan P. D. Abbatt, Travis W. Tokarek, Charles A. Odame-Ankrah, Hans D. Osthoff, Kevin Strawbridge, and Jeffery R. Brook
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 19, 12209–12219, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-12209-2019,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-12209-2019, 2019
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19 Dec 2018
A fully autonomous ozone, aerosol and nighttime water vapor lidar: a synergistic approach to profiling the atmosphere in the Canadian oil sands region
Kevin B. Strawbridge, Michael S. Travis, Bernard J. Firanski, Jeffrey R. Brook, Ralf Staebler, and Thierry Leblanc
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 11, 6735–6759, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-6735-2018,https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-6735-2018, 2018
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14 Dec 2018
Principal component analysis of summertime ground site measurements in the Athabasca oil sands with a focus on analytically unresolved intermediate-volatility organic compounds
Travis W. Tokarek, Charles A. Odame-Ankrah, Jennifer A. Huo, Robert McLaren, Alex K. Y. Lee, Max G. Adam, Megan D. Willis, Jonathan P. D. Abbatt, Cristian Mihele, Andrea Darlington, Richard L. Mittermeier, Kevin Strawbridge, Katherine L. Hayden, Jason S. Olfert, Elijah G. Schnitzler, Duncan K. Brownsey, Faisal V. Assad, Gregory R. Wentworth, Alex G. Tevlin, Douglas E. J. Worthy, Shao-Meng Li, John Liggio, Jeffrey R. Brook, and Hans D. Osthoff
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 17819–17841, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-17819-2018,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-17819-2018, 2018
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12 Oct 2018
A comparison of plume rise algorithms to stack plume measurements in the Athabasca oil sands
Mark Gordon, Paul A. Makar, Ralf M. Staebler, Junhua Zhang, Ayodeji Akingunola, Wanmin Gong, and Shao-Meng Li
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 14695–14714, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-14695-2018,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-14695-2018, 2018
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25 Sep 2018
Improving air quality model predictions of organic species using measurement-derived organic gaseous and particle emissions in a petrochemical-dominated region
Craig A. Stroud, Paul A. Makar, Junhua Zhang, Michael D. Moran, Ayodeji Akingunola, Shao-Meng Li, Amy Leithead, Katherine Hayden, and May Siu
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 13531–13545, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-13531-2018,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-13531-2018, 2018
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23 Jul 2018
Emissions preparation and analysis for multiscale air quality modeling over the Athabasca Oil Sands Region of Alberta, Canada
Junhua Zhang, Michael D. Moran, Qiong Zheng, Paul A. Makar, Pegah Baratzadeh, George Marson, Peter Liu, and Shao-Meng Li
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 10459–10481, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-10459-2018,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-10459-2018, 2018
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13 Jul 2018
Estimates of exceedances of critical loads for acidifying deposition in Alberta and Saskatchewan
Paul A. Makar, Ayodeji Akingunola, Julian Aherne, Amanda S. Cole, Yayne-abeba Aklilu, Junhua Zhang, Isaac Wong, Katherine Hayden, Shao-Meng Li, Jane Kirk, Ken Scott, Michael D. Moran, Alain Robichaud, Hazel Cathcart, Pegah Baratzedah, Balbir Pabla, Philip Cheung, Qiong Zheng, and Dean S. Jeffries
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 9897–9927, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-9897-2018,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-9897-2018, 2018
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29 Jun 2018
Comparison of polycyclic aromatic compounds in air measured by conventional passive air samplers and passive dry deposition samplers and contributions from petcoke and oil sands ore
Narumol Jariyasopit, Yifeng Zhang, Jonathan W. Martin, and Tom Harner
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 9161–9171, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-9161-2018,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-9161-2018, 2018
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28 Jun 2018
Airborne lidar measurements of aerosol and ozone above the Canadian oil sands region
Monika Aggarwal, James Whiteway, Jeffrey Seabrook, Lawrence Gray, Kevin Strawbridge, Peter Liu, Jason O'Brien, Shao-Meng Li, and Robert McLaren
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 11, 3829–3849, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-3829-2018,https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-3829-2018, 2018
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20 Jun 2018
A chemical transport model study of plume-rise and particle size distribution for the Athabasca oil sands
Ayodeji Akingunola, Paul A. Makar, Junhua Zhang, Andrea Darlington, Shao-Meng Li, Mark Gordon, Michael D. Moran, and Qiong Zheng
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 8667–8688, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-8667-2018,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-8667-2018, 2018
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04 Jun 2018
Stable sulfur isotope measurements to trace the fate of SO2 in the Athabasca oil sands region
Neda Amiri, Roya Ghahreman, Ofelia Rempillo, Travis W. Tokarek, Charles A. Odame-Ankrah, Hans D. Osthoff, and Ann-Lise Norman
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 7757–7780, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-7757-2018,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-7757-2018, 2018
28 May 2018
Quantification of methane sources in the Athabasca Oil Sands Region of Alberta by aircraft mass balance
Sabour Baray, Andrea Darlington, Mark Gordon, Katherine L. Hayden, Amy Leithead, Shao-Meng Li, Peter S. K. Liu, Richard L. Mittermeier, Samar G. Moussa, Jason O'Brien, Ralph Staebler, Mengistu Wolde, Doug Worthy, and Robert McLaren
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 7361–7378, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-7361-2018,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-7361-2018, 2018
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25 May 2018
How important is biomass burning in Canada to mercury contamination?
Annemarie Fraser, Ashu Dastoor, and Andrei Ryjkov
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 7263–7286, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-7263-2018,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-7263-2018, 2018
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08 May 2018
The use of hierarchical clustering for the design of optimized monitoring networks
Joana Soares, Paul Andrew Makar, Yayne Aklilu, and Ayodeji Akingunola
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 6543–6566, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-6543-2018,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-6543-2018, 2018
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08 Mar 2018
Emissions databases for polycyclic aromatic compounds in the Canadian Athabasca oil sands region – development using current knowledge and evaluation with passive sampling and air dispersion modelling data
Xin Qiu, Irene Cheng, Fuquan Yang, Erin Horb, Leiming Zhang, and Tom Harner
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 3457–3467, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-3457-2018,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-3457-2018, 2018
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23 Feb 2018
Size distribution and coating thickness of black carbon from the Canadian oil sands operations
Yuan Cheng, Shao-Meng Li, Mark Gordon, and Peter Liu
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 2653–2667, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-2653-2018,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-2653-2018, 2018
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13 Feb 2018
Contributions of natural and anthropogenic sources to ambient ammonia in the Athabasca Oil Sands and north-western Canada
Cynthia H. Whaley, Paul A. Makar, Mark W. Shephard, Leiming Zhang, Junhua Zhang, Qiong Zheng, Ayodeji Akingunola, Gregory R. Wentworth, Jennifer G. Murphy, Shailesh K. Kharol, and Karen E. Cady-Pereira
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 2011–2034, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-2011-2018,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-2011-2018, 2018
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07 Aug 2017
Sources of particulate matter components in the Athabasca oil sands region: investigation through a comparison of trace element measurement methodologies
Catherine Phillips-Smith, Cheol-Heon Jeong, Robert M. Healy, Ewa Dabek-Zlotorzynska, Valbona Celo, Jeffrey R. Brook, and Greg Evans
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 17, 9435–9449, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-9435-2017,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-9435-2017, 2017
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11 Jul 2017
Understanding the primary emissions and secondary formation of gaseous organic acids in the oil sands region of Alberta, Canada
John Liggio, Samar G. Moussa, Jeremy Wentzell, Andrea Darlington, Peter Liu, Amy Leithead, Katherine Hayden, Jason O'Brien, Richard L. Mittermeier, Ralf Staebler, Mengistu Wolde, and Shao-Meng Li
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 17, 8411–8427, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-8411-2017,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-8411-2017, 2017
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09 Feb 2017
Assessment of the aerosol optical depths measured by satellite-based passive remote sensors in the Alberta oil sands region
Christopher E. Sioris, Chris A. McLinden, Mark W. Shephard, Vitali E. Fioletov, and Ihab Abboud
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 17, 1931–1943, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-1931-2017,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-1931-2017, 2017
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14 Jul 2016
Sulfur dioxide (SO2) vertical column density measurements by Pandora spectrometer over the Canadian oil sands
Vitali E. Fioletov, Chris A. McLinden, Alexander Cede, Jonathan Davies, Cristian Mihele, Stoyka Netcheva, Shao-Meng Li, and Jason O'Brien
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 9, 2961–2976, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-9-2961-2016,https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-9-2961-2016, 2016
10 Dec 2015
Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer (TES) satellite observations of ammonia, methanol, formic acid, and carbon monoxide over the Canadian oil sands: validation and model evaluation
M. W. Shephard, C. A. McLinden, K. E. Cady-Pereira, M. Luo, S. G. Moussa, A. Leithead, J. Liggio, R. M. Staebler, A. Akingunola, P. Makar, P. Lehr, J. Zhang, D. K. Henze, D. B. Millet, J. O. Bash, L. Zhu, K. C. Wells, S. L. Capps, S. Chaliyakunnel, M. Gordon, K. Hayden, J. R. Brook, M. Wolde, and S.-M. Li
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 8, 5189–5211, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-8-5189-2015,https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-8-5189-2015, 2015
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16 Sep 2015
Determining air pollutant emission rates based on mass balance using airborne measurement data over the Alberta oil sands operations
M. Gordon, S.-M. Li, R. Staebler, A. Darlington, K. Hayden, J. O'Brien, and M. Wolde
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 8, 3745–3765, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-8-3745-2015,https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-8-3745-2015, 2015
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01 Oct 2014
A gas chromatograph for quantification of peroxycarboxylic nitric anhydrides calibrated by thermal dissociation cavity ring-down spectroscopy
T. W. Tokarek, J. A. Huo, C. A. Odame-Ankrah, D. Hammoud, Y. M. Taha, and H. D. Osthoff
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 7, 3263–3283, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-7-3263-2014,https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-7-3263-2014, 2014
09 Apr 2014
Improved satellite retrievals of NO2 and SO2 over the Canadian oil sands and comparisons with surface measurements
C. A. McLinden, V. Fioletov, K. F. Boersma, S. K. Kharol, N. Krotkov, L. Lamsal, P. A. Makar, R. V. Martin, J. P. Veefkind, and K. Yang
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 14, 3637–3656, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-14-3637-2014,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-14-3637-2014, 2014
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