91. Comparative Analysis of urban atmospheric aerosol by particle-induced X-ray emission (PIXE), proton elastic scattering analysis (PESA), and aerosol mass spectrometry (AMS)K.S. Johnson, A. Laskin, Jose L. Jimenez, V. Shutthanandan, Luisa T. Molina, Dara Salcedo, Katja Džepina, Mario J. Molina, 2008, original scientific article Abstract: A multifaceted approach to atmospheric aerosol analysis is often desirable infield studies where an understanding of technical comparability among different measurement techniques is essential. Herein, we report quantitative intercomparisons of particle-induced X-ray emission (PIXE) and proton elastic scattering analysis (PESA), performed offline under a vacuum, with analysis by aerosol mass spectrometry (AMS) carried out in real-time during the MCMA-2003 Field Campaign in the Mexico City Metropolitan Area. Good agreement was observed for mass concentrations of PIXE-measured sulfur (assuming it was dominated by SO42-) and AMS-measured sulfate during most of the campaign. PESA-measured hydrogen mass was separated into sulfate H and organic H mass fractions, assuming the only major contributions were (NH4)(2)SO4 and organic compounds. Comparison of the organic H mass with AMS organic aerosol measurements indicates that about 75% of the mass of these species evaporated under a vacuum. However similar to 25% of the organics does remain under a vacuum, which is only possible with low-vapor-pressure compounds, and which supports the presence of high-molecular-weight or highly oxidized organics consistent with atmospheric aging. Approximately 10% of the chloride detected by AMS was measured by PIXE, possibly in the form of metal-chloride complexes, while the majority of Cl was likely present as more volatile species including NH4Cl. This is the first comparison of PIXE/PESA and AMS and, to our knowledge, also the first report of PESA hydrogen measurements for urban organic aerosols. Keywords: organic aerosols, secondary organic aerosols, Mexico City, MCMA-2003 field campaign Published in RUNG: 11.04.2021; Views: 2313; Downloads: 0 This document has many files! More... |
92. Evaluation of recently-proposed secondary organic aerosol models for a case study in Mexico CityKatja Džepina, R. M. Volkamer, Sasha Madronich, P. Tulet, I. M. Ulbrich, Q. Zhang, C. D. Cappa, P. J. Ziemann, Jose L. Jimenez, 2009, original scientific article Abstract: Recent field studies have found large discrepancies in the measured vs. modeled SOA mass loadings in both urban and regional polluted atmospheres. The reasons for these large differences are unclear. Here we revisit a case study of SOA formation in Mexico City described by Volkamer et al. (2006), during a photochemically active period when the impact of regional biomass burning is minor or negligible, and show that the observed increase in OA/Delta CO is consistent with results from several groups during MILAGRO 2006. Then we use the case study to evaluate three new SOA models: 1) the update of aromatic SOA yields from recent chamber experiments (Ng et al., 2007); 2) the formation of SOA from glyoxal (Volkamer et al., 2007a); and 3) the formation of SOA from primary semivolatile and intermediate volatility species (P-S/IVOC) (Robinson et al., 2007). We also evaluate the effect of reduced partitioning of SOA into POA (Song et al., 2007). Traditional SOA precursors (mainly aromatics) by themselves still fail to produce enough SOA to match the observations by a factor of similar to similar to 7. The new low-NOx aromatic pathways with very high SOA yields make a very small contribution in this high-NOx urban environment as the RO2 center dot+NO reaction dominates the fate of the RO2 center dot radicals. Glyoxal contributes several mu g m(-3) to SOA formation, with similar timing as the measurements. P-S/IVOC are estimated from equilibrium with emitted POA, and introduce a large amount of gas-phase oxidizable carbon that was not in models before. With the formulation in Robinson et al. (2007) these species have a high SOA yield, and this mechanism can close the gap in SOA mass between measurements and models in our case study. However the volatility of SOA produced in the model is too high and the O/C ratio is somewhat lower than observations. Glyoxal SOA helps to bring the O/C ratio of predicted and observed SOA into better agreement. The sensitivities of the model to some key uncertain parameters are evaluated. Keywords: polycyclic aromatic-hydrocarbons, positive matrix factorization, mass-spectrometry, volatility measurements Published in RUNG: 11.04.2021; Views: 2152; Downloads: 0 This document has many files! More... |
93. Evolution of organic aerosols in the atmosphereJose L. Jimenez, M. R. Canagaratna, N. M. Donahue, A. S. H. Prevot, Q. Zhang, J. H. Kroll, P. F. DeCarlo, J. David Allan, H. Coe, Katja Džepina, 2009, original scientific article Abstract: Organic aerosol (OA) particles affect climate forcing and human health, but their sources and evolution remain poorly characterized. We present a unifying model framework describing the atmospheric evolution of OA that is constrained by high–time-resolution measurements of its composition, volatility, and oxidation state. OA and OA precursor gases evolve by becoming increasingly oxidized, less volatile, and more hygroscopic, leading to the formation of oxygenated organic aerosol (OOA), with concentrations comparable to those of sulfate aerosol throughout the Northern Hemisphere. Our model framework captures the dynamic aging behavior observed in both the atmosphere and laboratory: It can serve as a basis for improving parameterizations in regional and global models. Keywords: secondary organic aerosol, source apportionment, aerodyne aerosol mass spectrometer, global field measurements, laboratory experiments Published in RUNG: 11.04.2021; Views: 2298; Downloads: 0 This document has many files! More... |
94. Modeling the multiday evolution and aging of secondary organic aerosol during MILAGRO 2006Katja Džepina, Christopher D. Cappa, Rainer Volkamer, Sasha Madronich, Peter F. DeCarlo, Rahul A. Zaveri, Jose L. Jimenez, 2011, original scientific article Abstract: In this study, we apply several recently proposed models to the evolution of secondary organic aerosols (SOA) and organic gases advected from downtown Mexico City at: an altitude of similar to 3.5 km during three days of aging, in a way that is directly comparable to simulations in regional and global models. We constrain the model with and compare its results to available observations. The model SOA formed from oxidation of volatile organic compounds (V-SOA) when using a non-aging SOA parameterization cannot explain the observed SOA concentrations in aged pollution, despite the increasing importance of the low-NO, channel. However, when using an aging SOA parameterization, V-SOA alone is similar to the regional aircraft observations, highlighting the wide diversity in current V-SOA formulations. When the SOA formed from oxidation of semivolatile and intermediate volatility organic vapors (SI-SOA) is computed following Robinson et al. (2007) the model matches the observed SOA mass, but its 0/C is similar to 2 x too low. With the parameterization of Grieshop et al. (2009), the total SOA mass is similar to 2 x too high, but 0/C and volatility are closer to the observations. Heating or dilution cause the evaporation of a substantial fraction of the model SOA; this fraction is reduced by aging although differently for heating vs dilution. Lifting of the airmass to the free-troposphere during dry convection substantially increases SOA by condensation of semivolatile vapors; this effect is reduced by aging. Keywords: Mexico-city, volatility, semivolatile, transport, campaign Published in RUNG: 11.04.2021; Views: 2055; Downloads: 0 This document has many files! More... |
95. Secondary organic aerosol formation from semi- and intermediate-volatility organic compounds and glyoxal : relevance of O/C as a tracer for aqueous multiphase chemistryEleanor M. Waxman, Katja Džepina, Barbara Ervens, Julia Lee-Taylor, Bernard Aumont, Jose L. Jimenez, Sasha Madronich, Rainer Volkamer, 2013, original scientific article Abstract: The role of aqueous multiphase chemistry in the formation of secondary organic aerosol (SOA) remains difficult to quantify. We investigate it here by testing the rapid formation of moderate oxygen-to-carbon (O/C) SOA during a case study in Mexico City. A novel laboratory-based glyoxal-SOA mechanism is applied to the field data, and explains why less gas-phase glyoxal mass is observed than predicted. Furthermore, we compare an explicit gas-phase chemical mechanism for SOA formation from semi- and intermediate-volatility organic compounds (S/IVOCs) with empirical parameterizations of S/IVOC aging. The mechanism representing our current understanding of chemical kinetics of S/IVOC oxidation combined with traditional SOA sources and mixing of background SOA underestimates the observed O/C by a factor of two at noon. Inclusion of glyoxal-SOA with O/C of 1.5 brings O/C predictions within measurement uncertainty, suggesting that field observations can be reconciled on reasonable time scales using laboratory-based empirical relationships for aqueous chemistry. Keywords: secondary organic aerosol, glyoxal, aqueous multiphase chemistry, oxygen-to-carbon ratio, single scattering albedo Published in RUNG: 11.04.2021; Views: 2180; Downloads: 0 This document has many files! More... |
96. Atmospheric peroxyacetyl nitrate (PAN) : a global budget and source attributionE. V. Fischer, D. J. Jacob, R. M. Yantosca, M. P. Sulprizio, D. B. Millet, Jiandong Mao, F. Paulot, H. B. Singh, A. Roiger, Katja Džepina, 2014, original scientific article Abstract: Peroxyacetyl nitrate (PAN) formed in the atmospheric oxidation of non-methane volatile organic compounds (NMVOCs) is the principal tropospheric reservoir for nitrogen oxide radicals (NOx = NO + NO2). PAN enables the transport and release of NOx to the remote troposphere with major implications for the global distributions of ozone and OH, the main tropospheric oxidants. Simulation of PAN is a challenge for global models because of the dependence
of PAN on vertical transport as well as complex and uncertain NMVOC sources and chemistry. Here we use an improved representation of NMVOCs in a global 3-D chemical
transport model (GEOS-Chem) and show that it can simulate PAN observations from aircraft campaigns worldwide.
The immediate carbonyl precursors for PAN formation include acetaldehyde (44 % of the global source), methylglyoxal (30 %), acetone (7 %), and a suite of other isoprene and
terpene oxidation products (19 %). A diversity of NMVOC
emissions is responsible for PAN formation globally including isoprene (37 %) and alkanes (14 %). Anthropogenic
sources are dominant in the extratropical Northern Hemisphere outside the growing season. Open fires appear to play
little role except at high northern latitudes in spring, although
results are very sensitive to plume chemistry and plume rise.
Lightning NOx is the dominant contributor to the observed
PAN maximum in the free troposphere over the South Atlantic. Keywords: peroxyacetyl nitrate, non-methane volatile organic compounds, global 3-D chemical transport model, GEOS-chem Published in RUNG: 11.04.2021; Views: 2427; Downloads: 0 This document has many files! More... |
97. Molecular characterization of free tropospheric aerosol collected at the Pico Mountain Observatory : a case study with a long-range transported biomass burning plumeKatja Džepina, Claudio Mazzoleni, Paulo Fialho, Swarup China, Bo Zhang, R. Chris Owen, D. Helmig, J. Hueber, Sumit Kumar, J. A. Perlinger, 2015, original scientific article Abstract: Free tropospheric aerosol was sampled at the
Pico Mountain Observatory located at 2225 m above mean
sea level on Pico Island of the Azores archipelago in the
North Atlantic. The observatory is located ∼ 3900 km east
and downwind of North America, which enables studies
of free tropospheric air transported over long distances.
Aerosol samples collected on filters from June to October
2012 were analyzed to characterize organic carbon, elemental carbon, and inorganic ions. The average ambient concentration of aerosol was 0.9 ± 0.7 µg m−3
. On average, organic aerosol components represent the largest mass fraction of the total measured aerosol (60 ± 51 %), followed by
sulfate (23 ± 28 %), nitrate (13 ± 10 %), chloride (2 ± 3 %),
and elemental carbon (2 ± 2 %). Water-soluble organic matter (WSOM) extracted from two aerosol samples (9/24 and
9/25) collected consecutively during a pollution event were
analyzed using ultrahigh-resolution electrospray ionization
Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry. Approximately 4000 molecular formulas were assigned
to each of the mass spectra in the range of m/z 100–1000.
The majority of the assigned molecular formulas had unsaturated structures with CHO and CHNO elemental compositions. FLEXPART retroplume analyses showed the sampled
air masses were very aged (average plume age > 12 days).
These aged aerosol WSOM compounds had an average O /C
ratio of ∼ 0.45, which is relatively low compared to O /C
ratios of other aged aerosol. The increase in aerosol loading during the measurement period of 9/24 was linked to
biomass burning emissions from North America by FLEXPART retroplume analysis and Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) fire counts. This was confirmed with biomass burning markers detected in the WSOM
and with the morphology and mixing state of particles as
determined by scanning electron microscopy. The presence
of markers characteristic of aqueous-phase reactions of phenolic species suggests that the aerosol collected at the Pico Mountain Observatory had undergone cloud processing before reaching the site. Finally, the air masses of 9/25 were
more aged and influenced by marine emissions, as indicated
by the presence of organosulfates and other species characteristic of marine aerosol. The change in the air masses for
the two samples was corroborated by the changes in ethane,
propane, and ozone, morphology of particles, as well as by
the FLEXPART retroplume simulations. This paper presents
the first detailed molecular characterization of free tropospheric aged aerosol intercepted at a lower free troposphere
remote location and provides evidence of low oxygenation
after long-range transport. We hypothesize this is a result of
the selective removal of highly aged and polar species during long-range transport, because the aerosol underwent a
combination of atmospheric processes during transport facilitating aqueous-phase removal (e.g., clouds processing) and
fragmentation (e.g., photolysis) of components. Keywords: organic aerosol, ultrahigh-resolution FT-ICR MS, electron microscopy, remote marine atmosphere, Pico Mountain Observatory Published in RUNG: 11.04.2021; Views: 2405; Downloads: 0 This document has many files! More... |
98. Morphology and mixing state of aged soot particles at a remote marine free troposphere site : implications for optical propertiesSwarup China, Barbara Scarnato, Robert C. Owen, Bo Zhang, MarianT. Ampadu, Sumit Kumar, Katja Džepina, Michael P. Dziobak, Paulo Fialho, Judith A. Perlinger, 2015, original scientific article Abstract: The radiative properties of soot particles depend on their morphology and mixing state, but their evolution during transport is still elusive. Here we report observations from an electron microscopy analysis of individual particles transported in the free troposphere over long distances to the remote Pico Mountain Observatory in the Azores in the North Atlantic. Approximately 70% of the soot particles were highly compact and of those 26% were thinly coated. Discrete dipole approximation simulations indicate that this compaction results in an increase in soot single scattering albedo by a factor of <= 2.17. The top of the atmosphere direct radiative forcing is typically smaller for highly compact than mass-equivalent lacy soot. The forcing estimated using Mie theory is within 12% of the forcing estimated using the discrete dipole approximation for a high surface albedo, implying that Mie calculations may provide a reasonable approximation for compact soot above remote marine clouds. Keywords: atmospheric aerosol, soot, long-range transport, free troposphere, single scattering albedo Published in RUNG: 11.04.2021; Views: 2168; Downloads: 0 This document has many files! More... |
99. Ice cloud formation potential by free tropospheric particles from long-range transport over the Northern Atlantic OceanSwarup China, Peter A. Alpert, Bo Zhang, Simeon K. Schum, Katja Džepina, Kendra Wright, R. Chris Owen, Paulo Fialho, Lynn R. Mazzoleni, Claudio Mazzoleni, 2017, original scientific article Abstract: Long-range transported free tropospheric particles can play a significant role on heterogeneous ice nucleation. Using optical and electron microscopy we examine the physicochemical characteristics of ice nucleating particles (INPs). Particles were collected on substrates from the free troposphere at the remote Pico Mountain Observatory in the Azores Islands, after long-range transport and aging over the Atlantic Ocean. We investigate four specific events to study the ice formation potential by the collected particles with different ages and transport patterns. We use single-particle analysis, as well as bulk analysis to characterize particle populations. Both analyses show substantial differences in particle composition between samples from the four events; in addition, single-particle microscopy analysis indicates that most particles are coated
by organic material. The identified INPs contained mixtures of dust, aged sea salt and soot, and organic material acquired either at the source or during transport. The temperature and relative humidity (RH) at which ice formed, varied only by 5% between samples, despite differences in particle composition, sources, and transport patterns. We hypothesize that this small variation in the onset RH may be due to the coating material on the particles. This study underscores and motivates the need to further investigate how long-range transported and atmospherically aged free tropospheric particles impact ice cloud formation. Keywords: atmospheric aerosols, ice nucleating particles, long-range transport, optical microscopy, electron microscopy, Pico Mountain Observatory Published in RUNG: 11.04.2021; Views: 2441; Downloads: 133 Link to full text This document has many files! More... |
100. Molecular and physical characteristics of aerosol at a remote free troposphere site : implications for atmospheric agingSimeon K. Schum, Bo Zhang, Katja Džepina, Paulo Fialho, Claudio Mazzoleni, Lynn R. Mazzoleni, 2018, original scientific article Abstract: Aerosol properties are transformed by atmospheric processes during long-range transport and play a key role in the Earth’s radiative balance. To understand the molecular and physical characteristics of free tropospheric aerosol, we studied samples collected at the Pico Mountain Observatory in the North Atlantic. The observatory is located in the marine free troposphere at 2225m above sea level, on Pico Island in the Azores archipelago. The site is ideal for the study of long-range-transported free tropospheric aerosol with minimal local influence. Three aerosol samples with elevated organic carbon concentrations were selected for detailed analysis. FLEXPART retroplumes indicated that two
of the samples were influenced by North American wildfire
emissions transported in the free troposphere and one by
North American outflow mainly transported within the marine
boundary layer. Ultrahigh-resolution Fourier transform
ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry was used to determine
the detailed molecular composition of the samples.
Thousands of molecular formulas were assigned to each of
the individual samples. On average ~60% of the molecular
formulas contained only carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen
atoms (CHO), ~ 30% contained nitrogen (CHNO), and
~ 10% contained sulfur (CHOS). The molecular formula
compositions of the two wildfire-influenced aerosol samples
transported mainly in the free troposphere had relatively low
average O=C ratios (0:48 ± 0:13 and 0:45 ± 0:11) despite the
7–10 days of transport time according to FLEXPART. In contrast,
the molecular composition of the North American outflow
transported mainly in the boundary layer had a higher
average O=C ratio (0:57 ± 0:17) with 3 days of transport time.
To better understand the difference between free tropospheric
transport and boundary layer transport, the meteorological
conditions along the FLEXPART simulated transport pathways
were extracted from the Global Forecast System analysis
for the model grids. We used the extracted meteorological
conditions and the observed molecular chemistry to predict
the relative-humidity-dependent glass transition temperatures
(Tg) of the aerosol components. Comparisons of the
Tg to the ambient temperature indicated that a majority of
the organic aerosol components transported in the free troposphere were more viscous and therefore less susceptible to
oxidation than the organic aerosol components transported
in the boundary layer. Although the number of observations
is limited, the results suggest that biomass burning organic
aerosol injected into the free troposphere is more persistent
than organic aerosol in the boundary layer having broader
implications for aerosol aging. Keywords: secondary organic aerosols, brown carbon, particle dispersion model, ultrahigh-resolution FT-ICR MS, Pico Mountain Observatory Published in RUNG: 10.04.2021; Views: 2459; Downloads: 0 This document has many files! More... |