1. Measurement of atmospheric black carbon in some South Mediterranean cities : seasonal variations and source apportionmentHamza Merabet, Rabah Kerbachi, Nikolaos Mihalopoulos, Iasonas Stavroulas, Maria Kanakidou, Noureddine Yassaa, 2019, izvirni znanstveni članek Opis: This study aims to investigate, for the first time in Algeria, the atmospheric black carbon (BC) concentrations over one year measured at the Scientific Observatory of Algiers and to compare their concentration levels with other Mediterranean cities (i.e., Athens and Crete). The diurnal cycles as well as seasonal variations of BC concentrations were evaluated and attributed to their emission sources (fossil fuel: BCff and wood burning: BCwb). The annual mean concentrations of BC, BCff and BCwb were 1.113±2.030, 1.064±2.002 and 0.049±0.262 µgm-3, respectively. The highest seasonal mean concentrations were recorded in summer and autumn with 1.283±1.346 and 1.209±1.149 µgm-3 for BC and 1.217±1.431 and 1.177±1.151 µgm-3 for BCff, respectively. However, the lowest mean concentrations were recorded in winter and spring with 1.023±1.189 and 0.966±0.964 µgm-3 for BC and 0.933±1.177 and 0.956±0.874 µgm-3 for BCff, respectively. For BCwb, the highest mean concentrations were reached in winter and summer with 0.090±0.055 and 0.066±0.050 µgm-3, respectively, very likely due to the forest fires and long-range transport of air pollution from Europe. The lowest mean concentrations of BCwb were recorded in autumn and spring with 0.032±0.033 and 0.010±0.021 µgm-3, respectively. Seggregating BC levels into eight wind sectors, showed that the prevailing BC pollution with concentrations reaching up to 5.000 µgm-3 originated from the North-West wind sector. A source apportionment of BC for the wet and dry period was also perfomed followed by a back trajectory cluster analysis for long-range transport. Ključne besede: aerosol, black carbon, atmospheric pollution, source apportionment, seasonal variation, year modulation Objavljeno v RUNG: 10.05.2024; Ogledov: 827; Prenosov: 7 Celotno besedilo (5,67 MB) Gradivo ima več datotek! Več... |
2. Characterization of atmospheric properties over the Cherenkov Telescope Array at La PalmaMiha Živec, doktorska disertacija Opis: Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescope (IACT) systems are used in high-energy astrophysics to detect and study gamma-ray sources in the universe. These telescopes measure properties of cosmic gamma rays using Cherenkov radiation emitted by secondary particles produced after interacting with the Earth’s atmosphere. Atmospheric monitoring is crucial for the proper operation of IACT systems. A number of remote sensing and in situ methods are used to understand and correct the effects of the atmosphere on the propagation of Cherenkov radiation from its origin to the telescope. Failure to do so greatly decreases IACT performance, particularly, their energy resolution and threshold. Lidar systems can be used to measure atmospheric optical depth profiles, which are essential for IACT calibration.
The main aim of this thesis is to demonstrate that a prototype lidar for the north-ern site of the Cherenkov Telescope Array Observatory (CTAO), which is a next-generation IACT now under construction, has hardware and software capabilities that would lead to the construction of CTAO Raman lidar. Due to specific require-ments of the CTAO, a Raman lidar, which can provide better atmospheric parameter accuracy, will be used for the first time in an IACT system. In 2021-2022 the BRL was deployed to the future CTAO-North site at the Roque de los Muchachos observatory, La Palma, for testing in its actual operating conditions. During a year and a half long test period, it underwent a number of tests, including manual and remote operation under various environmental conditions. These included hot summers, cold winters, rain, snow, ice, and strong winds, but also some more exotic events, such as desert sand intrusions (Calima) and volcanic eruptions. The latter two are presented in this work as test cases for atmospheric characterization.
Since the main goal of a CTAO lidar is the optical depth measurements, the BRL does not have the full set of features for aerosol characterization. While it can yield the ˚Angstr¨om exponent and lidar ratio, it does not provide depolarization informa-tion, which is one of the key components for aerosol typing. As the atmosphere at La Palma was found to be more complex than initially anticipated, we present the benefits of including depolarization capability by using a conceptually similar Raman lidar system specifically designed for aerosol characterization. We present the results of a campaign focused on the determination of bioaerosol capabilities to act as cloud condensation nuclei and ice-nucleating particles in mixed-phase clouds, where depo-larization information was used to determine the thermodynamic phase of the cloud. Ključne besede: Cherenkov Telescope Array Observatory, Raman Lidar, atmospheric optical depth, aerosol characterization, Cumbre Vieja, Calima Objavljeno v RUNG: 23.10.2023; Ogledov: 1726; Prenosov: 49 Celotno besedilo (26,88 MB) |
3. |
4. Chemical characterization of atmospheric aerosols in the Sarajevo Canton : results of 2017-2018 Sarajevo Canton Winter Field Campaign (SAFICA)Katja Džepina, 2018, objavljeni povzetek znanstvenega prispevka na konferenci (vabljeno predavanje) Opis: The World Health Organization (WHO) identified air pollution as the world’s largest single environmental health risk causing seven million deaths per year, one in eight deaths globally. Of particular concern are heavily polluted and understudied urban centres: while thousands of scientific papers have been published on air quality of the cities such as London, UK and Los Angeles, USA, only 41 papers exist on the top 10 globally most polluted cities. Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H), is one of urban centres which often experiences low air quality due to the extensive use of non-renewable energy sources and geographical location. For example, in Sarajevo during 2010, an annual average concentration of particulate matter (PM) with a diameter smaller than 10 µm (PM10) was 50 µg/m3, a value 2.5x higer than the recommended WHO guidelines value of 20 µg/m3.
Sarajevo Canton Winter Field Campaign 2017-2018 (SAFICA) took place in the Sarajevo Canton during the cold winter season of 2017 – 2018 (Dec 4, 2017 – Mar 15, 2018), the period historically characterized with the lowest air quality according to the available data. SAFICA project was lead by Federal hydrometeorological Institute of B&H, Institute of Public Health of the Sarajevo Canton, University of Sarajevo and University of Rijeka, and field measurements took place at three urban locations within the city of Sarajevo (Otoka, Pofalići i Bjelave) i one remote location (Ivan Sedlo mountain ridge).
In this presentation, the basics of anthropogenic air pollution and its global influece on the air quality will be explained. Particular attention will be given to the atmospheric PM or aerosols, and aerosols formation mechanisms and the importance of their characteristics such as atmospheric concentration, size and chemical composition will be explained. Also, the reasons for the adverse effects of aerosols on human health and the correlation of atmospheric fine PM (PM2.5) concentrations and human mortality will be explained. Finally, preliminary results of SAFICA measurements campaign will be presented and compared with those from other global urban centers. Ključne besede: atmospheric aerosol, Sarajevo, urban air pollution, SAFICA 2018 Objavljeno v RUNG: 26.05.2021; Ogledov: 3581; Prenosov: 0 Gradivo ima več datotek! Več... |
5. Molekularna karakterizacija lebdećih čestica slobodne troposfere sa Opservatorija Pico planineKatja Džepina, Claudio Mazzoleni, Paulo Fialho, Swarup China, B. Zhang, R. Chris Owen, D. Helmig, J. Hueber, Sumit Kumar, J. A. Perlinger, 2017, objavljeni povzetek znanstvenega prispevka na konferenci Opis: Long-range transported free tropospheric aerosol was sampled at the PMO (38°28’15’’N, 28°24’14’’W; 2225 m amsl) on Pico Island of the Azores in the North Atlantic. Filter-collected aerosol during summer 2012 was analysed for organic and elemental carbon, and inorganic ions. The average aerosol ambient concentration was 0.9 µg m-3. Organic aerosol contributed the majority of mass (57%), followed by sulphate (21%) and nitrate (17%). Filter-collected aerosol was positively correlated with on-line aerosol measurements of black carbon, light scattering and number concentration. Water-soluble organic compounds (WSOC) from 9/24 and 9/25 samples collected during a pollution event were analysed with ultrahigh-resolution FT-ICR MS. FLEXPART analysis showed the air masses were very aged (>12 days). ~4000 molecular formulas were assigned to each of the mass spectra between m/z 100-1000. The majority of the assigned molecular formulas have unsaturated structures with CHO and CHNO elemental compositions. WSOC have an average O/C of ~0.45, relatively low compared to O/C of other aged aerosol, which might be the result of evaporation and fragmentation during long-range transport. The increase in aerosol loading during 9/24 was linked to biomass burning emissions from North America by FLEXPART and MODIS fire counts. This was confirmed with WSOC biomass burning markers and with the morphology and mixing state of particles as determined by SEM. The presence of markers characteristic of aqueous-phase reactions of biomass burning phenolic species suggests that the aerosol collected at Pico had undergone cloud processing. The air masses on 9/25 were more aged (~15 days) and influenced by marine emissions, as indicated by organosulphates and species characteristic for marine aerosol (e.g. fatty acids). The change in air masses for the two samples was corroborated by the changes in ozone, ethane, propane, morphology of particles, as well as by FLEXPART. In this presentation we will presents the first detailed molecular characterization of free tropospheric aged aerosol intercepted at the PMO. Ključne besede: Atmospheric aerosol, Free troposphere, Mass spectrometry, Pico mountain observatory Objavljeno v RUNG: 26.05.2021; Ogledov: 3889; Prenosov: 0 Gradivo ima več datotek! Več... |
6. Characterization of ambient aerosols in Mexico City during the MCMA-2003 campaign with aerosol mass spectrometry : results from the CENICA SupersiteDara Salcedo, T. B. Onasch, Katja Džepina, M. R. Canagaratna, Qi Zhang, J. A. Huffman, P. F. DeCarlo, J. Jayne, P. Mortimer, D. Worsnop, 2006, izvirni znanstveni članek Opis: An Aerodyne Aerosol Mass Spectrometer (AMS) was deployed at the CENICA Supersite, during the Mexico City Metropolitan Area field study (MCMA-2003) from 31 March-4 May 2003 to investigate particle concentrations, sources, and processes. The AMS provides real time information on mass concentration and composition of the non-refractory species in particulate matter less than 1 mu m (NR-PM1) with high time and size-resolution. In order to account for the refractory material in the aerosol, we also present estimates of Black Carbon (BC) using an aethalometer and an estimate of the aerosol soil component obtained from Proton-Induced X-ray Emission Spectrometry (PIXE) analysis of impactor substrates. Comparisons of AMS + BC + soil mass concentration with other collocated particle instruments (a LASAIR Optical Particle Counter, a PM2.5 Tapered Element Oscillating Microbalance (TEOM), and a PM2.5 DustTrak Aerosol Monitor) show that the AMS + BC + soil mass concentration is consistent with the total PM2.5 mass concentration during MCMA-2003 within the combined uncertainties. In Mexico City, the organic fraction of the estimated PM2.5 at CENICA represents, on average, 54.6% (standard deviation sigma=10%) of the mass, with the rest consisting of inorganic compounds ( mainly ammonium nitrate and sulfate/ammonium salts), BC, and soil. Inorganic compounds represent 27.5% of PM2.5 (sigma=10%); BC mass concentration is about 11% (sigma=4%); while soil represents about 6.9% (sigma=4%). Size distributions are presented for the AMS species; they show an accumulation mode that contains mainly oxygenated organic and secondary inorganic compounds. The organic size distributions also contain a small organic particle mode that is likely indicative of fresh traffic emissions; small particle modes exist for the inorganic species as well. Evidence suggests that the organic and inorganic species are not always internally mixed, especially in the small modes. The aerosol seems to be neutralized most of the time; however, there were some periods when there was not enough ammonium to completely neutralize the nitrate, chloride and sulfate present. The diurnal cycle and size distributions of nitrate suggest local photochemical production. On the other hand, sulfate appears to be produced on a regional scale. There are indications of new particle formation and growth events when concentrations of SO2 were high. Although the sources of chloride are not clear, this species seems to condense as ammonium chloride early in the morning and to evaporate as the temperature increases and RH decreases. The total and speciated mass concentrations and diurnal cycles measured during MCMA-2003 are similar to measurements during a previous field campaign at a nearby location. Ključne besede: aerosol mass-spectrometer, atmospheric aerosol, atmospheric chemistry, atmospheric physics Objavljeno v RUNG: 12.04.2021; Ogledov: 3135; Prenosov: 0 Gradivo ima več datotek! Več... |
7. Secondary organic aerosol formation from anthropogenic air pollution : rapid and higher than expectedRainer Volkamer, Jose L. Jimenez, F. M. San Martini, Katja Džepina, Q. Zhang, Dara Salcedo, Luisa T. Molina, D. Worsnop, 2006, izvirni znanstveni članek Opis: The atmospheric chemistry of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in urban areas results in the formation of 'photochemical smog', including secondary organic aerosol (SOA). State-of-the-art SOA models parameterize the results of simulation chamber experiments that bracket the conditions found in the polluted urban atmosphere. Here we show that in the real urban atmosphere reactive anthropogenic VOCs (AVOCs) produce much larger amounts of SOA than these models predict, even shortly after sunrise. Contrary to current belief, a significant fraction of the excess SOA is formed from first-generation AVOC oxidation products. Global models deem AVOCs a very minor contributor to SOA compared to biogenic VOCs (BVOCs). If our results are extrapolated to other urban areas, AVOCs could be responsible for additional 3 - 25 Tg yr(-1) SOA production globally, and cause up to - 0.1 W m(-2) additional top-of-the-atmosphere radiative cooling. Ključne besede: atmospheric aerosol, atmospheric chemistry, volatile organic compounds, secondary organic aerosols Objavljeno v RUNG: 12.04.2021; Ogledov: 4577; Prenosov: 0 Gradivo ima več datotek! Več... |
8. Technical note : use of a beam width probe in an aerosol mass spectrometer to monitor particle collection efficiency in the fieldDara Salcedo, T. B. Onasch, M. R. Canagaratna, Katja Džepina, J. A. Huffman, J. Jayne, D. Worsnop, C. E. Kolb, S. Weimer, F. Drewnick, 2007, izvirni znanstveni članek Opis: Two Aerodyne Aerosol Mass Spectrometers (Q-AMS) were deployed in Mexico City, during the Mexico City Metropolitan Area field study (MCMA-2003) from 29 March - 4 May 2003 to investigate particle concentrations, sources, and processes. We report the use of a particle beam width probe (BWP) in the field to quantify potential losses of particles due to beam broadening inside the AMS caused by particle shape (nonsphericity) and particle size. Data from this probe show that no significant mass of particles was lost due to excessive beam broadening; i.e. the shape- and size-related collection efficiency (E-s) of the AMS during this campaign was approximately one. Comparison of the BWP data from MCMA-2003 with other campaigns shows that the same conclusion holds for several other urban, rural and remotes sites. This means that the aerodynamic lens in the AMS is capable of efficiently focusing ambient particles into a well defined beam and onto the AMS vaporizer for particles sampled in a wide variety of environments. All the species measured by the AMS during MCMA-2003 have similar attenuation profiles which suggests that the particles that dominate the mass concentration were internally mixed most of the time. Only for the smaller particles ( especially below 300 nm), organic and inorganic species show different attenuation versus particle size which is likely due to partial external mixing of these components. Changes observed in the focusing of the particle beam in time can be attributed, in part, to changes in particle shape (i.e. due to relative humidity) and size of the particles sampled. However, the relationships between composition, atmospheric conditions, and particle shape and size appear to be very complex and are not yet completely understood. Ključne besede: atmospheric aerosol, organic aerosols, aerodynamic lenses, Mexico City Objavljeno v RUNG: 11.04.2021; Ogledov: 3797; Prenosov: 0 Gradivo ima več datotek! Več... |
9. Ubiquity and dominance of oxygenated species in organic aerosols in anthropogenically-influenced Northern Hemisphere midlatitudesQ. Zhang, Jose L. Jimenez, M. R. Canagaratna, J. David Allan, H. Coe, I. M. Ulbrich, M. R. Alfarra, A. Takami, A. M. Middlebrook, Katja Džepina, 2007, izvirni znanstveni članek Opis: Organic aerosol (OA) data acquired by the Aerosol Mass Spectrometer (AMS) in 37 field campaigns were deconvolved into hydrocarbon-like OA (HOA) and several types of oxygenated OA (OOA) components. HOA has been linked to primary combustion emissions (mainly from fossil fuel) and other primary sources such as meat cooking. OOA is ubiquitous in various atmospheric environments, on average accounting for 64%, 83% and 95% of the total OA in urban, urban downwind, and rural/remote sites, respectively. A case study analysis of a rural site shows that the OOA concentration is much greater than the advected HOA, indicating that HOA oxidation is not an important source of OOA, and that OOA increases are mainly due to SOA. Most global models lack an explicit representation of SOA which may lead to significant biases in the magnitude, spatial and temporal distributions of OA, and in aerosol hygroscopic properties. Ključne besede: atmospheric aerosol, secondary organic aerosols, primary organic aerosols, aerodyne aerosol mass spectrometer Objavljeno v RUNG: 11.04.2021; Ogledov: 2923; Prenosov: 0 Gradivo ima več datotek! Več... |
10. 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, izvirni znanstveni članek Opis: 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. Ključne besede: atmospheric aerosol, soot, long-range transport, free troposphere, single scattering albedo Objavljeno v RUNG: 11.04.2021; Ogledov: 2978; Prenosov: 0 Gradivo ima več datotek! Več... |