scholarly journals Secondary organic aerosol formation from isoprene photooxidation during cloud condensation–evaporation cycles

2016 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 1747-1760 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Brégonzio-Rozier ◽  
C. Giorio ◽  
F. Siekmann ◽  
E. Pangui ◽  
S. B. Morales ◽  
...  

Abstract. The impact of cloud events on isoprene secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation has been studied from an isoprene ∕ NOx ∕ light system in an atmospheric simulation chamber. It was shown that the presence of a liquid water cloud leads to a faster and higher SOA formation than under dry conditions. When a cloud is generated early in the photooxidation reaction, before any SOA formation has occurred, a fast SOA formation is observed with mass yields ranging from 0.002 to 0.004. These yields are 2 and 4 times higher than those observed under dry conditions. When the cloud is generated at a later photooxidation stage, after isoprene SOA is stabilized at its maximum mass concentration, a rapid increase (by a factor of 2 or higher) of the SOA mass concentration is observed. The SOA chemical composition is influenced by cloud generation: the additional SOA formed during cloud events is composed of both organics and nitrate containing species. This SOA formation can be linked to the dissolution of water soluble volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the aqueous phase and to further aqueous phase reactions. Cloud-induced SOA formation is experimentally demonstrated in this study, thus highlighting the importance of aqueous multiphase systems in atmospheric SOA formation estimations.

2015 ◽  
Vol 15 (14) ◽  
pp. 20561-20596 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Brégonzio-Rozier ◽  
C. Giorio ◽  
F. Siekmann ◽  
E. Pangui ◽  
S. B. Morales ◽  
...  

Abstract. The impact of cloud events on isoprene secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation has been studied from an isoprene/NOx/light system in an atmospheric simulation chamber. It was shown that the presence of a liquid water cloud leads to a faster and higher SOA formation than under dry conditions. When a cloud is generated early in the photooxidation reaction, before any SOA formation has occurred, a fast SOA formation is observed with mass yields ranging from 0.002 to 0.004. These yields are two and four times higher than those observed under dry conditions. When the cloud is generated at a later photooxidation stage, after isoprene SOA is stabilized at its maximum mass concentration, a rapid increase (by a factor of two or higher) of the SOA mass concentration is observed. The SOA chemical composition is influenced by cloud generation: the additional SOA formed during cloud events is composed of both organics and nitrate containing species. This SOA formation can be linked to water soluble volatile organic compounds (VOCs) dissolution in the aqueous phase and to further aqueous phase reactions. Cloud-induced SOA formation is experimentally demonstrated in this study, thus highlighting the importance of aqueous multiphase systems in atmospheric SOA formation estimations.


2012 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 6019-6047 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. K. Y. Lee ◽  
K. L. Hayden ◽  
P. Herckes ◽  
W. R. Leaitch ◽  
J. Liggio ◽  
...  

Abstract. The water-soluble fractions of aerosol samples and cloud water collected during Whistler Aerosol and Cloud Study (WACS 2010) were analyzed using an Aerodyne aerosol mass spectrometer (AMS). This is the first study to report AMS organic spectra of re-aerosolized cloud water, and to make direct comparison between the AMS spectra of cloud water and aerosol samples collected at the same location. In general, the aerosol and cloud organic spectra were very similar, indicating that the cloud water organics likely originated from secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formed nearby. By using a photochemical reactor to oxidize both aerosol filter extracts and cloud water, we find evidence that fragmentation of aerosol water-soluble organics increases their volatility during oxidation. By contrast, enhancement of AMS-measurable organic mass by up to 30% was observed during aqueous-phase photochemical oxidation of cloud water organics. We propose that additional SOA material was produced by functionalizing dissolved organics via OH oxidation, where these dissolved organics are sufficiently volatile that they are not usually part of the aerosol. This work points out that water-soluble organic compounds of intermediate volatility (IVOC), such as cis-pinonic acid, produced via gas-phase oxidation of monoterpenes, can be important aqueous-phase SOA precursors in a biogenic-rich environment.


2009 ◽  
Vol 9 (14) ◽  
pp. 5107-5117 ◽  
Author(s):  
I. El Haddad ◽  
L. Nieto-Gligorovski ◽  
V. Michaud ◽  
B. Temime-Roussel ◽  
E. Quivet ◽  
...  

Abstract. The fate of methacrolein in cloud evapo-condensation cycles was experimentally investigated. To this end, aqueous-phase reactions of methacrolein with OH radicals were performed (as described in Liu et al., 2009), and the obtained solutions were then nebulized and dried into a mixing chamber. ESI-MS and ESI-MS/MS analyses of the aqueous phase composition denoted the formation of high molecular weight multifunctional products containing hydroxyl, carbonyl and carboxylic acid moieties. The time profiles of these products suggest that their formation can imply radical pathways. These high molecular weight organic products are certainly responsible for the formation of secondary organic aerosol (SOA) observed during the nebulization experiments. The size, number and mass concentration of these particles increased significantly with the reaction time: after 22 h of reaction, the aerosol mass concentration was about three orders of magnitude higher than the initial aerosol quantity. The evaluated SOA yield ranged from 2 to 12%. These yields were confirmed by another estimation method based on the hygroscopic and volatility properties of the obtained SOA measured and reported by Michaud et al. (2009). These results provide, for the first time to our knowledge, strong experimental evidence that cloud processes can act, through photooxidation reactions, as important contributors to secondary organic aerosol formation in the troposphere.


2010 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 12371-12431 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. Ervens ◽  
R. Volkamer

Abstract. This study presents a modeling framework based on laboratory data to describe the kinetics of glyoxal reactions in aqueous aerosol particles that form secondary organic aerosol (SOA). Recent laboratory results on glyoxal reactions are reviewed and a consistent set of reaction rate constants is derived that captures the kinetics of glyoxal hydration and subsequent reversible and irreversible reactions in aqueous inorganic and water-soluble organic aerosol seeds to form (a) oligomers, (b) nitrogen-containing products, (c) photochemical oxidation products with high molecular weight. These additional aqueous phase processes enhance the SOA formation rate in particles compared to cloud droplets and yield two to three orders of magnitude more SOA than predicted based on reaction schemes for dilute aqueous phase (cloud) chemistry. The application of this new module in a chemical box model demonstrates that both the time scale to reach aqueous phase equilibria and the choice of rate constants of irreversible reactions have a pronounced effect on the atmospheric relevance of SOA formation from glyoxal. During day time a photochemical (most likely radical-initiated) process is the major SOA formation pathway forming ~5 μg m−3 SOA over 12 h (assuming a constant glyoxal mixing ratio of 300 ppt). During night time, reactions of nitrogen-containing compounds (ammonium, amines, amino acids) contribute most to the predicted SOA mass; however, the absolute predicted SOA masses are reduced by an order of magnitude as compared to day time production. The contribution of the ammonium reaction significantly increases in moderately acidic or neutral particles (5<pH<7). Reversible glyoxal oligomerization, parameterized by an equilibrium constant Kolig=1000 (in ammonium sulfate solution), contributes <1% to total predicted SOA masses at any time. Sensitivity tests reveal five parameters that strongly affect the predicted SOA mass from glyoxal: (1) time scales to reach equilibrium states (as opposed to assuming instantaneous equilibrium), (2) particle pH, (3) chemical composition of the bulk aerosol, (4) particle surface composition, and (5) particle liquid water content that is mostly determined by the amount and hygroscopicity of aerosol mass and to a lesser extent by the ambient relative humidity. Glyoxal serves as an example molecule, and the conclusions about SOA formation in aqueous particles can serve for comparative studies also of other molecules that form SOA as the result of multiphase chemical processing in aerosol water. This SOA source is currently underrepresented in atmospheric models; if included it is likely to bring SOA predictions (mass and O/C ratio) into better agreement with field observations.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (11) ◽  
pp. 8479-8498
Author(s):  
Anke Mutzel ◽  
Yanli Zhang ◽  
Olaf Böge ◽  
Maria Rodigast ◽  
Agata Kolodziejczyk ◽  
...  

Abstract. The oxidation of biogenic and anthropogenic compounds leads to the formation of secondary organic aerosol mass (SOA). The present study aims to investigate α-pinene, limonene, and m-cresol with regards to their SOA formation potential dependent on relative humidity (RH) under night- (NO3 radicals) and daytime conditions (OH radicals) and the resulting chemical composition. It was found that SOA formation potential of limonene with NO3 under dry conditions significantly exceeds that of the OH-radical reaction, with SOA yields of 15–30 % and 10–21 %, respectively. Additionally, the nocturnal SOA yield was found to be very sensitive towards RH, yielding more SOA under dry conditions. In contrast, the SOA formation potential of α-pinene with NO3 slightly exceeds that of the OH-radical reaction, independent from RH. On average, α-pinene yielded SOA with about 6–7 % from NO3 radicals and 3–4 % from OH-radical reaction. Surprisingly, unexpectedly high SOA yields were found for m-cresol oxidation with OH radicals (3–9 %), with the highest yield under elevated RH (9 %), which is most likely attributable to a higher fraction of 3-methyl-6-nitro-catechol (MNC). While α-pinene and m-cresol SOA was found to be mainly composed of water-soluble compounds, 50–68 % of nocturnal SOA and 22–39 % of daytime limonene SOA are water-insoluble. The fraction of SOA-bound peroxides which originated from α-pinene varied between 2 and 80 % as a function of RH. Furthermore, SOA from α-pinene revealed pinonic acid as the most important particle-phase constituent under day- and nighttime conditions with a fraction of 1–4 %. Other compounds detected are norpinonic acid (0.05–1.1 % mass fraction), terpenylic acid (0.1–1.1 % mass fraction), pinic acid (0.1–1.8 % mass fraction), and 3-methyl-1,2,3-tricarboxylic acid (0.05–0.5 % mass fraction). All marker compounds showed higher fractions under dry conditions when formed during daytime and showed almost no RH effect when formed during night.


2009 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 1907-1928 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Volkamer ◽  
P. J. Ziemann ◽  
M. J. Molina

Abstract. The lightest Non Methane HydroCarbon (NMHC), i.e., acetylene (C2H2) is found to form secondary organic aerosol (SOA). Contrary to current belief, the number of carbon atoms, n, for a NMHC to act as SOA precursor is lowered to n=2 here. The OH-radical initiated oxidation of C2H2 forms glyoxal (CHOCHO) as the highest yield product, and >99% of the SOA from C2H2 is attributed to CHOCHO. SOA formation from C2H2 and CHOCHO was studied in a photochemical and a dark simulation chamber. Further, the experimental conditions were varied with respect to the chemical composition of the seed aerosols, mild acidification with sulphuric acid (SA, 3<pH<4), and relative humidity (10<RH<90%). The rate of SOA formation is found enhanced by several orders of magnitude in the photochemical system. The SOA yields (YSOA) ranged from 1% to 24% and did not correlate with the organic mass portion of the seed, but increased linearly with liquid water content (LWC) of the seed. For fixed LWC, YSOA varied by more than a factor of five. Water soluble organic carbon (WSOC) photochemistry in the liquid water associated with internally mixed inorganic/WSOC seed aerosols is found responsible for this seed effect. WSOC photochemistry enhances the SOA source from CHOCHO, while seeds containing amino acids (AA) and/or SA showed among the lowest of all YSOA values, and largely suppress the photochemical enhancement on the rate of CHOCHO uptake. Our results give first evidence for the importance of heterogeneous photochemistry of CHOCHO in SOA formation, and identify a potential bias in the currently available YSOA data for other SOA precursor NMHCs. We demonstrate that SOA formation via the aqueous phase is not limited to cloud droplets, but proceeds also in the absence of clouds, i.e., does not stop once a cloud droplet evaporates. Atmospheric models need to be expanded to include SOA formation from WSOC photochemistry of CHOCHO, and possibly other α-dicarbonyls, in aqueous aerosols.


2008 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 14841-14892 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Volkamer ◽  
P. J. Ziemann ◽  
M. J. Molina

Abstract. The lightest Non Methane HydroCarbon (NMHC), i.e. acetylene (C2H2) is found to form secondary organic aerosol (SOA). Contrary to current belief, the number of carbon atoms, n, for a NMHC to act as SOA precursor is lowered to n=2 here. The OH-radical initiated oxidation of C2H2 forms glyoxal (CHOCHO) as the highest yield product, and >99% of the SOA from C2H2 is attributed to CHOCHO. SOA formation from C2H2 and CHOCHO was studied in a photochemical and a dark simulation chamber. Further, the experimental conditions were varied with respect to the chemical composition of the seed aerosol, mild acidification with sulphuric acid (SA, 3<pH<4), and relative humidity (10<RH<90%). The rate of SOA formation is found enhanced by several orders of magnitude in the photochemical system. The SOA yields (YSOA) ranged from 1% to 20% and did not correlate with the organic mass portion of the seed, but increased linearly with liquid water content (LWC) of the seed. For fixed LWC, YSOA varied by more than a factor of five. Water soluble organic carbon (WSOC) photochemistry in the liquid water associated with internally mixed inorganic/WSOC seed aerosols is found responsible for this seed effect. WSOC photochemistry enhances the SOA source from CHOCHO, while seeds containing amino acids (AA) and/or SA showed among the lowest of all YSOA values, and largely suppress the photochemical enhancement on the rate of CHOCHO uptake. Our results give first evidence for the importance of heterogeneous photochemistry of CHOCHO in SOA formation, and identify a potential bias in the currently available YSOA data for other SOA precursor NMHCs. We demonstrate that SOA formation via the aqueous phase is not limited to cloud droplets, but proceeds also in the absence of clouds, i.e. does not stop once a cloud droplet evaporates. Atmospheric models need to be expanded to include SOA formation from WSOC photochemistry of CHOCHO, and possibly other α-dicarbonyls, in aqueous aerosols.


2009 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 6425-6449 ◽  
Author(s):  
I. El Haddad ◽  
Y. Liu ◽  
L. Nieto-Gligorovski ◽  
V. Michaud ◽  
B. Temime-Roussel ◽  
...  

Abstract. The fate of methacrolein in cloud evapo-condensation cycles was experimentally investigated. To this end, aqueous-phase reactions of methacrolein with OH radicals were performed (as described in Liu et al., 2009), and the obtained solutions were then nebulized and dried into a mixing chamber. The ESI-MS and ESI-MS/MS analyses of the aqueous phase composition denoted the formation of high molecular weight multifunctional products containing hydroxyl, carbonyl and carboxylic acid moieties. The time profiles of these products suggest that their formation can imply radical pathways. These high molecular weight organic products are certainly responsible for the formation of SOA observed during the nebulization experiments. The size, number and mass concentration of these particles increased significantly with the reaction time: after 22 h of reaction, the aerosol mass concentration was about three orders of magnitude higher than the initial aerosol quantity. The evaluated SOA yield ranged from 2 to 12%. This provides, for the first time to our knowledge, strong experimental evidence that cloud processes can act as important contributors to secondary organic aerosol formation in the troposphere. The hygroscopic properties of these secondary organic aerosols are analysed in Michaud et al. (2009).


2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (10) ◽  
pp. 5995-6014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Camille Mouchel-Vallon ◽  
Julia Lee-Taylor ◽  
Alma Hodzic ◽  
Paulo Artaxo ◽  
Bernard Aumont ◽  
...  

Abstract. The GoAmazon 2014/5 field campaign took place in Manaus, Brazil, and allowed the investigation of the interaction between background-level biogenic air masses and anthropogenic plumes. We present in this work a box model built to simulate the impact of urban chemistry on biogenic secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation and composition. An organic chemistry mechanism is generated with the Generator for Explicit Chemistry and Kinetics of Organics in the Atmosphere (GECKO-A) to simulate the explicit oxidation of biogenic and anthropogenic compounds. A parameterization is also included to account for the reactive uptake of isoprene oxidation products on aqueous particles. The biogenic emissions estimated from existing emission inventories had to be reduced to match measurements. The model is able to reproduce ozone and NOx for clean and polluted situations. The explicit model is able to reproduce background case SOA mass concentrations but does not capture the enhancement observed in the urban plume. The oxidation of biogenic compounds is the major contributor to SOA mass. A volatility basis set (VBS) parameterization applied to the same cases obtains better results than GECKO-A for predicting SOA mass in the box model. The explicit mechanism may be missing SOA-formation processes related to the oxidation of monoterpenes that could be implicitly accounted for in the VBS parameterization.


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