A new analytical method, using the dark Fenton reaction as an OH radical source to study oxidations of unsaturated (di)aldehydes in the aqueous phase

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Majda Mekic ◽  
Thomas Schaefer ◽  
Hartmut Herrmann
Keyword(s):  
Organic Compounds ◽  
Aqueous Phase ◽  
Phase Transfer ◽  
Catalytic Decomposition ◽  
Water Soluble ◽  
Radical Scavenger ◽  
Oh Radicals ◽  
Oh Radical ◽  
Fenton Chemistry ◽  
Typical Experiment

<p>Anthropogenic and biogenic sources produce numerous primary emitted gases, organic compounds, and aerosols in the atmosphere. An important group of such compounds are α, β-unsaturated carbonyl molecules, which can be formed in the atmosphere due to their secondary origin, including oxidation of their precursors such as hydrocarbons with common atmospheric oxidants such as hydroxyl radicals (‧OH). Since those compounds contain at least one double bond and one carbonyl group, they are characterized as water-soluble molecules, which can diffuse on the cloud droplets’ surface and undergo a phase transfer from the gas phase to the atmospheric aqueous phase. In the latter, the oxidized organic compounds can contribute to aerosol mass production through in-cloud processes, yielding aqueous phase secondary organic aerosols (aqSOA). Due to their strong photochemical behavior, the development of a new analytical approach for evaluating the OH radical kinetics in the aqueous phase under dark conditions was essential. One of the most studied non-photolytic reactions is Fenton chemistry (Fe(II)/H<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2</sub>), which serves as an OH radical source in the dark in the atmospheric aqueous phase after catalytic decomposition of H<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2</sub> in the presence of Fe(II) at acidic pH values. In a typical experiment, temperature-dependent second-order rate constants of OH radicals with unsaturated dialdehydes, such as (1) crotonaldehyde, and (2) 1,4-butenedial, were determined in a bulk reactor by using the competition kinetics method. In the newly developed method, the role of radical scavenger was performed by isotopically labeled 2-propanol (d8), while the OH-initiated oxidation produces deuterated acetone (d6), being analyzed with GC-MS after derivatization. The findings from our research will be incorporated in the CAPRAM model to explain discrepancies between experimentally observed and predicted aqSOA properties.</p>

Reaction kinetics of OH radicals with glutaric acid and adipic acid in the aqueous phase

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liang Wen ◽  
Thomas Schaefer ◽  
Hartmut Herrmann
Keyword(s):  
Aqueous Phase ◽  
Adipic Acid ◽  
Rate Constants ◽  
Density Functional ◽  
Glutaric Acid ◽  
Radical Reaction ◽  
Basis Set ◽  
Oh Radicals ◽  
Oh Radical ◽  
Energy Barriers

<p>Dicarboxylic acids (DCAs) are widely distributed in atmospheric aerosols and cloud droplets and are mainly formed by the oxidation of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). For example, glutaric acid and adipic acid are two kinds of the DCAs that can be oxidized by hydroxyl radical (‧OH) reactions in the aqueous phase of aerosols and droplets. In the present study, the temperature- and pH-dependent rate constants of the aqueous OH radical reactions of the two DCAs were investigated by a laser flash photolysis-long path absorption setup using the competition kinetics method. Based on speciation calculations, the OH radical reaction rate constants of the fully protonated (H<sub>2</sub>A), deprotonated (HA<sup>-</sup>) and fully deprotonated (A<sup>2-</sup>) forms of the two DCAs were determined. The following Arrhenius expressions for the T-dependency of the OH radical reaction of glutaric acid, k(T, H<sub>2</sub>A) = (3.9 ± 0.1) × 10<sup>10</sup> × exp[(-1270 ± 200 K)/T], k(T, HA<sup>-</sup>) = (2.3 ± 0.1) × 10<sup>11</sup> × exp[(-1660 ± 190 K)/T], k(T, A<sup>2-</sup>) = (1.4 ± 0.1) × 10<sup>11</sup> × exp[(-1400 ± 170 K)/T] and adipic acid, k(T, H<sub>2</sub>A) = (7.5 ± 0.2) × 10<sup>10</sup> × exp[(-1210 ± 170 K)/T], k(T, HA<sup>-</sup>) = (9.5 ± 0.3) × 10<sup>10</sup> × exp[(-1200 ± 200 K)/T], k(T, A<sup>2-</sup>) = (8.7 ± 0.2) × 10<sup>10</sup> × exp[(-1100 ± 170 K)/T] (in unit of L mol<sup>-1</sup> s<sup>-1</sup>) were derived.</p><p>The energy barriers of the H-atom abstractions were simulated by the Density Functional Theory calculations run with the GAUSSIAN package using the M06-2X method and the basis set m062x/6-311++g(3df,2p). The results showed that the energy barriers were lower at the C<sub>β</sub>-atoms and are higher at the C<sub>α</sub>-atoms of the two DCAs, clearly suggesting that the H-atom abstractions occurred predominately at the C<sub>β</sub>-atoms. In addition, the ionizations can enhance the electrostatic effects of the carboxyl groups, significantly reducing the energy barriers, leading to the order of OH radical reactivity as  <  < . This study intends to better characterize the losing processes of glutaric acid and adipic acid in atmospheres.</p>

scholarly journals Aircraft observations of water-soluble dicarboxylic acids in the aerosols over China

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yan-Lin Zhang ◽  
Kimitaka Kawamura ◽  
Ping Qing Fu ◽  
Suresh K. R. Boreddy ◽  
Tomomi Watanabe ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Oxalic Acid ◽  
Organic Compounds ◽  
Aqueous Phase ◽  
Dicarboxylic Acids ◽  
Liquid Water Content ◽  
Water Soluble ◽  
Aircraft Observations ◽  
Volatile Organic ◽  
Intercontinental Transport ◽  
Surface Measurements

Abstract. Vertical profiles of low molecular weight dicarboxylic acids, related organic compounds and SOA tracer compounds in particle phase have not yet been simultaneously explored in East Asia, although there is growing evidence that aqueous phase oxidation of volatile organic compounds may be responsible for the elevated organic aerosols (OA) in the free troposphere. Here, we found consistently good correlation of oxalic acid, the most abundant organics globally, with its precursors as well as biogenic-derived secondary OA (SOA) compounds in Chinese tropospheric aerosols by aircraft measurements. Anthropogenically derived dicarboxylic acids (i.e., C5 and C6 diacids) at high altitudes were 4–20 times higher than those from surface measurements and even occasionally dominant over oxalic acid at altitude higher than 2 km, which is in contrast to the predominance of oxalic acid previously reported globally including the tropospheric and surface aerosols. This indicates an enhancement of tropospheric SOA formation from anthropogenic precursors. Furthermore, oxalic acid-tosulfate ratio maximized at altitude of ~2 km, explaining aqueous-phase SOA production that was supported by good correlations with predicted liquid water content, organic carbon and biogenic SOA tracers. These results demonstrate that elevated oxalic acid and related SOA compounds from both the anthropogenic and biogenic sources may substantially contribute to tropospheric OA burden over polluted regions of China, implying aerosol-associated climate effects and intercontinental transport.

scholarly journals Importance of SOA formation of α-pinene, limonene and <i>m</i>-cresol comparing day-and night-time radical chemistry

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anke Mutzel ◽  
Yanli Zhang ◽  
Olaf Böge ◽  
Maria Rodigast ◽  
Agata Kolodziejczyk ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mass Fraction ◽  
Radical Reaction ◽  
Water Soluble ◽  
Oh Radicals ◽  
Oh Radical ◽  
Night Time ◽  
Formation Potential ◽  
Phase Constituent ◽  
Dry Conditions ◽  
The One

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 day-time conditions (OH radicals) and the resulting chemical composition. It was found that SOA formation potential of limonene with NO3 significantly exceeds the one 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. On the contrary, the SOA formation potential of α-pinene with NO3 slightly exceeds that of the OH radical reaction, independent from RH. In average, α-pinene yielded SOA with about 6–7 % from NO3 radicals and 3–4 % from OH radical reaction. Surprisingly, unexpected 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 attributed 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 is water-insoluble. The fraction of SOA-bound peroxides which originated from α-pinene varied between 2–80 % as a function of RH. Furthermore, SOA from α-pinene revealed pinonic acid as the most important particle-phase constituent under day- and night-time conditions with fraction of 1–4 %. Further 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 almost no RH effect when formed during night.

scholarly journals Chemical insights, explicit chemistry, and yields of secondary organic aerosol from OH radical oxidation of methylglyoxal and glyoxal in the aqueous phase

2013 ◽  
Vol 13 (17) ◽  
pp. 8651-8667 ◽  
Author(s):  
Y. B. Lim ◽  
Y. Tan ◽  
B. J. Turpin
Keyword(s):  
Acetic Acid ◽  
Aqueous Phase ◽  
Secondary Organic Aerosol ◽  
Organic Aerosol ◽  
Water Soluble ◽  
Oxidation Products ◽  
Radical Reactions ◽  
Organic Radical ◽  
Oh Radical ◽  
Radical Oxidation

Abstract. Atmospherically abundant, volatile water-soluble organic compounds formed through gas-phase chemistry (e.g., glyoxal (C2), methylglyoxal (C3), and acetic acid) have great potential to form secondary organic aerosol (SOA) via aqueous chemistry in clouds, fogs, and wet aerosols. This paper (1) provides chemical insights into aqueous-phase OH-radical-initiated reactions leading to SOA formation from methylglyoxal and (2) uses this and a previously published glyoxal mechanism (Lim et al., 2010) to provide SOA yields for use in chemical transport models. Detailed reaction mechanisms including peroxy radical chemistry and a full kinetic model for aqueous photochemistry of acetic acid and methylglyoxal are developed and validated by comparing simulations with the experimental results from previous studies (Tan et al., 2010, 2012). This new methylglyoxal model is then combined with the previous glyoxal model (Lim et al., 2010), and is used to simulate the profiles of products and to estimate SOA yields. At cloud-relevant concentrations (~ 10−6 − ~ 10−3 M; Munger et al., 1995) of glyoxal and methylglyoxal, the major photooxidation products are oxalic acid and pyruvic acid, and simulated SOA yields (by mass) are ~ 120% for glyoxal and ~ 80% for methylglyoxal. During droplet evaporation oligomerization of unreacted methylglyoxal/glyoxal that did not undergo aqueous photooxidation could enhance yields. In wet aerosols, where total dissolved organics are present at much higher concentrations (~ 10 M), the major oxidation products are oligomers formed via organic radical–radical reactions, and simulated SOA yields (by mass) are ~ 90% for both glyoxal and methylglyoxal. Non-radical reactions (e.g., with ammonium) could enhance yields.

Influence of in-cloud oxidation of organic compounds on tropospheric ozone

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simon Rosanka ◽  
Rolf Sander ◽  
Bruno Franco ◽  
Catherine Wespes ◽  
Andreas Wahner ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gas Phase ◽  
Organic Compounds ◽  
Aqueous Phase ◽  
Phase Transfer ◽  
Sulfur Oxidation ◽  
Box Model ◽  
Atmospheric Models ◽  
Model Studies ◽  
Phase Chemistry ◽  
The Impact

&lt;p&gt;Large parts of the troposphere are affected by clouds, whose aqueous-phase chemistry differs significantly from gas-phase chemistry. Box-model studies have demonstrated that clouds influence the tropospheric oxidation capacity. However, most global atmospheric models do not represent this chemistry reasonably well and are largely limited to sulfur oxidation. Therefore, we have developed the J&amp;#252;lich Aqueous-phase Mechanism of Organic Chemistry (JAMOC), making a detailed in-cloud oxidation model of oxygenated volatile organic compounds (OVOCs) readily available for box as well as for regional and global simulations that are affordable with modern supercomputers. JAMOC includes the phase transfer of species containing up to ten carbon atoms, and the aqueous-phase reactions of a selection of species containing up to four carbon atoms, e.g., ethanol, acetaldehyde, glyoxal. The impact of in-cloud chemistry on tropospheric composition is assessed on a regional and global scale by performing a combination of box-model studies using the Chemistry As A Boxmodel Application (CAABA) and the global atmospheric model ECHAM/MESSy (EMAC). These models are capable to represent the described processes explicitly and integrate the corresponding ODE system with a Rosenbrock solver.&amp;#160;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Overall, the explicit in-cloud oxidation leads to a reduction of predicted OVOCs levels. By comparing EMAC's prediction of methanol abundance to spaceborne retrievals from the Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer (IASI), a reduction in EMAC's overestimation is observed in the tropics. Further, the in-cloud OVOC oxidation shifts the hydroperoxyl radicals (HO&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt;) production from the gas- to the aqueous-phase. As a result, the in-cloud destruction (scavenging) of ozone (O&lt;sub&gt;3&lt;/sub&gt;) by the superoxide anion (O&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt;&lt;sup&gt;-&lt;/sup&gt;) is enhanced and accompanied by a reduction in both sources and sinks of tropospheric O&lt;sub&gt;3&lt;/sub&gt; in the gas phase. By considering only the in-cloud sulfur oxidation by O&lt;sub&gt;3&lt;/sub&gt;, about 13 Tg a&lt;sup&gt;-1&lt;/sup&gt; of O&lt;sub&gt;3&lt;/sub&gt; are scavenged, which increases to 336 Tg a&lt;sup&gt;-1&lt;/sup&gt; when JAMOC is used. With the full oxidation scheme, the highest O&lt;sub&gt;3&lt;/sub&gt; reduction of 12 % is predicted in the upper troposphere/lower stratosphere (UTLS). Based on the IASI O&lt;sub&gt;3&lt;/sub&gt; retrievals, it is demonstrated that these changes in the free troposphere significantly reduce the modelled tropospheric O&lt;sub&gt;3&lt;/sub&gt; columns, which are known to be generally overestimated by global atmospheric models. Finally, the relevance of aqueous-phase oxidation of organics for ozone in hazy polluted regions will be presented. &amp;#160;&lt;/p&gt;

scholarly journals The kinetics and mechanism of an aqueous phase isoprene reaction with hydroxyl radical

2011 ◽  
Vol 11 (15) ◽  
pp. 7399-7415 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Huang ◽  
X. Zhang ◽  
Z. M. Chen ◽  
Y. Zhao ◽  
X. L. Shen
Keyword(s):  
Oxalic Acid ◽  
Gas Phase ◽  
Organic Compounds ◽  
Aqueous Phase ◽  
Laboratory Simulation ◽  
Potential Contribution ◽  
Phase Reaction ◽  
Oh Radical ◽  
Reaction Products ◽  
Isoprene Oxidation

Abstract. Aqueous phase chemical processes of organic compounds in the atmosphere have received increasing attention, partly due to their potential contribution to the formation of secondary organic aerosol (SOA). Here, we analyzed the aqueous OH-initiated oxidation of isoprene and its reaction products including carbonyl compounds and organic acids, regarding the acidity and temperature as in-cloudy conditions. We also performed a laboratory simulation to improve our understanding of the kinetics and mechanisms for the products of aqueous isoprene oxidation that are significant precursors of SOA; these included methacrolein (MACR), methyl vinyl ketone (MVK), methyl glyoxal (MG), and glyoxal (GL). We used a novel chemical titration method to monitor the concentration of isoprene in the aqueous phase. We used a box model to interpret the mechanistic differences between aqueous and gas phase OH radical-initiated isoprene oxidations. Our results were the first demonstration of the rate constant for the reaction between isoprene and OH radical in water, 1.2 ± 0.4) × 1010 M−1 s−1 at 283 K. Molar yields were determined based on consumed isoprene. Of note, the ratio of the yields of MVK (24.1 ± 0.8 %) to MACR (10.9 ± 1.1%) in the aqueous phase isoprene oxidation was approximately double that observed for the corresponding gas phase reaction. We hypothesized that this might be explained by a water-induced enhancement in the self-reaction of a hydroxy isoprene peroxyl radical (HOCH2C(CH3)(O2)CH = CH2) produced in the aqueous reaction. The observed yields for MG and GL were 11.4 ± 0.3 % and 3.8 ± 0.1 %, respectively. Model simulations indicated that several potential pathways may contribute to the formation of MG and GL. Finally, oxalic acid increased steadily throughout the course of the study, even after isoprene was consumed completely. The observed yield of oxalic acid was 26.2 ± 0.8 % at 6 h. The observed carbon balance accounted for ~50 % of the consumed isoprene. The presence of high-molecular-weight compounds may have accounted for a large portion of the missing carbons, but they were not quantified in this study. In summary, our work has provided experimental evidence that the availably abundant water could affect the distribution of oxygenated organic compounds produced in the oxidation of volatile organic compounds.

scholarly journals Importance of secondary organic aerosol formation of <i>α</i>-pinene, limonene, and <i>m</i>-cresol comparing day- and nighttime radical chemistry

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (11) ◽  
pp. 8479-8498
Author(s):  
Anke Mutzel ◽  
Yanli Zhang ◽  
Olaf Böge ◽  
Maria Rodigast ◽  
Agata Kolodziejczyk ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mass Fraction ◽  
Secondary Organic Aerosol ◽  
Radical Reaction ◽  
Organic Aerosol ◽  
Water Soluble ◽  
Oh Radicals ◽  
Oh Radical ◽  
Aerosol Formation ◽  
Formation Potential ◽  
Dry Conditions

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.

scholarly journals Oxidation of low-molecular-weight organic compounds in cloud droplets: development of the Jülich Aqueous-phase Mechanism of Organic Chemistry (JAMOC) in CAABA/MECCA (version 4.5.0)

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (6) ◽  
pp. 4103-4115
Author(s):  
Simon Rosanka ◽  
Rolf Sander ◽  
Andreas Wahner ◽  
Domenico Taraborrelli
Keyword(s):  
Organic Chemistry ◽  
Gas Phase ◽  
Organic Compounds ◽  
Aqueous Phase ◽  
Phase Transfer ◽  
Cloud Droplets ◽  
Physico Chemical ◽  
Oxygenated Volatile Organic Compounds ◽  
Chemical Scheme ◽  
Selection Of Species

Abstract. The Jülich Aqueous-phase Mechanism of Organic Chemistry (JAMOC) is developed and implemented in the Module Efficiently Calculating the Chemistry of the Atmosphere (MECCA; version 4.5.0). JAMOC is an explicit in-cloud oxidation scheme for oxygenated volatile organic compounds (OVOCs), suitable for global model applications. It is based on a subset of the comprehensive Cloud Explicit Physico-chemical Scheme (CLEPS; version 1.0). The phase transfer of species containing up to 10 carbon atoms is included, and a selection of species containing up to 4 carbon atoms reacts in the aqueous phase. In addition, the following main advances are implemented: (1) simulating hydration and dehydration explicitly; (2) taking oligomerisation of formaldehyde, glyoxal, and methylglyoxal into account; (3) adding further photolysis reactions; and (4) considering gas-phase oxidation of new outgassed species. The implementation of JAMOC in MECCA makes a detailed in-cloud OVOC oxidation model readily available for box as well as for regional and global simulations that are affordable with modern supercomputing facilities. The new mechanism is tested inside the box model Chemistry As A Boxmodel Application (CAABA), yielding reduced gas-phase concentrations of most oxidants and OVOCs except for the nitrogen oxides.

scholarly journals Oxidation of low-molecular weight organic compounds in cloud droplets: development of the JAMOC chemical mechanism in CAABA/MECCA (version 4.5.0gmdd)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simon Rosanka ◽  
Rolf Sander ◽  
Andreas Wahner ◽  
Domenico Taraborrelli
Keyword(s):  
Gas Phase ◽  
Organic Compounds ◽  
Aqueous Phase ◽  
Phase Transfer ◽  
Chemical Mechanism ◽  
Cloud Droplets ◽  
Physico Chemical ◽  
Chemical Scheme ◽  
Selection Of Species ◽  
Bug Fixes

Abstract. The Jülich Aqueous-phase Mechanism of Organic Chemistry (JAMOC) is developed and implemented in the Module Efficiently Calculating the Chemistry of the Atmosphere (MECCA, version 4.5.0gmdd1). JAMOC is an explicit in-cloud oxidation scheme for oxygenated volatile organic compounds (OVOCs), suitable for global model applications. It is based on a subset of the comprehensive CLoud Explicit Physico-chemical Scheme (CLEPS, version 1.0). The phase transfer of species containing up to ten carbon atoms is included, and a selection of species containing up to four carbon atoms reacts in the aqueous-phase. In addition, the following main advances are implemented: (1) simulating hydration and dehydration explicitly, (2) taking oligomerisation of formaldehyde, glyoxal and methylglyoxal into account, (3) adding further photolysis reactions, and (4) considering gas-phase oxidation of new outgassed species. The implementation of JAMOC in MECCA makes a detailed in-cloud OVOC oxidation model readily available for box as well as for regional and global simulations that are affordable with modern supercomputing facilities. The new mechanism is tested inside the box-model Chemistry As A Boxmodel Application (CAABA), yielding reduced gas-phase concentrations of most oxidants and OVOCs except for the nitrogen oxides. 1 The name of this version indicates that it is used for the interactive discussion in GMDD. If necessary, bug fixes can still be made. We plan to release the final version CAABA/MECCA-4.5.0 together with the final paper in GMD.

scholarly journals Enhancement of atmospheric H<sub>2</sub>SO<sub>4</sub>/H<sub>2</sub>O nucleation: organic oxidation products versus amines

2013 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 16301-16335 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Berndt ◽  
M. Sipilä ◽  
F. Stratmann ◽  
T. Petäjä ◽  
J. Vanhanen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Oxidation Products ◽  
Radical Scavenger ◽  
Oh Radicals ◽  
Oh Radical ◽  
Flow Tube ◽  
Experimental Conditions ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Nucleation Mechanisms ◽  
Comparison Of The Results ◽  
Organic Oxidation

Abstract. Atmospheric H2SO4/H2O nucleation influencing effects have been studied in the flow tube IfT-LFT (Institute for Tropospheric Research – Laminar Flow Tube) at 293 ± 0.5 K and a pressure of 1 bar using synthetic air as the carrier gas. The presence of a possible background amine concentration in the order of 107–108 molecule cm−3 throughout the experiments has to be taken into account. In a first set of investigations, ozonolysis of olefins (tetramethylethylene, 1-methyl-cyclohexene, α-pinene and limonene) for close to atmospheric concentrations, served as the source of OH radicals and possibly other oxidants initiating H2SO4 formation starting from SO2. The oxidant generation is inevitably associated with the formation of a series of organic oxidation products arising from the parent olefins. These products (first generation mainly) showed no clear effect on the number of nucleated particles within a wide range of experimental conditions for H2SO4 concentrations higher than ~107 molecule cm−3. A comparison of the results of two different particle counters (50% cut-off size: about 1.5 nm or 2.5–3 nm) suggested that the early growth process of the nucleated particles was not significantly influenced by the organic oxidation products. An additional, H2SO4-independent process of particle (nano-CN) formation was observed in the case of α-pinene and limonene ozonolysis for H2SO4 concentrations smaller than ~10 7 molecule cm−3. Furthermore, the findings confirm the existence of an additional oxidant for SO2 beside OH radicals, very likely stabilized Criegee Intermediate (sCI). In the case of the ozonolysis of tetramethylethylene, the H2SO4 measurements in the absence and presence of an OH radical scavenger were well described by modelling using recently obtained kinetic data for the sCI reactivity in this system. A second set of experiments has been performed in the presence of added amines (trimethylamine, dimethylamine, aniline and pyridine) in the concentration range of a few 107–1010 molecule cm−3. Here, photolytic OH radical generation was applied for H2SO4 production with no addition of other organics. All amines showed a significant nucleation enhancement with increasing efficiency in the order pyridine < aniline < dimethylamine < trimethylamine. This result supports the idea of H2SO4 cluster stabilization by amines due to strong H2SO4 &amp;leftrightarrow; amine interactions. On the other hand, this study reveals that for organic oxidation products (in presence of the possible amine background as stated) a distinct H2SO4/H2O nucleation enhancement can be due to increased H2SO4 formation caused by additional organic oxidant production (sCI) rather than by stabilization of H2SO4 clusters due to H2SO4 &amp;leftrightarrow; organics interactions. However, because the molecular composition of nucleating clusters was not measured, the role of any background substances, unavoidably present in any system, to experimental data remains unclear. Also the experimental conditions do not cover fully the range of atmospheric observations, e.g., the concentration of precursor vapours represents rather the upper end of the atmospheric range. More experimental work is needed before definite conclusions about the nucleation mechanisms in the atmosphere can be drawn.

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