scholarly journals Black Carbon - A Silent Contributor to Climate Change

2021 ◽  
pp. 242-246
Author(s):  
Shikha Uniyal Gairola ◽  
Siddharth Shankar Bhatt
Keyword(s):  
Particulate Matter ◽  
Black Carbon ◽  
Organic Compounds ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Complex Mixture ◽  
Cloud Formation ◽  
Complete Combustion ◽  
Incomplete Combustion ◽  
Carbon Particles ◽  
Work Done

Black carbon is a potent climate-warming component of particulate matter formed by the incomplete combustion of fossil-fuels, wood and other fuels. Complete combustion would turn all the carbon in the fuel into carbon dioxide, but combustion is never complete, and CO2, CO, volatile organic compounds, organic compounds, and black carbon particles are formed in the process. It contributes to warming by converting incoming solar radiation to heat. When deposited on ice and snow, BC and co-emitted particles reduce surface albedo thereby melting the glaciers. The complex mixture of particulate matter resulting from incomplete combustion is referred as soot. When suspended in the atmosphere, black carbon contributes to warming by converting incoming solar radiations to heat. It also influences cloud formation and impacts regional circulation and rainfall pattern. The Artic and the glaciated regions such as Himalayas are particularly vulnerable to melting as a result. The present paper aims to review the work done on black carbon and its mitigation measure.

scholarly journals Black carbon as a factor in deglaciation in polar and mountain ecosystems: A Review

2020 ◽  
pp. 6-33
Author(s):  
Vyacheslav I. Polyakov ◽  
◽  
Evgeny V. Abakumov ◽  
Rustam Kh. Tembotov ◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Solar Radiation ◽  
Black Carbon ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Volcanic Eruptions ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Strong Light ◽  
Mountainous Regions ◽  
Carbon Particles ◽  
Central Caucasus ◽  
Main Component

Black carbon is considered a product of the incomplete combustion of fossil fuels and materials that originated from volcanic eruptions or were emitted during wildfires. It is a strong light-absorbing component that has many atmospheric and surface effects in terrestrial and glacial ecosystems. Normally, black carbon is presented as a solid particle, consisting mainly of pure carbon, which absorbs solar radiation at all wavelengths. Some black carbon particles are amended by a mineral compound, though black carbon substances are normally dark or greyish dark. Black carbon is the most active part of suspended particles in the atmosphere and on glacial surfaces, absorbing solar radiation, the main component of ash, which consists of carbon particles with impurities in the form of mineral particles and also contains carbon of biogenic origin. In this paper, we have analyzed the literature on black carbon and its effect on deglaciation processes in the Earth’s polar and mountainous regions. The physical, chemical, and microbiological composition of black carbon accumulations were studied using the examples of the Arctic, the Antarctic, and the Central Caucasus. Potential sources and conditions of the transportation of black carbon into the polar zone and their effect on ice and snow have also been discussed.

scholarly journals Heterogeneous nucleation of water vapor on different types of black carbon particles

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ari Laaksonen ◽  
Jussi Malila ◽  
Athanasios Nenes
Keyword(s):  
Water Vapor ◽  
Black Carbon ◽  
Heterogeneous Nucleation ◽  
Hydrological Cycle ◽  
Quantitative Description ◽  
Nucleation Theory ◽  
Cloud Formation ◽  
Cloud Droplets ◽  
Carbon Particles ◽  
Different Types

Abstract. Heterogeneous nucleation of water vapor on insoluble particles affects cloud formation, precipitation, the hydrological cycle and climate. Despite its importance, heterogeneous nucleation remains a poorly understood phenomenon that relies heavily on empirical information for its quantitative description. Here, we examine heterogeneous nucleation of water vapor on and cloud drop activation of different types of soots, both pure black carbon particles, and black carbon particles mixed with secondary organic matter. We show that the recently developed adsorption nucleation theory quantitatively predicts the nucleation of water and droplet formation upon particles of the various soot types. A surprising consequence of this new understanding is that, with sufficient adsorption site density, soot particles can activate into cloud droplets – even when completely lacking any soluble material.

scholarly journals Unraveling the complexity of atmospheric brown carbon produced by smoldering boreal peat using size-exclusion chromatography with selective mobile phases

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ming Lyu ◽  
Dan K Thompson ◽  
Nianci Zhang ◽  
Chad W Cuss ◽  
Cora Young ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Particulate Matter ◽  
Organic Compounds ◽  
Size Exclusion Chromatography ◽  
Complex Mixture ◽  
Size Exclusion ◽  
Significant Source ◽  
Brown Carbon ◽  
Mobile Phases ◽  
Exclusion Chromatography

Boreal wildfires are a significant source of atmospheric brown carbon (BrC), a complex mixture of thousands of light-absorbing organic compounds that contributes to the warming effects of combustion particulate matter....

scholarly journals Heterogeneous nucleation of water vapor on different types of black carbon particles

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (21) ◽  
pp. 13579-13589
Author(s):  
Ari Laaksonen ◽  
Jussi Malila ◽  
Athanasios Nenes
Keyword(s):  
Water Vapor ◽  
Black Carbon ◽  
Heterogeneous Nucleation ◽  
Hydrological Cycle ◽  
Quantitative Description ◽  
Nucleation Theory ◽  
Cloud Formation ◽  
Cloud Droplets ◽  
Carbon Particles ◽  
Different Types

Abstract. The heterogeneous nucleation of water vapor on insoluble particles affects cloud formation, precipitation, the hydrological cycle, and climate. Despite its importance, heterogeneous nucleation remains a poorly understood phenomenon that relies heavily on empirical information for its quantitative description. Here, we examine the heterogeneous nucleation of water vapor on different types of soots as well as cloud drop activation of different types of soots, including both pure black carbon particles and black carbon particles mixed with secondary organic matter. We show that the recently developed adsorption nucleation theory quantitatively predicts the nucleation of water and droplet formation upon particles of the various soot types. A surprising consequence of this new understanding is that, with sufficient adsorption site density, soot particles can activate into cloud droplets – even when completely lacking any soluble material.

What drives seasonal variations of organic aerosol over the Indo Gangetic Plain?

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Caterina Mogno ◽  
Paul Palmer ◽  
Christoph Knote
Keyword(s):  
Particulate Matter ◽  
Organic Compounds ◽  
Atmospheric Chemistry ◽  
Seasonal Variations ◽  
Seasonal Changes ◽  
Complex Mixture ◽  
Organic Aerosol ◽  
Basis Set ◽  
Gangetic Plain ◽  
Indo Gangetic Plain

<p>The Indo Gangetic Plain (IGP), home to more than 400 million people, encompasses most of northern and eastern India, the most populated parts of Pakistan, and Bangladesh. Cities in the IGP are among the most polluted in the world, with levels of particulate matter with diametres smaller than 2.5 microns (PM<sub>2.5</sub>), often far exceeding human health recommendations. Seasonal changes in the physical and chemical environment over the IGP are dominated by the large-scale South Asian monsoon system, but also by seasonal sources such as lifting of dust from the Thar desert and agricultural stubble burning at the end of the growing seasons. Organic aerosol (OA) represents a major contribution to PM<sub>2.5</sub>. They exist in a complex mixture, comprising of thousands of individual organic compounds. OA is made up of primary OA (POA), emitted directly to the atmosphere, and by secondary OA (SOA) formed by the gas-phase oxidation of volatile organic compounds. We use the WRF-Chem regional atmospheric chemistry model to study seasonal changes in the chemical properties of fine particulate matter over the IGP. In particular, we use the Volatility Basis Set (VBS) model in WRF-Chem to study both POA and SOA seasonal variations, and to quantify the importance of seasonal sources of OA to PM<sub>2.5</sub> over the IGP. We evaluate the model using satellite observations of aerosol optical properties.</p>

Vicious Cycle of Economic Growth, Pm2.5 and COVID-19 Case of G7 Countries

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rıdvan Karacan
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Air Pollution ◽  
Particulate Matter ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Fine Particulate Matter ◽  
Panel Cointegration ◽  
Air Pollutant ◽  
Population Exposure ◽  
Causality Analysis ◽  
G7 Countries

<p>Today, production is carried out depending on fossil fuels. Fossil fuels pollute the air as they contain high levels of carbon. Many studies have been carried out on the economic costs of air pollution. However, in the present study, unlike the former ones, economic growth's relationship with the COVID-19 virus in addition to air pollution was examined. The COVID-19 virus, which was initially reported in Wuhan, China in December 2019 and affected the whole world, has caused many cases and deaths. Researchers have been going on studying how the virus is transmitted. Some of these studies suggest that the number of virus-related cases increases in regions with a high level of air pollution. Based on this fact, it is thought that air pollution will increase the number of COVID-19 cases in G7 Countries where industrial production is widespread. Therefore, the negative aspects of economic growth, which currently depends on fossil fuels, is tried to be revealed. The research was carried out for the period between 2000-2019. Panel cointegration test and panel causality analysis were used for the empirical analysis. Particulate matter known as PM2.5[1] was used as an indicator of air pollution. Consequently, a positive long-term relationship has been identified between PM2.5 and economic growth. This relationship also affects the number of COVID-19 cases.</p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p>[1] "Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) is an air pollutant that poses the greatest risk to health globally, affecting more people than any other pollutant (WHO, 2018). Chronic exposure to PM2.5 considerably increases the risk of respiratory and cardiovascular diseases in particular (WHO, 2018). For these reasons, population exposure to (outdoor or ambient) PM2.5 has been identified as an OECD Green Growth headline indicator" (OECD.Stat).</p>

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