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Title: Laboratory Studies of Cloud Particle Formation, Mixing State, and Physiochemical and Optical Properties of Carbonaceous Aerosols

Abstract

Aerosol particles affect climate through direct and indirect interactions. In direct interactions, non-absorbing particles such as sulfate aerosols, backscatter solar radiation to space, leading to atmospheric cooling. By contrast, particles containing absorbing material such as refractory black carbon (rBC) produced during incomplete fuel combustion and to some extent also brown carbon components of biomass burning organic aerosol (BBOA) and secondary organic aerosol (SOA), absorb incoming solar radiation leading to atmospheric warming. Indirect effects include the ability of aerosol particles to alter the formation and properties of liquid water clouds (acting as cloud condensation nuclei or CCN) and ice clouds (acting as ice nuclei or IN), thereby affecting cloud albedo, coverage and lifetimes. The largest uncertainty in the modeling of climate impacts due to radiative forcing is caused by inadequate representation of aerosol-cloud interactions. The total radiative forcing on climate due to aerosol particles may be as large as that of the greenhouse gases, but predominantly opposite in sign (in the direction of cooling) and much more uncertain. All the direct and indirect radiative forcing effects may be influenced by the chemical composition of the particles.

Authors:
 [1]
  1. Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA (United States)
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Biological and Environmental Research (BER)
OSTI Identifier:
1529101
Report Number(s):
Final Report BC5100216
DOE Contract Number:  
SC0011935
Resource Type:
Technical Report
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES

Citation Formats

Davidovits, Paul. Laboratory Studies of Cloud Particle Formation, Mixing State, and Physiochemical and Optical Properties of Carbonaceous Aerosols. United States: N. p., 2019. Web. doi:10.2172/1529101.
Davidovits, Paul. Laboratory Studies of Cloud Particle Formation, Mixing State, and Physiochemical and Optical Properties of Carbonaceous Aerosols. United States. https://doi.org/10.2172/1529101
Davidovits, Paul. 2019. "Laboratory Studies of Cloud Particle Formation, Mixing State, and Physiochemical and Optical Properties of Carbonaceous Aerosols". United States. https://doi.org/10.2172/1529101. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1529101.
@article{osti_1529101,
title = {Laboratory Studies of Cloud Particle Formation, Mixing State, and Physiochemical and Optical Properties of Carbonaceous Aerosols},
author = {Davidovits, Paul},
abstractNote = {Aerosol particles affect climate through direct and indirect interactions. In direct interactions, non-absorbing particles such as sulfate aerosols, backscatter solar radiation to space, leading to atmospheric cooling. By contrast, particles containing absorbing material such as refractory black carbon (rBC) produced during incomplete fuel combustion and to some extent also brown carbon components of biomass burning organic aerosol (BBOA) and secondary organic aerosol (SOA), absorb incoming solar radiation leading to atmospheric warming. Indirect effects include the ability of aerosol particles to alter the formation and properties of liquid water clouds (acting as cloud condensation nuclei or CCN) and ice clouds (acting as ice nuclei or IN), thereby affecting cloud albedo, coverage and lifetimes. The largest uncertainty in the modeling of climate impacts due to radiative forcing is caused by inadequate representation of aerosol-cloud interactions. The total radiative forcing on climate due to aerosol particles may be as large as that of the greenhouse gases, but predominantly opposite in sign (in the direction of cooling) and much more uncertain. All the direct and indirect radiative forcing effects may be influenced by the chemical composition of the particles.},
doi = {10.2172/1529101},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/1529101}, journal = {},
number = ,
volume = ,
place = {United States},
year = {Fri Jun 14 00:00:00 EDT 2019},
month = {Fri Jun 14 00:00:00 EDT 2019}
}