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Title: A dual-chamber method for quantifying the effects of atmospheric perturbations on secondary organic aerosol formation from biomass burning emissions: Investigation of Biomass Burning SOA

Abstract

Biomass burning (BB) is a major source of atmospheric pollutants. Field and laboratory studies indicate that secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation from BB emissions is highly variable. We investigated sources of this variability using a novel dual-smog-chamber method that directly compares the SOA formation from the same BB emissions under two different atmospheric conditions. During each experiment, we filled two identical Teflon smog chambers simultaneously with BB emissions from the same fire. We then perturbed the smoke with UV lights, UV lights plus nitrous acid (HONO), or dark ozone in one or both chambers. These perturbations caused SOA formation in nearly every experiment with an average organic aerosol (OA) mass enhancement ratio of 1.78 ± 0.91 (mean ± 1σ). However, the effects of the perturbations were highly variable ranging with OA mass enhancement ratios ranging from 0.7 (30% loss of OA mass) to 4.4 across the set of perturbation experiments. There was no apparent relationship between OA enhancement and perturbation type, fuel type, and modified combustion efficiency. To better isolate the effects of different perturbations, we report dual-chamber enhancement (DUCE), which is the quantity of the effects of a perturbation relative to a reference condition. DUCE values were also highlymore » variable, even for the same perturbation and fuel type. Gas measurements indicate substantial burn-to-burn variability in the magnitude and composition of SOA precursor emissions, even in repeated burns of the same fuel under nominally identical conditions. Therefore, the effects of different atmospheric perturbations on SOA formation from BB emissions appear to be less important than burn-to-burn variability.« less

Authors:
ORCiD logo [1];  [1]; ORCiD logo [1]; ORCiD logo [1];  [2]; ORCiD logo [3];  [4]; ORCiD logo [4]; ORCiD logo [4]; ORCiD logo [2]; ORCiD logo [1]; ORCiD logo [1]; ORCiD logo [1]; ORCiD logo [1]
  1. Carnegie Mellon Univ., Pittsburgh, PA (United States)
  2. Univ. of Montana, Missoula, MT (United States)
  3. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Boulder, CO (United States). Earth System Research Lab.
  4. Univ. of California, Irvine, CA (United States)
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Carnegie Mellon Univ., Pittsburgh, PA (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE Office of Science (SC)
OSTI Identifier:
1532986
Grant/Contract Number:  
SC0007075
Resource Type:
Accepted Manuscript
Journal Name:
Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Volume: 122; Journal Issue: 11; Journal ID: ISSN 2169-897X
Publisher:
American Geophysical Union
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES; Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences

Citation Formats

Tkacik, Daniel S., Robinson, Ellis S., Ahern, Adam, Saleh, Rawad, Stockwell, Chelsea, Veres, Patrick, Simpson, Isobel J., Meinardi, Simone, Blake, Donald R., Yokelson, Robert J., Presto, Albert A., Sullivan, Ryan C., Donahue, Neil M., and Robinson, Allen L. A dual-chamber method for quantifying the effects of atmospheric perturbations on secondary organic aerosol formation from biomass burning emissions: Investigation of Biomass Burning SOA. United States: N. p., 2017. Web. doi:10.1002/2016jd025784.
Tkacik, Daniel S., Robinson, Ellis S., Ahern, Adam, Saleh, Rawad, Stockwell, Chelsea, Veres, Patrick, Simpson, Isobel J., Meinardi, Simone, Blake, Donald R., Yokelson, Robert J., Presto, Albert A., Sullivan, Ryan C., Donahue, Neil M., & Robinson, Allen L. A dual-chamber method for quantifying the effects of atmospheric perturbations on secondary organic aerosol formation from biomass burning emissions: Investigation of Biomass Burning SOA. United States. https://doi.org/10.1002/2016jd025784
Tkacik, Daniel S., Robinson, Ellis S., Ahern, Adam, Saleh, Rawad, Stockwell, Chelsea, Veres, Patrick, Simpson, Isobel J., Meinardi, Simone, Blake, Donald R., Yokelson, Robert J., Presto, Albert A., Sullivan, Ryan C., Donahue, Neil M., and Robinson, Allen L. Wed . "A dual-chamber method for quantifying the effects of atmospheric perturbations on secondary organic aerosol formation from biomass burning emissions: Investigation of Biomass Burning SOA". United States. https://doi.org/10.1002/2016jd025784. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1532986.
@article{osti_1532986,
title = {A dual-chamber method for quantifying the effects of atmospheric perturbations on secondary organic aerosol formation from biomass burning emissions: Investigation of Biomass Burning SOA},
author = {Tkacik, Daniel S. and Robinson, Ellis S. and Ahern, Adam and Saleh, Rawad and Stockwell, Chelsea and Veres, Patrick and Simpson, Isobel J. and Meinardi, Simone and Blake, Donald R. and Yokelson, Robert J. and Presto, Albert A. and Sullivan, Ryan C. and Donahue, Neil M. and Robinson, Allen L.},
abstractNote = {Biomass burning (BB) is a major source of atmospheric pollutants. Field and laboratory studies indicate that secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation from BB emissions is highly variable. We investigated sources of this variability using a novel dual-smog-chamber method that directly compares the SOA formation from the same BB emissions under two different atmospheric conditions. During each experiment, we filled two identical Teflon smog chambers simultaneously with BB emissions from the same fire. We then perturbed the smoke with UV lights, UV lights plus nitrous acid (HONO), or dark ozone in one or both chambers. These perturbations caused SOA formation in nearly every experiment with an average organic aerosol (OA) mass enhancement ratio of 1.78 ± 0.91 (mean ± 1σ). However, the effects of the perturbations were highly variable ranging with OA mass enhancement ratios ranging from 0.7 (30% loss of OA mass) to 4.4 across the set of perturbation experiments. There was no apparent relationship between OA enhancement and perturbation type, fuel type, and modified combustion efficiency. To better isolate the effects of different perturbations, we report dual-chamber enhancement (DUCE), which is the quantity of the effects of a perturbation relative to a reference condition. DUCE values were also highly variable, even for the same perturbation and fuel type. Gas measurements indicate substantial burn-to-burn variability in the magnitude and composition of SOA precursor emissions, even in repeated burns of the same fuel under nominally identical conditions. Therefore, the effects of different atmospheric perturbations on SOA formation from BB emissions appear to be less important than burn-to-burn variability.},
doi = {10.1002/2016jd025784},
journal = {Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres},
number = 11,
volume = 122,
place = {United States},
year = {Wed May 03 00:00:00 EDT 2017},
month = {Wed May 03 00:00:00 EDT 2017}
}

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journal, January 2010


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journal, January 2009


Chemical and physical transformations of organic aerosol from the photo-oxidation of open biomass burning emissions in an environmental chamber
journal, January 2011


Properties and evolution of biomass burning organic aerosol from Canadian boreal forest fires
journal, January 2015


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journal, January 2011


Secondary organic aerosol formation from m-xylene, toluene, and benzene
journal, January 2007


Secondary organic aerosol formation and primary organic aerosol oxidation from biomass-burning smoke in a flow reactor during FLAME-3
journal, January 2013


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journal, January 2013


Absorptivity of brown carbon in fresh and photo-chemically aged biomass-burning emissions
journal, January 2013


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