Production of particulate brown carbon during atmospheric aging of residential wood-burning emissions

oleh: N. K. Kumar, J. C. Corbin, J. C. Corbin, E. A. Bruns, D. Massabó, J. G. Slowik, L. Drinovec, L. Drinovec, G. Močnik, G. Močnik, P. Prati, A. Vlachou, U. Baltensperger, M. Gysel, I. El-Haddad, A. S. H. Prévôt

Format: Article
Diterbitkan: Copernicus Publications 2018-12-01

Deskripsi

<p>We investigate the optical properties of light-absorbing organic carbon (brown carbon) from domestic wood combustion as a function of simulated atmospheric aging. At shorter wavelengths (370–470&thinsp;nm), light absorption by brown carbon from primary organic aerosol (POA) and secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formed during aging was around 10&thinsp;% and 20&thinsp;%, respectively, of the total aerosol absorption (brown carbon plus black carbon). The mass absorption cross section (MAC) determined for black carbon (BC, 13.7&thinsp;m<span class="inline-formula"><sup>2</sup></span>&thinsp;g<span class="inline-formula"><sup>−1</sup></span> at 370&thinsp;nm, with geometric standard deviation GSD&thinsp;<span class="inline-formula">=1.1</span>) was consistent with that recommended by Bond et al. (2006). The corresponding MAC of POA (5.5&thinsp;m<span class="inline-formula"><sup>2</sup></span>&thinsp;g<span class="inline-formula"><sup>−1</sup></span>; GSD&thinsp;<span class="inline-formula">=1.2</span>) was higher than that of SOA (2.4&thinsp;m<span class="inline-formula"><sup>2</sup></span>&thinsp;g<span class="inline-formula"><sup>−1</sup></span>; GSD&thinsp;<span class="inline-formula">=1.3</span>) at 370&thinsp;nm. However, SOA presents a substantial mass fraction, with a measured average SOA&thinsp;<span class="inline-formula">∕</span>&thinsp;POA mass ratio after aging of <span class="inline-formula">∼5</span> and therefore contributes significantly to the overall light absorption, highlighting the importance of wood-combustion SOA as a source of atmospheric brown carbon. The wavelength dependence of POA and SOA light absorption between 370 and 660&thinsp;nm is well described with absorption Ångström exponents of 4.6 and 5.6, respectively. UV-visible absorbance measurements of water and methanol-extracted OA were also performed, showing that the majority of the light-absorbing OA is water insoluble even after aging.</p>