Kinetics, Mechanism, and Secondary Organic Aerosol Yield of Aqueous Phase Photo-oxidation of α-Pinene Oxidation Products

2015 ◽  
Vol 120 (9) ◽  
pp. 1395-1407 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dana Aljawhary ◽  
Ran Zhao ◽  
Alex K.Y. Lee ◽  
Chen Wang ◽  
Jonathan P.D. Abbatt
2013 ◽  
Vol 13 (17) ◽  
pp. 8651-8667 ◽  
Author(s):  
Y. B. Lim ◽  
Y. Tan ◽  
B. J. Turpin

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.


2011 ◽  
Vol 11 (12) ◽  
pp. 5917-5929 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. F. Hamilton ◽  
M. Rami Alfarra ◽  
K. P. Wyche ◽  
M. W. Ward ◽  
A. C. Lewis ◽  
...  

Abstract. The use of β-caryophyllene secondary organic aerosol particles as seeds for smog chamber simulations has been investigated. A series of experiments were carried out in the Manchester photochemical chamber as part of the Aerosol Coupling in the Earth System (ACES) project to study the effect of seed particles on the formation of secondary organic aerosol (SOA) from limonene photo-oxidation. Rather than use a conventional seed aerosol containing ammonium sulfate or diesel particles, a method was developed to use in-situ chamber generated seed particles from β-caryophyllene photo-oxidation, which were then diluted to a desired mass loading (in this case 4–13 μg m−3). Limonene was then introduced into the chamber and oxidised, with the formation of SOA seen as a growth in the size of oxidised organic seed particles from 150 to 325 nm mean diameter. The effect of the partitioning of limonene oxidation products onto the seed aerosol was assessed using aerosol mass spectrometry during the experiment and the percentage of m/z 44, an indicator of degree of oxidation, increased from around 5 to 8 %. The hygroscopicity of the aerosol also changed, with the growth factor for 200 nm particles increasing from less than 1.05 to 1.25 at 90 % RH. The detailed chemical composition of the limonene SOA could be extracted from the complex β-caryophyllene matrix using two-dimensional gas chromatography (GC × GC) and liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry. High resolution Fourier Transform Ion Cyclotron Resonance Mass Spectrometry (FTICR-MS) was used to determine exact molecular formulae of the seed and the limonene modified aerosol. The average O:C ratio was seen to increase from 0.32 to 0.37 after limonene oxidation products had condensed onto the organic seed.


2010 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 25117-25151
Author(s):  
J. F. Hamilton ◽  
M. Rami Alfarra ◽  
K. P. Wyche ◽  
M. W. Ward ◽  
A. C. Lewis ◽  
...  

Abstract. The use of β-caryophyllene secondary organic aerosol particles as seeds for smog chamber simulations has been investigated. A series of experiments were carried out in the Manchester photochemical chamber as part of the Aerosol Coupling in the Earth System (ACES) project to study the effect of seed particles on the formation of secondary organic aerosol (SOA) from limonene photo-oxidation. Rather than use a conventional seed aerosol containing ammonium sulphate or diesel particles, a method was developed to use in situ chamber generated seed particles from β-caryophyllene photo-oxidation, which were then diluted to a desired mass loading (in this case 4–13 μg m-3). Limonene was then introduced into the chamber and oxidised, with the formation of SOA seen as a growth in the size of oxidised organic seed particles from 150 to 325 nm mean diameter. The effect of the partitioning of limonene oxidation products onto the seed aerosol was assessed using aerosol mass spectrometry during the experiment and the percentage of m/z 44, an indicator of degree of oxidation, increased from around 5 to 8%. The hygroscopicity of the aerosol also changed, with the growth factor for 200 nm particles increasing from less than 1.05 to 1.25 at 90% RH. The detailed chemical composition of the limonene SOA could be extracted from the complex β-caryophyllene matrix using two-dimensional gas chromatography (GC×GC) and liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry. High resolution Fourier Transform Ion Cyclotron Resonance Mass Spectrometry (FTICR-MS) was used to determine exact molecular formulae of the seed and the limonene modified aerosol. The average O:C ratio was seen to increase from 0.32 to 0.37 after limonene oxidation products had condensed onto the organic seed.


2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dongyu S. Wang ◽  
Lea Hildebrandt Ruiz

Abstract. Recent studies have found inland concentrations of reactive chlorine species to be higher than expected, suggesting that atmospheric chlorine chemistry is more extensive than previously thought. Chlorine radicals can interact with HOx radicals and nitrogen oxides (NOx) to alter the oxidative capacity of the atmosphere. They are known to rapidly oxidize a wide range of volatile organic compounds (VOC) found in the atmosphere, yet little is known about secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation from chlorine-initiated photo-oxidation and its atmospheric implications. Environmental chamber experiments were carried out under low-NOx conditions with isoprene and chlorine as primary VOC and oxidant sources. Upon complete isoprene consumption, observed SOA yields ranged from 8 % to 36 %, decreasing with extended photo-oxidation and SOA aging. A High-Resolution Time-of-Flight Chemical Ionization Mass Spectrometer was used to determine the molecular composition of gas-phase species using iodide-water and hydronium-water ionization. Ions consistent with isoprene-derived epoxydiol (IEPOX) and other common OH-isoprene oxidation products were observed, evident of secondary OH production and resulting chemistry from Cl-initiated reactions.


2010 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 2915-2943 ◽  
Author(s):  
Y. Sun ◽  
Q. Zhang ◽  
C. Anastasio ◽  
J. Sun

Abstract. Recent work has shown that aqueous-phase reactions of phenolic compounds – phenol (C6H6O), guaiacol (C7H8O2), and syringol (C8H10O3) – can form secondary organic aerosol (SOA) at high yields. Here we examine the chemical characteristics of this SOA and its formation mechanisms using a High-Resolution Time-of-Flight Aerosol Mass Spectrometer (HR-AMS), an Ion Chromatograph (IC), and a Total Organic Carbon (TOC) analyzer. The phenolic SOA are highly oxygenated with oxygen-to-carbon (O/C) ratios in the range of 0.80–1.06 and carbon oxidation states (=2×O/C–H/C) between −0.14 and +0.47. The organic mass-to-carbon (OM/OC) ratios determined by the HR-AMS (=2.21–2.55) agree well with values determined based on the SOA mass measured gravimetrically and the OC mass from the TOC analyzer. Both the O/C and OM/OC ratios of the phenolic SOA are similar to the values observed for ambient low-volatility oxygenated/secondary OA (LV-OOA). Oxalate is a minor, but ubiquitous, component of the SOA formed from all three phenolic precursors, accounting for 1.4–5.2% of the SOA mass, with generally higher yields in experiments with H2O2 added as an ·OH source compared to without. The AMS spectra show evidence for the formation of syringol and guaiacol dimers and higher oligomers via C–C and C–O coupling of phenoxyl radicals, which are formed through oxidation pathways such as abstraction of the phenolic hydrogen atom or ·OH addition to the aromatic ring. This latter pathway leads to hydroxylation of the aromatic ring, which is one mechanism that increases the degree of oxidation of the SOA products. Compared to direct photochemical reactions of the phenols, ·OH-initiated reactions favor the formation of smaller oxidation products but less dimers or higher oligomers. Two unique and prominent ions in the syringol and guaiacol SOA spectra, m/z 306 (C16H18O6+) and m/z 246 (C14H14O4+), respectively, are observed in ambient aerosols significantly influenced by wood combustion and fog processing. Our results indicate that cloud and fog processing of phenolic compounds, especially in areas with active biomass burning, might represent an important pathway for the formation of low-volatility and highly oxygenated organic species, which would remain in particle phase after fog/cloud evaporation and affect the hygroscopicity and radiative impacts of ambient OA.


2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (8) ◽  
pp. 5035-5061 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa Stirnweis ◽  
Claudia Marcolli ◽  
Josef Dommen ◽  
Peter Barmet ◽  
Carla Frege ◽  
...  

Abstract. Secondary organic aerosol (SOA) yields from the photo-oxidation of α-pinene were investigated in smog chamber (SC) experiments at low (23–29 %) and high (60–69 %) relative humidity (RH), various NOx ∕ VOC ratios (0.04–3.8) and with different aerosol seed chemical compositions (acidic to neutralized sulfate-containing or hydrophobic organic). A combination of a scanning mobility particle sizer and an Aerodyne high-resolution time-of-flight aerosol mass spectrometer was used to determine SOA mass concentration and chemical composition. We used a Monte Carlo approach to parameterize smog chamber SOA yields as a function of the condensed phase absorptive mass, which includes the sum of OA and the corresponding bound liquid water content. High RH increased SOA yields by up to 6 times (1.5–6.4) compared to low RH. The yields at low NOx ∕ VOC ratios were in general higher compared to yields at high NOx ∕ VOC ratios. This NOx dependence follows the same trend as seen in previous studies for α-pinene SOA. A novel approach of data evaluation using volatility distributions derived from experimental data served as the basis for thermodynamic phase partitioning calculations of model mixtures in this study. These calculations predict liquid–liquid phase separation into organic-rich and electrolyte phases. At low NOx conditions, equilibrium partitioning between the gas and liquid phases can explain most of the increase in SOA yields observed at high RH, when in addition to the α-pinene photo-oxidation products described in the literature, fragmentation products are added to the model mixtures. This increase is driven by both the increase in the absorptive mass and the solution non-ideality described by the compounds' activity coefficients. In contrast, at high NOx, equilibrium partitioning alone could not explain the strong increase in the yields with RH. This suggests that other processes, e.g. reactive uptake of semi-volatile species into the liquid phase, may occur and be enhanced at higher RH, especially for compounds formed under high NOx conditions, e.g. carbonyls.


2010 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 4809-4822 ◽  
Author(s):  
Y. L. Sun ◽  
Q. Zhang ◽  
C. Anastasio ◽  
J. Sun

Abstract. Recent work has shown that aqueous-phase reactions of phenolic compounds – phenol (C6H6O), guaiacol (C7H8O2), and syringol (C8H10O3) – can form secondary organic aerosol (SOA) at high yields. Here we examine the chemical characteristics of this SOA and its formation mechanisms using a High-Resolution Time-of-Flight Aerosol Mass Spectrometer (HR-AMS), an Ion Chromatography system (IC), and a Total Organic Carbon (TOC) analyzer. The phenolic SOA are highly oxygenated with oxygen-to-carbon (O/C) ratios in the range of 0.80–1.06 and carbon oxidation states (=2×O/C-H/C) between −0.14 and +0.47. The organic mass-to-carbon (OM/OC) ratios determined by the HR-AMS (=2.21–2.55) agree well with values determined based on the SOA mass measured gravimetrically and the OC mass from the TOC analyzer. Both the O/C and OM/OC ratios of the phenolic SOA are similar to the values observed for ambient low-volatility oxygenated/secondary OA (LV-OOA). Oxalate is a minor, but ubiquitous, component of the SOA formed from all three phenolic precursors, accounting for 1.4−5.2% of the SOA mass, with generally higher yields in experiments with H2O2 added as an OH source compared to without. The AMS spectra show evidence for the formation of syringol and guaiacol dimers and higher oligomers via C-C and C-O coupling of phenoxyl radicals, which are formed through oxidation pathways such as abstraction of the phenolic hydrogen atom or OH addition to the aromatic ring. This latter pathway leads to hydroxylation of the aromatic ring, which is one mechanism that increases the degree of oxidation of the SOA products. Compared to direct photochemical reactions of the phenols, OH-initiated reactions favor the formation of smaller oxidation products but less dimers or higher oligomers. Two unique and prominent ions in the syringol and guaiacol SOA spectra, m/z 306 (C16H18O6+) and m/z 246 (C14H14O4+), respectively, are observed in ambient aerosols significantly influenced by wood combustion and fog processing. Our results indicate that cloud and fog processing of phenolic compounds, especially in areas with active biomass burning, might represent an important pathway for the formation of low-volatility and highly oxygenated organic species, which would remain in the particle phase after fog/cloud evaporation and affect the chemical and optical properties of atmospheric particles.


2017 ◽  
Vol 4 (6) ◽  
pp. 205-210 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ran Zhao ◽  
Dana Aljawhary ◽  
Alex K. Y. Lee ◽  
Jonathan P. D. Abbatt

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (13) ◽  
pp. eabe2952
Author(s):  
Houssni Lamkaddam ◽  
Josef Dommen ◽  
Ananth Ranjithkumar ◽  
Hamish Gordon ◽  
Günther Wehrle ◽  
...  

Aerosols still present the largest uncertainty in estimating anthropogenic radiative forcing. Cloud processing is potentially important for secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation, a major aerosol component: however, laboratory experiments fail to mimic this process under atmospherically relevant conditions. We developed a wetted-wall flow reactor to simulate aqueous-phase processing of isoprene oxidation products (iOP) in cloud droplets. We find that 50 to 70% (in moles) of iOP partition into the aqueous cloud phase, where they rapidly react with OH radicals, producing SOA with a molar yield of 0.45 after cloud droplet evaporation. Integrating our experimental results into a global model, we show that clouds effectively boost the amount of SOA. We conclude that, on a global scale, cloud processing of iOP produces 6.9 Tg of SOA per year or approximately 20% of the total biogenic SOA burden and is the main source of SOA in the mid-troposphere (4 to 6 km).


2016 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 1245-1254 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. P. Riedel ◽  
Y.-H. Lin ◽  
Z. Zhang ◽  
K. Chu ◽  
J. A. Thornton ◽  
...  

Abstract. Isomeric epoxydiols from isoprene photooxidation (IEPOX) have been shown to produce substantial amounts of secondary organic aerosol (SOA) mass and are therefore considered a major isoprene-derived SOA precursor. Heterogeneous reactions of IEPOX on atmospheric aerosols form various aerosol-phase components or "tracers" that contribute to the SOA mass burden. A limited number of the reaction rate constants for these acid-catalyzed aqueous-phase tracer formation reactions have been constrained through bulk laboratory measurements. We have designed a chemical box model with multiple experimental constraints to explicitly simulate gas- and aqueous-phase reactions during chamber experiments of SOA growth from IEPOX uptake onto acidic sulfate aerosol. The model is constrained by measurements of the IEPOX reactive uptake coefficient, IEPOX and aerosol chamber wall losses, chamber-measured aerosol mass and surface area concentrations, aerosol thermodynamic model calculations, and offline filter-based measurements of SOA tracers. By requiring the model output to match the SOA growth and offline filter measurements collected during the chamber experiments, we derive estimates of the tracer formation reaction rate constants that have not yet been measured or estimated for bulk solutions.


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