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Isaacman-VanWertz G, Frazier G, Willison J, Faiola C. Missing Measurements of Sesquiterpene Ozonolysis Rates and Composition Limit Understanding of Atmospheric Reactivity. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2024; 58:7937-7946. [PMID: 38669108 PMCID: PMC11080055 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.3c10348] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2023] [Revised: 04/17/2024] [Accepted: 04/18/2024] [Indexed: 04/28/2024]
Abstract
Emissions of biogenic reactive carbon significantly influence atmospheric chemistry, contributing to the formation and destruction of secondary pollutants, such as secondary organic aerosol and ozone. While isoprene and monoterpenes are a major fraction of emissions and have been extensively studied, substantially less is known about the atmospheric impacts of higher-molecular-weight terpenes such as sesquiterpenes. In particular, sesquiterpenes have been proposed to play a significant role in ozone chemical loss due to the very high ozone reaction rates of certain isomers. However, relatively little data are available on the isomer-resolved composition of this compound class or its role in ozone chemistry. This study examines the chemical diversity of sesquiterpenes and availability of ozone reaction rate constants to evaluate the current understanding of their ozone reactivity. Sesquiterpenes are found to be highly diverse, with 72 different isomers reported and relatively few isomers that contribute a large mass fraction across all studies. For the small number of isomers with known ozone reaction rates, estimated rates may be 25 times higher or lower than measurements, indicating that estimated reaction rates are highly uncertain. Isomers with known ozone reaction rates make up approximately half of the mass of sesquiterpenes in concentration and emission measurements. Consequently, the current state of the knowledge suggests that the total ozone reactivity of sesquiterpenes cannot be quantified without very high uncertainty, even if isomer-resolved composition is known. These results are in contrast to monoterpenes, which are less diverse and for which ozone reaction rates are well-known, and in contrast to hydroxyl reactivity of monoterpenes and sesquiterpenes, for which reaction rates can be reasonably well estimated. Improved measurements of a relatively small number of sesquiterpene isomers would reduce uncertainties and improve our understanding of their role in regional and global ozone chemistry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gabriel Isaacman-VanWertz
- Charles
E. Via, Jr. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, United States
| | - Graham Frazier
- Charles
E. Via, Jr. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, United States
| | - Jeff Willison
- U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency, Research
Triangle Park, Durham, North Carolina 27709, United States
| | - Celia Faiola
- Department
of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University
of California Irvine, Irvine, California 92697-2525, United States
- Department
of Chemistry, University of California Irvine, Irvine, California 92697-2525, United States
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Heald CL, Gouw JD, Goldstein AH, Guenther AB, Hayes PL, Hu W, Isaacman-VanWertz G, Jimenez JL, Keutsch FN, Koss AR, Misztal PK, Rappenglück B, Roberts JM, Stevens PS, Washenfelder RA, Warneke C, Young CJ. Contrasting Reactive Organic Carbon Observations in the Southeast United States (SOAS) and Southern California (CalNex). ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2020; 54:14923-14935. [PMID: 33205951 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.0c05027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Despite the central role of reactive organic carbon (ROC) in the formation of secondary species that impact global air quality and climate, our assessment of ROC abundance and impacts is challenged by the diversity of species that contribute to it. We revisit measurements of ROC species made during two field campaigns in the United States: the 2013 SOAS campaign in forested Centreville, AL, and the 2010 CalNex campaign in urban Pasadena, CA. We find that average measured ROC concentrations are about twice as high in Pasadena (73.8 μgCsm-3) than in Centreville (36.5 μgCsm-3). However, the OH reactivity (OHR) measured at these sites is similar (20.1 and 19.3 s-1). The shortfall in OHR when summing up measured contributions is 31%, at Pasadena and 14% at Centreville, suggesting that there may be a larger reservoir of unmeasured ROC at the former site. Estimated O3 production and SOA potential (defined as concentration × yield) are both higher during CalNex than SOAS. This analysis suggests that the ROC in urban California is less reactive, but due to higher concentrations of oxides of nitrogen and hydroxyl radicals, is more efficient in terms of O3 and SOA production, than in the forested southeastern U.S.
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Affiliation(s)
- Colette L Heald
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, United States
| | - Joost de Gouw
- Department of Chemistry, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
- Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
| | - Allen H Goldstein
- Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
| | - Alex B Guenther
- Department of Earth System Science, University of California, Irvine,California 92697, United States
| | - Patrick L Hayes
- Department of Chemistry, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
| | - Weiwei Hu
- Department of Chemistry, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
- Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
| | - Gabriel Isaacman-VanWertz
- Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
| | - Jose L Jimenez
- Department of Chemistry, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
- Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
| | - Frank N Keutsch
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, United States
| | - Abigail R Koss
- Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
- Chemical Sciences Laboratory, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Boulder, Colorado 80305, United States
| | - Pawel K Misztal
- Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
| | - Bernhard Rappenglück
- Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Houston, Houston, Texas 77204, United States
| | - James M Roberts
- Chemical Sciences Laboratory, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Boulder, Colorado 80305, United States
| | - Philip S Stevens
- O'Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana 47405, United States
- Department of Chemistry, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana 47405, United States
| | - Rebecca A Washenfelder
- Chemical Sciences Laboratory, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Boulder, Colorado 80305, United States
| | - Carsten Warneke
- Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
- Chemical Sciences Laboratory, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Boulder, Colorado 80305, United States
| | - Cora J Young
- Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
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Thornton JA, Mohr C, Schobesberger S, D’Ambro EL, Lee BH, Lopez-Hilfiker FD. Evaluating Organic Aerosol Sources and Evolution with a Combined Molecular Composition and Volatility Framework Using the Filter Inlet for Gases and Aerosols (FIGAERO). Acc Chem Res 2020; 53:1415-1426. [PMID: 32648739 DOI: 10.1021/acs.accounts.0c00259] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
ConspectusThe complex array of sources and transformations of organic carbonaceous material that comprises an important fraction of atmospheric fine particle mass, known as organic aerosol, has presented a long running challenge for accurate predictions of its abundance, distribution, and sensitivity to anthropogenic activities. Uncertainties about changes in atmospheric aerosol particle sources and abundance over time translate to uncertainties in their impact on Earth's climate and their response to changes in air quality policy. One limitation in our understanding of organic aerosol has been a lack of comprehensive measurements of its molecular composition and volatility, which can elucidate sources and processes affecting its abundance. Herein we describe advances in the development and application of the Filter Inlet for Gases and Aerosols (FIGAERO) coupled to field-deployable High-Resolution Time-of-Flight Chemical Ionization Mass Spectrometers (HRToF-CIMS). The FIGAERO HRToFCIMS combination broadly probes gas and particulate OA molecular composition by using programmed thermal desorption of particles collected on a Teflon filter with subsequent detection and speciation of desorbed vapors using inherently quantitative selected-ion chemical ionization. The thermal desorption provides a means to obtain quantitative insights into the volatility of particle components and thus the physicochemical nature of the organic material that will govern its evolution in the atmosphere.In this Account, we discuss the design and operation of the FIGAERO, when coupled to the HRToF-CIMS, for quantitative characterization of the molecular-level composition and effective volatility of organic aerosol in the laboratory and field. We provide example insights gleaned from its deployment, which improve our understanding of organic aerosol sources and evolution. Specifically, we connect thermal desorption profiles to the effective equilibrium saturation vapor concentration and enthalpy of vaporization of detected components. We also show how application of the FIGAERO HRToF-CIMS to environmental simulation chamber experiments and the field provide new insights and constraints on the chemical mechanisms governing secondary organic aerosol formation and dynamic evolution. We discuss the associated challenges of thermal decomposition during desorption and calibration of both the volatility axis and signal. We also illustrate how the FIGAERO HRToF-CIMS can provide additional insights into organic aerosol through isothermal evaporation experiments as well as for detection of ultrafine particulate composition. We conclude with a description of future opportunities and needs for its ability to further organic aerosol science.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joel A. Thornton
- Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Washington, 408 ATG Building, 3920 Okanogan Lane NE, Seattle, Washington 98195, United States
| | - Claudia Mohr
- Department of Environmental Science, Stockholm University, Svante Arrhenius Väg 8, Stockholm 10691, Sweden
| | - Siegfried Schobesberger
- Department of Applied Physics, University of Eastern Finland, Yliopistonranta 1 F, Kuopio 70210, Finland
| | - Emma L. D’Ambro
- Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education, P.O. Box 117, Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37831-0117, United States
| | - Ben H. Lee
- Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Washington, 408 ATG Building, 3920 Okanogan Lane NE, Seattle, Washington 98195, United States
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