Jonathan H. Slade

Multiphase OH oxidation kinetics of organic aerosol: The role of particle phase state and relative humidity

Organic aerosol can exhibit different phase states in response to changes in relative humidity (RH), thereby influencing heterogeneous reaction rates with trace gas species. OH radical uptake by laboratory-generated levoglucosan and methyl-nitrocatechol particles, serving as surrogates for biomass burning aerosol, is determined as a function of RH. Increasing RH lowers the viscosity of amorphous levoglucosan aerosol particles enabling enhanced OH uptake. Conversely, OH uptake by methyl-nitrocatechol aerosol particles is suppressed at higher RH as a result of competitive coadsorption of H2O that occupies reactive sites. This is shown to have substantial impacts on organic aerosol lifetimes with respect to OH oxidation. The results emphasize the importance of organic aerosol phase state to accurately describe the multiphase chemical kinetics and thus chemical aging process in atmospheric models to better represent the evolution of organic aerosol and its role in air quality and climate.

Multiphase Chemical Kinetics of OH Radical Uptake by Molecular Organic Markers of Biomass Burning Aerosols: Humidity and Temperature Dependence, Surface Reaction, and Bulk Diffusion

Multiphase reactions of OH radicals are among the most important pathways of chemical aging of organic aerosols in the atmosphere. Reactive uptake of OH by organic compounds has been observed in a number of studies, but the kinetics of mass transport and chemical reaction are still not fully understood. Here we apply the kinetic multilayer model of gas-particle interactions (KM-GAP) to experimental data from OH exposure studies of levoglucosan and abietic acid, which serve as surrogates and molecular markers of biomass burning aerosol (BBA). The model accounts for gas-phase diffusion within a cylindrical coated-wall flow tube, reversible adsorption of OH, surface-bulk exchange, bulk diffusion, and chemical reactions at the surface and in the bulk of the condensed phase. The nonlinear dependence of OH uptake coefficients on reactant concentrations and time can be reproduced by KM-GAP. We find that the bulk diffusion coefficient of the organic molecules is approximately 10(-16) cm(2) s(-1), reflecting an amorphous semisolid state of the organic substrates. The OH uptake is governed by reaction at or near the surface and can be kinetically limited by surface-bulk exchange or bulk diffusion of the organic reactants. Estimates of the chemical half-life of levoglucosan in 200 nm particles in a biomass burning plume increase from 1 day at high relative humidity to 1 week under dry conditions. In BBA particles transported to the free troposphere, the chemical half-life of levoglucosan can exceed 1 month due to slow bulk diffusion in a glassy matrix at low temperature.

Cloud droplet activation through oxidation of organic aerosol influenced by temperature and particle phase state: CLOUD ACTIVATION BY AGED ORGANIC AEROSOL

Chemical aging of organic aerosol (OA) through multiphase oxidation reactions can alter their cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) activity and hygroscopicity. However, the oxidation kinetics and OA reactivity depend strongly on the particle phase state, potentially influencing the hydrophobic-to-hydrophilic conversion rate of carbonaceous aerosol. Here, amorphous Suwannee River fulvic acid (SRFA) aerosol particles, a surrogate humic-like substance (HULIS) that contributes substantially to global OA mass, are oxidized by OH radicals at different temperatures and phase states. When oxidized at low temperature in a glassy solid state, the hygroscopicity of SRFA particles increased by almost a factor of two, whereas oxidation of liquid-like SRFA particles at higher temperatures did not affect CCN activity. Low-temperature oxidation appears to promote the formation of highly-oxygenated particle-bound fragmentation products with lower molar mass and greater CCN activity, underscoring the importance of chemical aging in the free troposphere and its influence on the CCN activity of OA.