Atmospheric Soil Organic Particles
EMSL Project ID
49218
Abstract
Recent discovery of atmospheric soil organic particles (ASOP), emitted through previously unrecognized atmosphere-land-surface interactions, suggests that ASOP may have a widespread impact over a broad range of geographic regions. Yet, the environmental effects of ASOP, their region-specific sources, emission rates, chemical composition, and physical properties have not been studied. The ASOP phenomenon lies at the intersection of the atmospheric, climate, soil, meteorological, and aerosol sciences. Systematic investigation of this newly discovered phenomenon will have important implications for multiple aspects of environmental science. Initial results from the scientific team involved in this proposal revealed unique properties of ASOP (macro-molecular organic composition, solid (glassy) phase and refractory nature) and indicated their potential to affect the atmospheric environment and the global carbon cycle.
The objective of the proposed EMSL research campaign is to conduct in-depth studies of ASOP for predictive understanding of their environmental impact. The ultimate goal is to provide fundamental data necessary for knowledge-based parameterization of ASOP in atmospheric and climate models. The project will use a holistic approach to carry the science from molecular-level studies to climate modeling applications. We will integrate observations from field and laboratory studies to elucidate the fundamental processes governing generation, aging, and evolution of ASOP composition, optical properties, and implications for particle-cloud interactions -- the most challenging problems relevant to predictive knowledge of aerosol effects on climate. Theoretical approaches including quantum chemistry calculations, molecular dynamics simulations, and theoretical treatments of particle surfaces, will be used to interpret the experimental data. The insights gained from the experiments and theory will be integrated into an atmospheric model to assess the implications of ASOP on local to regional scales.
Project Details
Start Date
2016-02-25
End Date
2016-09-30
Status
Closed
Released Data Link
Team
Principal Investigator
Co-Investigator(s)
Team Members
Related Publications
Bluvshtein N, P Lin, JM Flores, L Segev, Y Mazar, E Tas, G Snider, C Weagle, S Brown, A Laskin, and Y Rudich. 2017. "Broadband optical properties of biomass-burning aerosol and identification of brown carbon chromophores." Journal of Geophysical Research. D. (Atmospheres) 122(10):5441-5456. doi:10.1002/2016JD026230
Lin P, PK Aiona, Y Li, M Shiraiwa, J Laskin, S Nizkorodov, and A Laskin. 2016. "Molecular Characterization of Brown Carbon in Biomass Burning Aerosol Particles." Environmental Science & Technology 50(21):11815-11824. doi:10.1021/acs.est.6b03024