Characterization of Rural Aerosol in Southern Germany (HAZE 2002)
A detailed study of chemical and microphysical aerosol properties was performed in May 2002 at the Meteorological Observatory Hohenpeissenberg in rural southern Germany (Hohenpeissenberg Aerosol Characterization Experiment, HAZE 2002). The measurements included quantitative mass spectrometric (AMS) analysis of submicron particles, number concentration and size distribution between 3 nm and 9 m diameter, and filter sampling followed by several offline analysis methods including the determination of protein mass, PAHs, and dicarboxylic acids. In addition, ambient levels of OH, H2SO4, monoterpenes, ozone, and other gases were measured. Comparison between the submicron mass composition identified by AMS (ammonium: 11%, nitrate: 19%, sulfate: 20%, organics (OM1): 50%) and the PM2.5 derived from high volume filter samples showed that 62% of the PM2.5 consisted of non-refractory compounds in the <1 μm diameter size range. The average OM1:OC2.5 ratio was 2.07. OM1 and PM1 were highly correlated and showed that constantly about 50% of the submicron mass fraction consisted of organic material. New particle formation occurred during daytime with peak values of up to 14,000 particles/cm3. These events were most likely triggered by fast photochemical formation of H2SO4followed by ternary H2SO4/H2O/NH3 nucleation. Ambient temperature ranging between 14°C and 32°C during the campaign was inversely correlated with the amount of ammonium nitrate in the aerosol consistent with corresponding thermodynamic calculations.
Keywords Rural aerosol characterization, organic aerosol constituents, aerosol nucleation
KeywordsAmmonium Nitrate Meteorological Observatory Global Atmosphere Watch Chemical Ionization Mass Spectrometer Aerosol Nucleation
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