Simulating secondary organic aerosol from missing diesel-related intermediate-volatility organic compound emissions during the Clean Air for London (ClearfLo) campaign
Artikel i vetenskaplig tidskrift, 2016

We present high-resolution (5km × 5km) atmospheric chemical transport model (ACTM) simulations of the impact of newly estimated traffic-related emissions on secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation over the UK for 2012. Our simulations include additional diesel-related intermediate-volatility organic compound (IVOC) emissions derived directly from comprehensive field measurements at an urban background site in London during the 2012 Clean Air for London (ClearfLo) campaign. Our IVOC emissions are added proportionally to VOC emissions, as opposed to proportionally to primary organic aerosol (POA) as has been done by previous ACTM studies seeking to simulate the effects of these missing emissions. Modelled concentrations are evaluated against hourly and daily measurements of organic aerosol (OA) components derived from aerosol mass spectrometer (AMS) measurements also made during the ClearfLo campaign at three sites in the London area. According to the model simulations, diesel-related IVOCs can explain on average  ∼ 30% of the annual SOA in and around London. Furthermore, the 90th percentile of modelled daily SOA concentrations for the whole year is 3.8µgm−3, constituting a notable addition to total particulate matter. More measurements of these precursors (currently not included in official emissions inventories) is recommended. During the period of concurrent measurements, SOA concentrations at the Detling rural background location east of London were greater than at the central London location. The model shows that this was caused by an intense pollution plume with a strong gradient of imported SOA passing over the rural location. This demonstrates the value of modelling for supporting the interpretation of measurements taken at different sites or for short durations.

Författare

Riinu Ots

Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)

University of Edinburgh

Dominique E. Young

University of Manchester

M. Vieno

Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)

Lu Xu

Georgia Institute of Technology

Rachel E. Dunmore

University of York

James D. Allan

University of Manchester

Hugh Coe

University of Manchester

Leah R. Williams

Aerodyne Research, Inc.

S. C. Herndon

Aerodyne Research, Inc.

Nga L. Ng

Georgia Institute of Technology

Jacqueline F. Hamilton

University of York

Robert Bergström

SMHI

Göteborgs universitet

Chiara Di Marco

Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)

E. Nemitz

Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)

Ian A. Mackenzie

University of Edinburgh

Jeroen J. P. Kuenen

TNO Innovation for Life

David C. Green

King's College London

S. Reis

University of Exeter Medical School

Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)

M. R. Heal

University of Edinburgh

Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics

1680-7316 (ISSN) 1680-7324 (eISSN)

Vol. 16 10 6453-6473

Drivkrafter

Hållbar utveckling

Styrkeområden

Transport

Ämneskategorier (SSIF 2011)

Meteorologi och atmosfärforskning

Miljövetenskap

Fundament

Grundläggande vetenskaper

DOI

10.5194/acp-16-6453-2016

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Senast uppdaterat

2026-03-23